Galapagos Islands: The Enchanted Isle

An archipelago of volcanic islands scattered around the equator in the Pacific Ocean are the islands of Galapagos. The second of the world’s largest marine and wildlife reserve; voted world’s number 1 scuba diving site from 2000 – 2002, and one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Site.


In 1535, Fray Tomas de Berlanga, the Bishop of Panama, discovered the islands when his ship was swept off course in the Pacific. A Flemish cartographer named Orteliu first named “Isolas de Galápagos” in 1570. The name “Galapagos” is a Spanish word for saddle, after the many saddleback tortoises found in the islands. It was known as “Las Encantadas” (the Enchanted Isles), for the perilous currents, and frequent disappearance of the islands in the mist. Read more...

***All Images used are from Google Images