Epic Flailing in Ecuador

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Our Ecuadorian experience was divided between two very differing places. Our attempts at a cultural and sophisticated homestay learning Spanish in Quito under the safety and comfort of the Sosa sisters felt a world away as I plummeted to my seemingly inevitable death in adventure town Baños, having been pushed off a bridge by a somewhat less motherly, bearded entrprenuer persuading exploit-hungry gringos to try his self-made, unforgiving rope swing, which should probably be nicknamed ´whiplash´.



Opting for the ´cultural package´at the Yanapuma Spanish School in Quito, 4 hours of lessons with our tutor Olgita were followed by enriching excursions with Benecio and while not only improving our Spanish we had learned in the morning, the benefit of a local guide gave us the most in-depth experience of a city we have had. The Museo Etnografico offers particularly interesting insights, including an indigenous community who shrank the heads of their murdered enemies so that their soul could not escape and return to haunt them - apparently not the sort to take any chances, these lot. Equally fascinating but depressing was the Museo Guayasamin in the swanky Bellavista neighborhood. Ecuador´s most famous artist, Guayasamin drew inspiration from all the suffering in the world and his works are brilliantly sombre reflections of famine and genocide. After all that fun and cheer we drowned our sorrows on La Ronda, a hidden cobbled street lined with bars filled with singing locals, restoring our faith that Ecuadorians do know how to have a laugh. A weekend trip to the Ottavalo market to get your customary alpaca jumper will also mask any lingering despondence about mass murder, although bewarned you can get them for a fraction of the price in Bolivia as we later found out.



Spending a week with the Sosa family; Yolanda, Elena and Sylvia showed us just how close Ecuadorian families are, usually having several generations under one roof, and their hospitality and patience with our stuttering Spanish gave us that homely feeling that can´t quite be replicated in a hostel. We even bonded over an unexpected addiction to the Ecuadorian version of ´Stars in their Eyes´which seemed to be on television every night and was presented by an uncanny Dale Winton.



After our farewells to the Sosas we made the short 2 hour trip to Baños, where the home comforts were ditched as soon as you enter the adventure-fuelled town with all the backpacker activities you can think of and set among spectacular waterfalls. Eager to tick some items off the traveller to-do list, we eased ourselves in with the less than hair-raising zip lining. While I wouldn´t describe zip-lining as boring, it did lack the adrenaline rush it suggests and after 3 or 4 turns, when your arms start to ache after being forced to do the ´superman´for an excess of photos, it feels reminiscent of a moving walkway you find at an airport or theme park entrance - not heaps of fun, but I´d choose it every time over walking.



Next we opted for white water rafting. You can do this in umpteen places along the gringo trail so I won´t pretend Baños is without doubt THE place to do it, but after speaking to more experienced rafters that were very impressed it seems to have some definite credibility. It certainly blew zip lining out the water.



Baños has an endless array of activities from canyoning to quadbiking, and for cheaper options you can simply hire some bikes and cycle along to some deafening waterfalls that will make you feel less than small compared to nature. The town is a gringo magnet but also has some great nightlife (we were there over Haloween when it was particularly raucous) and is just a fun place to hang out for a while, even if I did get my debit card cloned there.



Oh and in case you missed it, as aforementioned a bloke will hurl you off a bridge hundreds of metres above a rocky river if you like, in an acitvity called ´puenting´. Here is my roadrunner rendition for all to enjoy. Probably shouldn´t have been so cocky about zip lining...

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