Let’s go back to 1998 and the most particular wedding that was celebrated on 22nd October of that year. As captain of the Santa Cruz, I was asked specifically to marry a couple, both citizens of the United States. They arrived on board as happy as can be and ready to make their Galápagos dream come true, but I received them with a bit of unfortunate information. I had no double rooms available. They protested, so I told them that, due to my puritan beliefs, I could not place them in the same cabin until they were duly wed, and thus was forced to accommodate them separately. Of course, they wanted their honeymoon to begin the moment they stepped onto the cruise, and asked me to marry them that same night. But I insisted that we had to continue things as planned. They looked so disappointed!

The bride-to-be woke up the next morning ready to go, and coordinated, with me, all the wedding details, while the groom disappeared for the day. She assured me that he’d do exactly what she’d tell him to. And so he did. Everything worked like a charm right up until sundown, when the couple began walking the aisle towards me, so that I could join them in matrimony. Suddenly, however, the bride came to a most unexpected halt. After a moment of confusion, she was finally able to point out to the groom that her dress was opening up from behind every time she took a step. It would have probably come off completely had she not noticed the wind on her back. The incident didn’t spoil the special event, the ceremony, of course, came to its happy end, and the couple, of course, happily returned to their new shared room, which we were able to accommodate. By the end of the trip, they were thrilled. They had realized their once-in-a-lifetime dream together, not only visiting the marvellous Galápagos Islands, but celebrating their wedding there. And by the end of the cruise, they asked me if we could recreate the entire event exactly as it happened in seven years: repeat  the Albatross nuptial dance they performed for each other on Punta Suárez, the separate cabin ordeal included, as well as the dress mishappening (they’d fix the zipper so that it would only fall centimetres)… Seven years later, I received a letter from the husband, telling me they would not be replaying their wedding as promised, because his wife couldn’t even pull the zipper up to the minimum amount needed to keep the dress on.