After spending a good part of Christmas morning in the airport (Ryan’s flight left 4 hours before mine) and a flight to Costa Rica and drive from San Jose to Quepos, I could relax! The drive was beautiful in Costa Rica.
I am staying in Quepos for a few days to hike Manuel Antonio to find sloths and other wildlife. For the first day, the park is closed so I walked around Quepos and planned other tours for my visit.
Snorkeling
I booked a snorkeling tour that started just before lunchtime. It was decent snorkeling in the first spot but the great barrier reef and summer other places I have been had more fish. Of course it was low tide which could make a difference.
Ryan and I traveled to Secret Garden in Cotopaxi. It was easy as they transferred you from the Secret Garden in Quito to the one near the volcano. It is an active volcano but lessening in activity over the last year.
Secret Garden
Secret Garden is an amazing hostal. We started in the hobbit house which was for a single or family. The food was amazing and there is so much to eat and the views were incredible.
The hobbit house we stayed at.They have llamas that love bananas. Since they are an everyday snack to take at will, there are many skins saved here for the llamas that we are encouraged to feed. This one comes running.Cotopaxi
Cotopaxi
Cotopaxi is in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador and is one of the highest active volcanoes in the world. It is 5,897 meters (19,347 feet) high, and its almost perfect cone shape at the summit always has snow. The volcano is part of the Cotopaxi National Park. From the hostal, you can see it and two other volcanoes.
Though it is still active, climbing can occur up to the glacier but not to the summit.
This is Ruminahui which is a dormant and heavily eroded volcano. Climbing it requires rock climbing.Iliniza north and south volcanoes. These twin mountains are literally 1 km from each other.
Pasachoa is another notable peak near the hostal but with my knee still not at 100%, it was not worth the risk. Ryan went on that hike though.
The paramo
A paramo is a unique high-altitude ecosystem found in the Andes Mountains, and is found between 3,000 and 4,500 meters (9,800 to 14,800 feet) in elevation. It is alpine tundra. The vegetation is grasses and shrubs that are adapted to the harsh environmental conditions. Temperatures can be cold and the weather changes drastically. The UV radiation here is high. Paramos play a crucial role in regulating water. Paramos support diverse wildlife, including unique bird species and mammals adapted to the challenging mountain environment. The horses and llamas here are wild.
I took a horse back riding tour across the paramo. It was amazing and very beautiful.
We stopped to have a snack midway through the hike.
Cotopaxi glacier
The glacier is at an altitude of 5100 m or 16732 ft. It was tough in breathing but not very difficult. The volcanic ash made for summer find descending back down.
Ryan rented a bike to ride down from part of the volcano.
Pichincha
Earlier in the week we went to Pichincha which is not far from my house and the city. It is an active volcano but the part that you can climb is not active. We did not climb the whole route but had impressive views of the city.
I’ve been to mindo once but did not do the bird watching tours. Since Ryan was visiting I thought an overnight trip to mindo would let him see a different view of Ecuador. It is literally over the mountain that we were on the day before but takes a few hours to get there. Lower in elevation, it is warmer and more sub tropical. This was also the first time I drove a car in Ecuador. It was a beautiful drive reminding me of western pa country roads but a lot steeper hills.
Food
I have been so excited to share some great Ecuadorian foods with my son.
Delicious empanadas.Hummingbird watching while we ate.Patacones. Fried plantains with cheese.
Bird watching
I have a list of the birds that I saw but have yet to match the names to the pictures. These are just some of the pictures.
Can you see the green toucan? He camouflages well This fern moves when touched.
Interesting beetle.Mindo is not jungle but called the cloud forest. The release of water vapor from the leaves of trees condenses into clouds along the tree line.Breakfast in the country.The 88 butterfly. I know, it looks like 89.
Yellow throated toucan
The central American Agouti. A small mammal.
Coffee and chocolate tour
Lights on the park at night.
The birds we saw:
Mindo–Vía a las cascadas (Waterfall trail) dic 20, 2023 6:07 a. m. Con Desplazamiento 10.81 km 220 minutos ¿Reportaste todas las especies? No Comentarios:
On Sundays, the major street Rio de Amazonas closes one side fire bikes and runners. Or is a great way to get from north to south without having to worry about a lot of traffic. It is closed for about 6 hours. I loved riding towards the historical center as it is so beautiful. Here there are no descriptions, but just pictures.
In Ecuador, Dia de los Difuntos, or the Day of the Dead, has indigenous roots and Catholic traditions and it’s celebrated on all souls day, November 2nd.
Preparations for Dia de los Difuntos involve crafting colorful altars with photographs, favorite foods, and cherished belongings. The bread, “guaguas de pan” (bread babies) and the drink “colada morada” (purple porridge made with purple corn flour and fruits that is served warm) are symbolic culinary gifts to the departed but are mostly shared as a sense of community.
My school had a 3 day weekend but there were plenty of festivities including observing American Halloween.
There were dancing competitions by grade level.I dressed as weird barbie.The elementary school had their own Halloween celebration.Guaguas de panThe ingredients for colada morada
It was a pretty fun time learning about the traditions in a new country.
After a day off meeting Pam, a friend of Susan’s and another couple we met, I am really glad that I talked with others about their experience here. Their insights and suggestions is what I was looking for.
I really love this place. It feels like a small town but has so many arts and other activities. It is very walkable and safe. It is definitely a contender for retirement.
Encebollado, one of the world’s soups one should try. This has fish in it.Lots of dancing expeditions during the festival.So many murals. This is one made of mosaics.So many artisan tents along the city. I want to come back here when there is not a festival to see what the city has to offer The church in San Francisco square.Shopping the river and throughout the city there are so many beautiful buildings.
We took a city bus tour on the last morning to get a different view of some of the areas. Turi was beautiful with a church on the hill and a view of the whole city.
Other views of the city during the celebration.
In El Calderon park. Many activities and a mini parade.
Since day of the dead is over with and there is no Thanksgiving, I should be allowed to put up Christmas decorations as seen by these stores. Agreed?
I know many more are thinking that it is crazy to live somewhere else in the world but I am really liking it here. It is the time after moving here when the newness wears off and you are wondering what you are doing here, but I don’t feel that way. I really love this place and can see splitting my time between Ecuador and the US.
On the way to visit various towns outside of Cuenca, we stopped at a museum and exhibition of spinning and weaving. The spinning of the yarn uses a drop spindle similar to what I’ve used and seen. They also color the yarns similarly as other places of the world.
The weaving however is much different. They sit on the floor and the work is done with the arms instead of using peddles to tighten the weft threads.
Winding the warp threadsTying areas of the threads before dying.Dying methods.Weaving.Weaning the weft thread.Knitting the fringe.
Another cute little town but seemed to sell many shoes as witnessed by the number of people in each of the stores. Since my size is hard to find here I didn’t go into the stores.
Chorteleg
Chorteleg is a cute little town. It is known for its silver and gold industry especially filigree designs. Of course I bought some jewelry.
Artisanal beers with my friend Susan.A specific design that is unique to Chorteleg.This is a beautiful ring.I couldn’t resist turtles.
On the way back to Cuenca we stopped at San Fransisco square.
Note the mannequins on there balconies of the pink building.Tortillas de Tiesto.
After arriving back in Cuenca we listened to some singers and danced a bit in the square. Quite the fun day.
On the walking tour of Cuenca, our guide pointed out the newly elected vice president was here. I went to take a closer picture, and an aide noticed me and asked if I wanted to speak to her. I said yes. He announced I was an extranjero (foreigner). I told her I lived and worked in Quito and love Ecuador. I did that in Spanish. I was amazed at how close everyone was to her and how little security there was.
The cathedral
The cathedral is amazing. It had been designed by someone in Europe but the full design could not be realized as the building materials were different to make such a tall design. Because of this they did not put a bell in the tower.
The history of the cathedral dates back to the reconquest of Cuenca by Alfonso VIII of Castile in 1177. The cathedral was actually constructed on the site of a former mosque, and I wonder what conqueror brought that religion in and when. The initial construction of the cathedral took place during the transition from the Romanesque to Gothic period, resulting in a unique blend of architecture. Subsequent renovations and additions were with the last restoration in the 20th century after a tower collapsed.
The glass in the domes came from Spain. The marble in the cathedral from Italy.
View from the top looking over what used to be the convent and now is a commercial center and restaurants.Looking up where the bell should be.Looking out over the central town square.
The tiles in the towers came from Czechoslovakia.
The town square
A young revolutionary who despite being wounded, crawled to the top of the highest hill to plant the independence flag.Celebrations in the square for independence day.
Food
The largest plantain chips I have seen.Espumilla . It looks and tastes like a wet meringue. Not too sweet. They put it in an ice cream cone. It is delicious and it’s made with fresh fruit puree.Locra de papa. Potato soup with cheese, mota (corn), and avocado. With some added aji (pepper sauce), it is delicious and an Ecuadorian dish.
Other pictures
One of the other churches in Cuenca.The aquiducts created between the four rivers around Cuenca.This drink is said to cure you. Made from rises and a bunch of different herbs and mineral water.The independent and wealthy woman of cuenca who donated large amounts of property to the city.
These are some of the other things I have been doing since arriving in Quito. School of always busy when starting in a new place: new programs to learn, procedures to follow, etc.
Several of the new teachers would go to a few music venues. This one was reggae type music with rap influence.
In my neighborhood is a great gelato place made with local fruits. Very delicious.
Another music event I attended was an afrobeats concert held at an old theater near the historical center. The headliner act is famous in Chile and the whole evening was fantastic. It was difficult to stay in our seats, everyone was dancing.
The opening band played classical jazz. They were amazing.Afrobeats.
I’ve had a few medical appointments about my knee. Walking home after one of them I spotted this place that had Bolivian empanadas
Colada morada is a warm drink made with a large quantity of ingredients including various fruits and purple corn flour. It is thick and actually quite tasty. It is seen here around various holidays including Day of the Dead. Along with a cheese empanada, it was delicious.
I have also never been to a professional soccer game. The stadium is close to school so what better way than to stay after school, grab dinner with friends, and take in a game.
At school, part of the IB program is to complete a G4 project. We took the students to the museum on the equator. It is actually along the equator as determined by GPS (I have been at the other location of where they thought it was by using maps).
Balancing an egg on a nail at the equator. Can you only do it here? Actually no. It just takes practice.A blacksmith hummingbird. It makes a heavy striking sound when it sings.
We have also hosted a BBQ at our place. So great to see people out of school.
What a great group of people I work with. There is often a suggestion for a trip that someone starts and quickly a group is put together. This weekend was a trip to Quilotoa. We rented a can to pick us up from school and after around 3 hours we arrived at the black sheep inn.
The drive there was amazing with all of the vistas.
Our destination is way out in the distance.
Black sheep inn is an eco hostel that serves vegetarian food only and focused on nature and preserving and conserving resources. They have a great facility and full meals and snacks all day long. Add in massages, helping with transport to hikes, games and things to do.
Beautiful lodge for meals and gathering.The bunk house with quad rooms to share.Yoga room with hammocks.Single house with private bathroom. All others are shared. This is where I stayed as I love privacy and sleep as I am a very light sleeper.It did get chilly here at night as it is 1000 feet higher than Quito. It is a little cooler here.Composting toilet. It is a pit toilet that you sprinkle bits of leaves etc. for composting.Private shower with hot water. Worth the extra 40 dollars a night.
They have one very friendly cat, named Choco who loved to hang out around my house.
On Saturday, trucks picked us up to go to Quilotoa. The ride had some other great views of mountains. These two peaks are husband and wife, esposo y esposa called Ilinazas.
Quilotoa is a water-filled caldera and is one of the must do hikes in Ecuador. The caldera was formed 800 years ago when the cone of the volcano collapsed during a massive eruption. Over the centuries, the caldera filled with water, and now you can hike along the rim of the beautiful crater lake.
The surrounding area is also home to several indigenous communities that have lived in the region for centuries, mainly the Kichwa. They have a rich culture and history and still practice traditional farming. I love how they maintain a deep connection to the land and the natural resources. Of course they have built structures to support and encourage tourism.
The hike is pretty difficult. It is 1000 meters above Quito so the air is thinner. It is also a pretty difficult hike with the ascents and descents. I decided to do one kilometer and then turn back. The full hike of the rim is 5 hours. I chose instead to hike down to the bottom of the crater and back up.
Carrie decided not to do the full hike with me and we headed back to hike down the crater.
At the start of the hike we were all together.
Three dogs followed us and continued most of the way. I think they smelled our lunches we carried.The path from the top where I am standing down to the bottom is 2 km, steep and lots of loose gravel on a path that switches back and forth.Starting the descent down.There were llamas to get pictures with and mules or horses to take you back up.
The path up was very steep and loose gravel of course. We were not in any hurry as our friends were taking a long hike. So we stopped often to take long breaks.
Finally we made it to the top.
At the bottom we met Mario who we spoke to in Spanish. We decided to all have beers since we decided to hike up. He took a muleThis is taken for altitude sickness.A band playing right before we were leaving.Just a girl and her alpaca.
Sunrise the next morning.
The town of Chugchilan is where the inn is at. I walked around the last morning to look at buildings and people.
A great weekend with amazing people. When Carrie and I left the group, everyone hugged and we were wished a safe journey back. People are very friendly and caring
