A new chapter: sun, sea and beaches

---

After the Inca Trail we were extremely satisfied, but also somewhat “done” with the mountains. Having traveled north during our trip, we were now also closer to pleasant climates and the warmer part of the pacific coast. So we decided to leave exploring the rest of Peru for future travels, and move into Ecuador. In a travel tour-de-force we went from Cusco, via Lima and Guayaquil to Puerto Lopez on the sunny Ecuadorian coast. With the help of some flights we covered this long distance in only one and a half day.

When the bus from Guayaquil arrived in Puerto Lopez, it was dark already and we didn't have a hotel. We luckily have no trouble finding a place to stay close to the beach. After arriving in the dark, seeing a city in the morning is always a great experience. In the evening everything looks less pleasant, and unfriendly. When the morning comes and you walk around in the town that is now alive, you see a town like any other with its own beauty and peculiarities. Puerto Lopez is a very small town, stretched along a small piece of the pacific coast right next to Machalilla national park. The beach side road is maybe a bit touristy, but in a very relaxed kind of way. Whale watching is a big thing here, but since it is not whale-watching season the town was very quiet and laid back.

Close by we visited Los Frailes beach, inside the national park. A beautiful wide beach with no facilities except for an ice-cream stand at the entrance; aside from that, just nature. While finding a spot to lie down we passed a group of vultures that have found a dead bird that has washed ashore. Another day, we visit Isla de la Plata, which is also known as “poor man's Galapagos”, as you can see some birds and scenery that are otherwise only found on the Galapagos, but without having to go all the way there. We went on a day trip to the island, and see blue-footed boobies, frigate birds and many others. Later, we also did two dives next to the island followed by swimming with some turtles

Swimming with the turtles did not end so well. Close to the small dock of Isla de la Plata we saw at least five turtles swimming next to a anchored fishing boat. The fisherman were on a break, and for their entertainment were feeding the turtles with some fish. All turtles that we have encountered while snorkeling or diving are very shy, and normally you are lucky if it hangs around. Here the opposite was true: the turtles were very inquisitive and though we tried to keep our distance they occasionally brushed against us. At some point during this swim, one of them must have gotten upset and bit Bianca's arm, so we got out quickly. It was more a scrape than a full bite, but we made sure to clean and disinfect it anyway. In the following days we kept an eye out for her health, but everything went well and the wound healed very quickly. We should probably have kept more distance, but we definitely would not have expected turtles to be so inquisitive and aggressive. Now we know 😊

Before heading to the Galapagos we had one more day in Guayaquil. Since it is mostly an industrial city without much to offer for tourists, we decided to go on a tour of a nearby cacao plantation: Hacienda el Castillo. It was a weekday, so as the only visitors we got a private tour of the plantation. A large fraction of its cacao bean production is sold to other companies, but some of it is made into chocolate in the on-site chocolate factory. We learn a lot, and get to taste things as well! Did you know that cacao beans are covered by a delicious sweet-sour fruit? We taste raw, cacao beans, which don't taste great but aren't too bad either. Later we are shown where they dry the beans, and taste the dried beans. Already a lot tastier. Finally we taste the roasted beans: what and incredible explosion of flavors! Smoke, cheese, fruits, something that reminds of wine. Its all in there. No wonder they manage to turn this into something as delicious as chocolate!



From Guayaquil we departed to the Galapagos Islands, one of the most highly anticipated parts of our trip! At the time of posting we just returned, stories and photos for that will come in the next post.

---

Comments

[Klaas Stoer]

Wow what a bird's paradise!
Dear Hylke & Bianca. What a wonderful part of the world you are travelling to. With very special species of birds. Enjoy!