banos & quito

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Our final few days were spent in Banos, on the skirts of the Tungurahua volcano which slept peacefully the whole time we were there. It was erupting just a few months ago and we did hope to see some smoking but there was no action. Banos is a great little town on the road toward the amazon, with 2 central squares, lots to do, very pretty and everything within walking distance. There are some great hikes up to beautiful miradors overlooking the town and valley, numerous thermal baths and waterfalls are everywhere. They have lots of stalls selling the sugar cane toffee, they make it in Banos, you can also get a fresh pressed glass of sugar cane juice and lots of vendors with BBQ pollo on a skewer.

We did a 5 hour horseback trip one day (easy way to hike). We took pathways up to the Virgin Statue which overlooks and protects the town. We also walked up the valley which would have given us a beautiful view of the volcano except for clouds that day. We saw a stream that bubbled up from underground and smelled of sulphur, I've never seen anything like that before. During eruptions its more of a geyser than a stream. The landscape was so beautiful, with fresh wind coming up from the oriente. Coolest part of the horseback trip was a stop at a cafe that you could only get to via cable seat ride across the gorge. One at a time our guide sat us in the seat and with a push off you go, hoping it holds.....

Next day we rented bikes for the ride downhill towards Puyo. The first 20kms was the part we most wanted to see. I didn't expect to make it all the way to Puyo which is 60kms down. It took all day because we stopped everywhere. This road is the highway so I was a bit worried about the kids but they were fine, all the buses and trucks gave us plenty of room. The road kind of branches off a bit as they've made tunnels through the mountains for traffic and kept the old road along the gorge for cyclists. We had to go through one tunnel and around all the others. The road follows the river and all along the way are waterfalls, cable cars, hikes, zip lining, etc as you follow the river down towards amazonia. It was a highlight for us. Every waterfall was worth seeing, usually via cable car, the last one Paillon del Diablo falls just about killed me because you have to hike down to it, and then back up, the kids and doug crawled up through a cave to stand behind the falls. Sophie was brave enough to take a zip line across the gorge. it went so far we could no longer see her at the end. Another lady rode Sophie's bike the km downhill so we could meet her at the other end. When she wasn't there we were only worried for a minute when we realised how far she had to hike to get to the bridge, finally we saw her coming. Sophie told us her zip stalled over the river and the guys catching her had to pull her in by a rope. She was too light to make it all the way, we didn't know because we couldn't see that far. I laugh now at being worried about biking on the highway yet sending my kid down a zip line where I can't see the end and she has to hike alone through the forest to find us......

Then we took a truck back to Banos, bikes and all.

Sophie and I spent the evening getting massages, facials, mani & pedi, almost 3hours for $43.

Final day in Quito was spent at the Capilla del Hombre. This art gallery, the Chapel of Man and the home where Guayasamin lived and is buried now, is a collection of Ecuador's most famous artist's works and should not be seen without a guide. We were left with a lump in our throat and goosebumps.

The 3hr drive to get from Banos to Quito was rainy but we had a beautiful sunny day for the art gallery and some walking around the city nearby... these areas Bellavista to Carolina Park are where the affluent people live. Beautiful condos up the hillside, Beautiful park, large mall with high end shops, wealth is here but between the mercedes & bmws at the red lights you'll still see 6year olds trying to sell corn to the drivers.

El Ecuador, un pais pequeno y hermoso. Queremos volver un dia.

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Photos

quick rinse in a tub of water
and... next customer drinks from the glass

the kids at the virgin hair
waterfall in front of our hotel