Blogs from Quito, North, Ecuador, South America

While I was visiting Dave and Merry Jo in Florida last October, we agreed that we wanted to take an Ecuadorian cooking class. After some online research, we found the Traveling Spoon, and booked a class for our last night in Quito, which was today. We only had a couple of hours in between the mad taxi ride from the Mitad Del Mundo, and the taxi to our class which meant we were still on the go. Not a down moment this trip so far. Since Quito is so large, it required at least an hour or so to reach the class, where we were to meet in front of a local pharmacy. We made it with plenty of time and stood and waited. And waited. By15 minutes past the arranged time, we were concerned that ... read more

Each winter in North America, millions of residents of the United States and Canada flock to warm weather locales in the southern United States—either to their second homes or rentals—in states such as Florida or Arizona. As a resident of Vermont, I too seek a brief respite from winter’s two-fisted punch of snow and cold, but I don’t want to become another clichéd “snowbird” going to a familiar place surrounded by bland condo developments and chain restaurants. I don’t want to be a captive to the familiar. I don’t want to sacrifice curiosity for comfort. I don’t want just warmth, but cultural enrichment. My winter escape from the frigid winds that sweep through the Green Mountains of Vermont is South America, in particular the country of Ecuador, where I have visited four times. Most recently in ... read more

This is a trip my traveling buddies and I have talked about for years. I always thought it was too expensive, and I wasn't sure that I'd like being on a boat for days. Covid changed that. When we booked this trip through Overseas Adventure Travel 2 years ago, it was Covid times and prices were way down. That helped and the 'why wait' feeling has been coming on a lot these days. Covid taught us that you never know what's going to happen next so use each day to its fullest and take advantage of each opportunity when it comes along. So, here I am leaving on the Ultimate Galapagos & Ecuador's Amazon Wilds trip tomorrow. Terry, Cheryl, and Naomi are my travel buddies this time. We'll be missing you, Roberta, Sandy, Ruth, Carol, and ... read more

Poet, novelist, and travel writer William Graham holds a BA and MA in English and a MS in Communication from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He lives in Stowe, Vermont. Many of his books are also available on Audible.com. His latest novel is url=https://www.amazon.com/Portland-Noir-Maine-Murder-Mysteries/dp/B08MSLXMN2/ref=sr_1_2?crid=W50AA0CGTCD4&dchild=1&keywords=portland+noir+maine&qid=1609951356&sprefix=portland+noir%2Caps%2C172&sr=8-2Portland Noir, the fourth and final installment in his Maine Murder Mysteries series. It was early: six-thirty in the morning, dawn on the equator in the country of Ecuador. The sun, however, had yet to make a dent in the thick cloud cover in the Ecuadorian cloud forest at the 2,000-acre preserve of the Bellavista Cloud Forest Lodge, situated at 7,000 feet above sea level and about a two-and-a half-hour rugged drive north o... read more

Looking back at my experience in Ecuador as a whole, one of the things that stands out to me the most is the hospitality we experienced. Obviously the first brush we had with hospitality here was with our host families in Quito. They treated us just like their own children. They took time to ask how we enjoyed our day and we spent a lot of time at meals just learning about each other and just being present together. It will be a long time before I forget how it felt to sit down to dinner with some bread and cheese, laughing and joking. They even offered their house for the future if either Matt or I come back to Ecuador. Their openness and acceptance made it so fun to be a part of Quito for ... read more