Galapagos Day 1: Baltra and Santa Cruz Island

Are you like, “get to the islands already?”

Okay I am too! I’m so happy tell you all about our time in the Galapagos.

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Ecuador Day 7: Quito Arts

For our last day in Quito, Team Ecuador split up so that each couple could pursue their interests. John and I chose art! John organized a great walking tour that allowed us to hit ten local galleries and shops PLUS the Contemporary Art Museum. We had a wander-full day!
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Ecuador Day 6: Quilotoa

Quilotoa Wow! This was one activity I was really looking forward to. All of the videos and photographs of this crater lake are so stunning I could not wait to lay eyes on it myself. And boy did it deliver! The water is a stunning blue. The hike in is challenging and offers new views at every switchback. We hiked, we kayaked, we laughed, we cried (hiking back up that is!). Then we had a nice lunch at Samay Kirutoa Lodge.

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Ecuador Day 5: Cotopaxi

Our next day trip from Quito promised to be a cold, windy, snowy challenge. Today we would climb to the refuge house on the Cotopaxi Volcano, the second highest peak in Ecuador.

Victor picked us up in the van and we drove to the parking lot where we would stage our hike up the very, very steep ascent to the refuge at 15,953 feet. The trail was made up of very loose rock and ash and it was a real challenge to get a foothold. It seemed like every step I took up I slid two steps down. The wind nearly blew me right over several times, and the rain was soaking my pants.

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Ecuador Day 4: Mindo

Very Special Reunion: Tuesday was a very special day–it marked the reunion of Team Ecuador! Shawna and Chad flew in from Phoenix, and Meg and Alex flew in from Denver to meet me, John, Joe, and Lori. Victor came to fetch us at the hotel and we were ready to hit the road. We fit nicely in Victor’s passenger van. Alex, Shawna, and Chad are all fluent in Spanish so they helped Victor translate! It worked great.

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Ecuador Day 3: Art, Architecture, and Cuisine

What can I say? Today is a good day for a list post because we packed so much in. I recommend this as a day tour for anyone with a short time in Quito.

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Ecuador Day 2: Ciclopaseo Fail

Sometimes even the best planning results in a fail. I was SO EXCITED to participate in the Quito Ciclopaseo, which is the 8 am-2 pm timeframe on Sundays when 30 km of downtown roads are closed to traffic so that bicycles can roam. But when we woke Sunday morning the sun was shining bright, and we knew we had to grab our opportunity to take the Teleferico: the gondola that climbs to the top of Cruz Loma. We had been warned that this is not fun when the weather is not good, and we would only have two other days to risk missing it.

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Ecuador Day 1: Otavalo Market

I adore Ecuador! That quickly became my refrain during our 17 day trip. From the very beginning the people charmed us, the food fulfilled us, and the dogs snuggled us. I can’t recommend this trip highly enough.

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