Ecuador

---

Montanita - Day 10

Another low-key but very relaxing day. Checked booking.com and made reservations ahead for a hostel in Cuenca, our second stop after Montanita. Walked the beach again this morning. A big group of young school kids ran down to the beach, all in gray sweats and white t-shirts, then ran along the ocean. We got some strange looks, as blond hair here is very unusual. (Might be other reasons we looked strange too!) We walked by a juggler on the beach, juggling five items in the air. Also saw a large dead eel.

As we returned from our walk, a bike with an umbrella and a big cart of fruit came down our hostel road. We got some good fruit for breakfast tomorrow. After some quality time in the hammock, we walked into town for lunch. We hit our favorite spot, which was serving vegetable soup along with the calamare course. The soup was a cream based veggie, delicious. "How I Met Your Mother" was playing on the TV in English with Spanish sub-titles. Saw several guys with guitars in the streets today.

Went to the bus depot to get our tickets for Guayaquil. We leave tomorrow at 10:00am. It's a 3.5 hour ride. Since we also have our hostel reservations, we're all set.

Hit the bakery again for tomorrow's breakfast. After we picked out our pastries and paid for them, the bakery lady threw a handful of small meringues (just out of the oven) in our bag. So nice.

Bob checked out the ocean surf this afternoon. Not very crowded, just some surfers. The water was warm and refreshing. There was a dying bird on the edge of the water, and the dogs were going crazy.

---

Comments

[richard and gail]

Fruit cart
Those mangoes look wonderful. Does Ecuador export any fruit to the US?

[tak1]

HI Gail and Richard!
We bought a big mango for breakfast and it was delicious. I read that Ecuador is the world's largest exporter of bananas. They also export melons, strawberries, and mangos. I assume some of this comes to the US.