Sunbathing without enemies

When you visit the Galapagos Islands, something happens to you....

Anyway, something happened to me. While in Africa or Asia you feel relatively safe during a jeep safari and you have left your vulnerability at home, this is different when you arrive on one of the Galapagos Islands. I immediately feel like a guest and I respectfully walk around the many iguanas that block the path. I wonder who and for whom that path actually is.

I wonder who owns the path. Humans? Animals? Who are the heavy users here?

The people who come to walk around there for a few days or the animal residents themselves who have no enemies?

Later I stumble upon a group of sea lions sunbathing on the beach. They look verr relaxed when they lift their heads to see who is coming. When they see it's me, they're not impressed, but they are curious.

I carefully sit down with them and they don’t make any attempts to move. Because even though these animals seem very cuddly, I would be lost if it turned into a fight. So I'm on my guard and feeling vulnerable. If they still seem very relaxed after a few minutes, I take a deeper breath and even start talking to them. I have long conversations with them and they all seem to be fine with it. It is so incredibly special to experience that these animals have no fear of humans whatsoever.

Actually, I think we can learn quite a bit from these animals on the Galapagos Islands. What would happen if we humans no longer feared our fellow man? Does curiosity remain? Sounds like a nice experiment!