Blogs from South, Ecuador, South America - page 66

The Fam So we just spent our first night with our host families and mine is wonderful. It was a little awkward because we all got in a line and walked into a huge room where they called out our name and our parents came up to get us with flowers for us. We kind of felt like we were being auctioned off, but our parents are really nice. My mom, as I said before, is only 20, but she is very welcoming. She knows some english, which is also very helpful. I absolutely love our father because he´s really goofy. He makes little sound effects and hand motions all the time. He´s hilarious. (Of course they are nothing compared to my own parents, but I guess they´ll do :) ) My dad reminds me a ... read more

Cuenca Next stop was the colonial town of Cuenca - about 5 hours south of Baños. Yet another hair-raising bus ride... how I wish they wouldn´t speed round corners when there are huge drops on the side of the road!!!! But we made it to Cuenca (only with a little delay due to a bike race...). Our hostel was in a great location.. made up for the wooden-plank style beds. There was a terrace and kitchen overlooking one of the main plazas and had a fantastic view of the rest of the city. We spent most of the time wandering around Cuenca... going into the food and flower markets. Seeing all the old colonial churches, plazas and streets. There wasn´t much going on in Cuenca so we next headed over to Guayaquil and on to Puerto ... read more

I shudder at reading Joe´s last entry about the people of Riobamba. We woke up yesterday morning to find that a nuclear winter had descended over the city. The sky was a murky brown and it looked like a heavy snow storm was engulfing the region. This turned out to be volcanic ash from the biggest Tungurahua volcano eruption of all time. Banos was completely evactuated the night we left and is now unreachable by road, 150000 ´people are now either displaced or without electricty. The Ecuadorian government has declared a state of emergency in the area. The streets of Riobabamba were ankle deep in dust which swirled everywhere , pervading our eyes and mouths. People had umbrellas up to protect themselves from the constant drizzle of volcanic fallout. All the shops were shut and no ... read more

On Thursday we went to town to find a good guide to take us on a 2-day horseback trek. We had read wonderful reviews of a New Zealander named Gavin, and another couple staying in our hostel had gone with him and loved it. He charges $70 per person for 2 days, which includes all meals etc., and we managed to convince our new friends Lew and Anita to come with us. Seeing Gavin´s office in town it becomes immediately clear that he is a character! He is a thrice round the world traveler, and has been living in Vilcabamba for almost twenty years - longer than any other gringo (of which there are a few). He purchased one side of a mountain (!) for around $4000 back in the 80s, with the goal of taking ... read more

This is a little late in coming, but last week we visited a tiny town about an hour outside Cuenca called Chordeleg. It´s mainly known for its silver jewelry (which is beautiful), which attracts tourists from abroad as well as from Ecuador (on weekends). The day we were there it was empty, I think we were the only non-locals there. There isn´t much to do if you´re not in the market to buy some jewelry, but if you end up there you can have a really cheap yummy meal at what appeared to be the only restaurant in town, right on the square. It´s not much in terms of ambiance, but the owner is extremely friendly and you can sit and enjoy the view of the beautifully landscaped central square. But, we wouldn´t recommend making the ... read more