Islas Ballestas

Islas Ballestas, known as the Poor Man's Galapagos, is a system of protected islands off the coast of Paracas. It is habitat to many different species including: birds, sea lions, penguins, jelly fish, amongst others. As we came up to the Islands I felt a rush of energy, I had never seen wildlife so close and was surprised by the magnificent flux of movement. The rocking of the boat and the closeness to your neighbor made it hard to take pictures so I decided to take in a memory. I focused all my awareness and senses on memorizing the experience. I felt my body move in synch with the motion of the boat on water. I listened to the sounds of the birds and the metallic crashing of the water against the rocky islands. My eyes absorbed the orange green colors of the rocks as I smelled the fresh salty air. I watched the fluid forms of birds swarming the sky and rocks. I focused on the movement of a penguin playfully climbing the cliffs and the sea lions like living extensions of the islands, velvet forms folding over rocks. I watched the bright coral orange flashes that appeared in the milky water, jellyfish, which seemed so out of place, a pleasant surprise to the senses. The tops of the islands were dripping with white, the waste of the guano birds. This place excited a sense of creation in me, as I observed the chaos and peace created by so many different living organisms all together in one place. It was a microcosm, a place where movement met stillness, where one’s only choice is to observe in awe and to surrender to the mystery that is the force of nature.