Baños, Ecuador

Happy Dance in the cocina!

Getting some climbing advice in Quito, Ecuador.

Sunset in Baños, Ecuador.

Oscar talking with the monkeys at the Zoo.

Belaying climber below the bridge with Paulo.

Mountain Biking with Jay (Korea)

Women packaging sweet tomatoes for the market.

Enjoying herself during the street festival.

Baby donkey finshing up feeding time..passed during the bike ride

Rafting el rio pastaza, class 3

Doombuggy Day!

Standing on scary cable bridge above waterfall ¨Pailon del Diablo¨

Fresh fried fish I caught just minutes before in the spring.

Ain´t she a beauty.

Passing the river valley by cable car.

Rafting, Rockclimbing, Camping, Driving doombuggies, Mountain Biking, Dancing, Canyoning...all in the little town of Baños tucked away in the green mountains below the belly of the grumbling Volcano (which erupted in 2006 and the entire town evacuated for 6 months).

So, Libby and I left Vilcabamba. There wasnt a whole lot of work to be done yet and we found we had more free time than we knew what to do with, so we talked to Christina about moving on and she was amazingly supportive. I plan on going back there on my southbound route to peru.
We went 5 hrs north to Cuenca, stayed there for a few nights and were more impressed with the European style of the city and the food than the Cuencaños themselves. Then another 8 hrs north to the beautiful town of Baños.

We arrived in Baños late last Monday night after a super exhausting 9 hr bus ride. Then the following morning, we ran into an amigo we met the night before at the bus stop and he invited us along with him to watch bungee jumpers off the bridge. It was so nice of him to show us around all day. Anywaays, we walked to the bridge, there werent any people jumping off the birdge over huge rock boulders and a little stream. No thanks. Then we walked 4 or 5 miles down the road to a cable car where we road over 200 ft above the green river. My confidence in Ecuadorian engineering wasnt that high. We hiked up the waterfall, then stopped at this house were it was a little restaurant out of her house. This is the best part.....we went around back and she has a man made spring with lots of trout with water pumping into it from the waterfalll above. The water is puro, puro. She handed me and Libby and stick with fishing line attached and a big chunk of bait. We caught our lunch in minutes then watched her scale and gut them in seconds while they were still breathing,while the dogs watched. We had fresh caught trout, rice, salad, and patacones (sweet, fried platanos). It was the most delicous meal I have had in weeks.
Then we took the cable car back, hitched a ride in the back of a truck for another 10 inutes down the road and jumped off....walked a few feet before another family gave us a ride in their pickup truck. We arrived at Pailon del Diablo Waterfall. It was a beautiful but quick hike down into the fall....then another scary bridge. It was something out of an Indiana Jones film. A cable bridge 100´s of feet above rushing rapids. We all sat down for awhile, watching the waterfall, and I think I drifted into meditation for awhile. Ahead at the start of the bridge is a sign, ¨5 personas lo maximo´. Well, as I was sitting in the center of the wobbly bridge, a family of about 6 walk on and I jumped up out of anxiety and fear and yelled ¨¡ 5 personas lo maximo, 5 personas lo maximo!! Then got the hell off the bridge. I am pretty sure everyone had a good laugh at my expense.
Then, Libby and I met a group of traveling artesanias sitting above the trail ( people who travel selling their jewelry..who were all unbelievably beautiful) where I bought myself a pretty weaved bracelet and earrings from Ruben de Argentina and Carlos de Uruguay. We sat there with them, talked and accepted their offer to sit and drink a beer. After minutes of hanging out, I was offered a marriage proposal from Ruben. He was really funny , nonotheless, he gave me an ankle bracelet for our union. He was heartbroken after I told him I was already called for by a handsome boy waiting for me in the States. His response was , ´pero no esta (but hes not here)?!! I laughed, said thanks for the beer and the braecelet and we left.
Libby, William, and I hitched another ride back to Baños and went to the town hot baths, aguas thermales, and soaked most the night with the rest of the town, until i was too hungry and I was getting muy inqieta, cranky. I felt like i was in Greece with the huge, pool-like communal hot baths. They were public jucuzzis.
The next day we drove doombuggies around town where we passed the mnt bikers with our heads down in shame as we drove our deisal pumped, loud buggy..but it was soooo fun!!!
Then the following day, we went rafting down the el rio negro. Class 3...not too exciting, but I managed to still get thrown out. Im still not sure whether I fell or the guide pushed me. Good fun. I love rafting. I need to do it more when I get back to Asheville..of course when its not December.
The guide was cool, he offered to take us mnt bikig the next day, gratis. He had a day off and offered to take us. It was beautiful, it was exhausting, and it was muddy, and we loved every minute of it.
And, lastnight we just got back from 2 days of rockclimbig outside of Cotopaxo Violcano with some friends. I learned a lot. I hadnt climbed in years.

We found a house in Vilcabamba!

After many attempts to leave this sacred town (for 2 weeks) of Vilcabamba, Ecuador, Libby and I have decided to stay and get involved in the community under the curcumstances we found a good opportunity and we found a much cheaper place to lay our heads.

Yesterday, we met with Christina, a young, passionate women who has lived here for 3 years establishing a community center, JOCOTOCO, (jovenes communitarios tomando consciencia) with intentions to build a healthier communuty, emnpowering the younth through environmental awareness and promote sustainable development. Her main projects right now are; developing the domestic garden using native vegetables and herbs; getting the cafeteria ready for next saturday serving healthy, natural, and traditional food and drink; a recycling program; and ¨El Huilco¨a monthly newspaper written by the local youth here.
She needs so much help and I feel so grateful that I may be useful here. We start volonteering with her tomorrow morning. Next week, she would like Libby and I to provide after'school homwork sessions for the school children here, because apparently many of the children dont have a peaceful environment to study or their parents are too occupied taking care of the other children or cooking and cleaning with the Tv blasting.
So, we will hopefully be useful to the children assisting them in their studies and just being supportive. We are also being asked to tutor the young school children in English if they would like. A few hours a week in a fun way!!

Thats not it....we signed a one month lease today (well I have 3 weeks or so) in a casita (little house) with a beautiful view, 2 bedrooms, bathroom with lukewarm water, and a cocina (so excited to be able to cook for ourselves). Its basic but its home. We are paying $120 a month split btw the both of us and its a few minutes walk from town. We´re locals now,well kinda, and Libby and I are soooo excited to get to know the community alittle more.

De caballo, vamos para norte

We just got back from a 2 days horseback riding adventure. Our guide was Cowboy Gavilan. My horse´s name was Miscal, named after the cactus used to make tequila. Libby was riding Colorado and the guide on Tristan. The horses were big, beautiful and strong. The guide gave us absolutely no directions except to hold on. At first, I wasnt sure how to sit or even command Miscal, but after a few hours of passing through stream beds, crossing pastures, chasing cows out of the way, I found my rhythm with that of the horses´. It was so much fun crossing over mountain ridges by horse and when we´d cross a pasture, the horses would canter full speed. It was one of the funnest days of my life. Gavilan said Colorado, the strongest, cost $350 with saddle and all. Then he bought land in the moutain..15 acres for $3,000 and built himself a cozy lodge. I was thinking to myself during the ride throught mnt ridges that I would like to own a ranch with a few horses. I just need a little bit o´money and a damn good hat. Those horses were so excited to be in the mnts.

We got to his lodge 4 hours later and a few of the horses immediately rolled their backs in the grass to dry off the sweat. They ate green grass all night and an occasional treat of passion fruit. The lodge sat on a ridge in the center looking down into 4 other mnt ridges right below the cloud forest.

Estamos en Ecuador!!!!

The pool at Hostal Jardin Escondido in Vilcabamba.

The Plaza, Vilcabamba

driving into Ecuador

We love this town of Vilcabamba, Ecuador. It is surrounded by green green mountains, lots of hiking and horseback riding is very popular. It is right outside the Parque Nacional Portocopus. Cloud forest, waterfalls, ridges. We booked a 2 day, one night horse back riding trip with a very reputable guide. So, we are super excited about riding through the cloud forest and getting to swim in waterfalls! We are thinking about heading to the farm on Sunday morning. It´s called Sacred Suenos. We may be there for 2 weeks gardening, caring for the animals, beek keeping, building new peojects, and . Im am looking forward to being in a super chill environment with lots of good people and communal meals. Apparently, this town is world renowned for its longevity!!



The town is so small and the locals all hang out in the park and talk til the wee hours and they are so friendly. Libby and I like to eat at the local restaurants where they are much less expensive than touristy restaurants and usually end up speaking Spanish with the people who work there. We sat outside of this great locak spot tonight in the middle of the plaza and people watched and listened to these boys play guitars.

Huanchaco, Peru

Lalya, Laura, and Jordan....awesome girls from Cali




Perro caught in fishermans line

The caballitos that the fisherman use

Cooking arroz de leche

Arroz de leche con pasas..so yummy

We got in to Huanchaco this morning after an overnight bus from Huaraz and we walked along the beach. The sun finally peaked out for a few hours. Its a tiny town with lots of character. You can walk from one end to the other in 20 minutes.

We are now staying at Casa Suiza at the North end of the beach...but we walked by Hostal Naylamp today during out tour and took a look. Its at the south end of the beach and is much much more backpacker friendly with a huge courtyard, pet turtles, hammocks for all, and a secure area for those with their own tents for 10 soles (3 USD) and a fire pit. We have our own tent so its a sweet deal. Its also right across the street from the beach.

SO we made reservations and we are picking up and walking there in the morning. Libby says she will teach me how to surf, so when its sunny and warm out were going to rent our wet suits and hit the water. Huanchaco is known for its fisherman going out in caballitos made of straw. They look like a hybrid btw kayaks and elves shoes.

So, today we sat along the wall on the beach, drank a cusquena (the beer of Peru), talked with an older woman who has lived in this town her whole life, and watched fisherman bring in their catch. They were surrounded by locals trying to buy the fresh catch. There were baskets of crab, corvina, all sorts of fish fighting to get back into the water. The fisherman were all older men, barefoot, and full of smiles as they sorted their finds.

A few hours later in the day, those same men were napping under their caballitos in the sand. For dinner, we went by a hole-in-the-wall restaurant recommended by these locals (we ask the locals lots of questions) where they had a few tables, live folklorica music with a man and his acoustic guitar, and a parilla, a huge outside grill. We ordered corvina with pinneapple and it was so delicious. Tenka, our eager server, said it was caught hours ago. It was the best meal I have eaten since I got to Peru (for $8). ´

We have been hanging out with these 3 Americanas, Lalya, Jordan, and Laura from California. We made homemade arroz de leche lastnight. SOOOO good. Rice pudding. I couldnt stop eating it. By the time we had all eaten the whole pot of it, we were sick. Then I woke up craving it again this morning. Tonight, were thinking pancakes or chocolate fondue!!! I love food.

Tomorrow or the next day, Libby and I are heading south to Trujillo (12km) to check out their annual festival downtown. We have heard theres lots of traditional dance and costumes involved. Well see.