Sunday, January 21, 2018

2017: Ecuador (Highly Recommended!)

Today I revisited this blog to search for photos of our China experience.  A whole calendar year has again slipped by without comment in this space.  The international highlight was our trip to Ecuador.  Although it had been high on our desired destination list for some time, it moved to the top of the list when a family friend asked if we would take her there upon her high school graduation.  Yes! Si!  Ben had taught school there in the late 1990's and had visited again in 2006.  Before we knew it, there were 6 enthusiastic young folks joining this adventure.

The takeaway on Ecuador is simply this: if you have the opportunity to visit, GO!!!  The people are lovely, scenery and climate remarkable and variety impossible to describe.  Food is also delicious, and due to recent governmental stability and other improvements, the roads are superb and transit from the Andes Mountains to the Pacific Ocean is quite manageable.

Here is a sampling from July 2017...

Puerto Lopez, Ecuador
el Placer de Toache
River in el Placer de Toache
 Dairy Land in the Andes
 School where Ben taught in 1998
 Blue footed boobies on Isla de la Plata
 Beach in Puerto Lopez
 Crossing the border from Colombia at Ipiales
 Ben's new pan flute from Otovalo craftsman
 Shepherdess in early morning, Otovalo
 Mt. Chimburazo
 Fellow passenger on bus to Cuenca
Incan ruins in Cuenca 
 Hat factory in Cuenca
 Local artist friend in Cuenca
 With friends in Cuenca
 Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World)
 Standing room only bus in Quito
 Bread maker in Quito
 Hosteleria in Banos
 Artists in Otovalo market
 Bus station in Santo Domingo de los Colorados
 Amazing flowers in the tropical area
 Sea turtles in the Pacific near Isla de la Plata
 Bananas everywhere
Lunch of trout, plaintains, yam soup, fresh tree tomato juice, rice in Colombia

Impromptu Sign Language lesson for children in rural school