Blogs from West, Ecuador, South America - page 3

Suzanne here... We were sad to leave Puerto Lopez, but grabbed a tuk-tuk ($1 this time which is probably the going rate, but I can't say I begrudge an extra 50c) to the bus station. We were not entirely sure how to to Bahia de Calaquez. At the bus station they had told us we'd need to get a bus to Manta. It was a Sunday and the bus station was somewhat deserted. Luckily the one bus in was going to Manta. Five minutes later we were on our way. I'll admit that the beach cocktails and beers did not seem such a clever idea at this point. Luckily I was able to open the window slightly, so I did ok. The journey was longer than expected and it took just over three hours to get ... read more

Suzanne here... We didn't plan to come to Guayaquil. I'd heard damning reports about the place, merely a necessary stop before the Galapagos. But after much soul-searching, we're not going to the Galapagos. I know, I know. It's practically obligitory when you visit Ecuador, right? Well, not for us. One reason is that we know the place is over-visited. This is a concern partly as we don't really want to be crammed together with hundreds of other people. But also because we are very aware that this level of mass tourism is damaging all that makes the place special. Plus it's incredibly expensive, and our budget has been hit hard as it is. The main reason for going is the wildlife. But none of the wildlife excited us as much as the animals and birds we ... read more

WoW! Is it February already? January just flew by - well, I was busy working most of the month. Just after New Year's I had to renew my driver's license. Since it was the first day of operations at the DMV, the program for the online test had not uploaded yet...I had to wait for THREE hours! To stave off boredom I copied all the contacts and numbers from my six year old Nokia cell phone, scribbling them on every bit of scrap paper I could find. Little did I know how grateful I'd be to have those numbers because the next day my phone died, just before I was heading down to the coast. I couldn't make the solo drive without a phone so I bought a cheapo cel. During the weeks I was working ... read more

After a quick stay in Montanita I woke early to hit the local bus ($2) again northbound for my destination of Puerto Lopez. The 40 minute ride was pleasant with rolling hillsides overgrown with tropical rainforest indicative of the region so close to the Earth's equator. I was happy to be in the jungle again and the shimmering blue hues of the Pacific brought an even greater smile to my face. Once in town I walked around and found a nice hostel on the beach which would serve as my base for the next few days. Here I met Samantha and Greg two Americans teaching English in Quito for the past year on a short holiday before returning home. Puerto Lopez was nice. It was the tranquil setting I have been longing for to waste away ... read more

It was a short journey from the border to Quito: about five hours. That this is now for us a short bus trip because it can be done without taking an overnighter is testament to the distances we have chosen to travel between places across this incredibly expansive region of the world. Nonetheless, in those five short hours, it was incredible to witness the almost instantaneous transformation of the landscape between southern Colombia and northern Ecuador. Despite political boundaries often bearing little relevance to the geography of an area, there was a distinct change in the contours of the hills and the hue of greens across their distant ridges. When there was green, that was. Dull brown hillsides were prevalent the length of the highway to Quito, once having had trees but felled for something very ... read more