Cuenca - the beautiful city

We arrived in Cuenca and were immediately struck by how beautiful the city was. There are heaps of old colonial buildings in the city centre, an enormous cathedral and the gorgeous Plaza de Armas which give the city a a beautiful feel.

Inside here was a beautiful art gallery - we almost came away with a sculpture of a frigate bird and a painting of quito

We spent hours walking around the streets and found ourselves a lovely new camera to replace the one we have been using which is frustratingly poor.

We stayed in a cheap as chips hostel for $12 per night and the city so lovely that we stayed four days! The best fun was the visit to the museum with Incan ruins, a bird avairy with toucans, eagles, and macaws and wonderful displays of life in the different regions of Ecuador, including shrunken heads made by the Shuar people in the jungle. They were incredible, fully intact with nasal hairs, eyelashes and all. It was very freaky and strangely mesmerising- although Eva couldn't get out there quickly enough!

We caught a kids circus performance in a beautiful old theatre in town

From Cuenca we headed to the sleepy hamlet of Vilcabamba. A place in a valley that is famous for the longevity of its inhabitants, many of whom have lived to over 100 years. The place was beautiful and the hostel we stayed in was moe like a health resort that an hostel. We spent an idyllic three days here, walking in the hills and catching up on school work and I handed in the last of my Uni stuff so it was an incredible sense of relief. It was with some reluctance that we packed our bags to leave for the night bus to Peru.

The Jungle

After a fairly straight forward couple of buses, we arrived in Misahualli. It is the end of the road really, the last town before you jump into a canoe and head down the river toward jungle. The town itself is awesome, a sleepy village with dirt roads and troop of cheeky monkeys that roam free through the town.

Here we are sitting in the canoe ready to go.

We organised to go to an indigenous village Shiripuno, with a local Kichwa guide, who lives there with his family. The place was surreal, it consisted of palm leaf and bamboo huts, tarantulas and an awesome plantation where they grow most of their food, including chocolate, bananas, papaya, coffee, yuka (like potato) and all manner of other things, including medicinal plants and herbs. No electricity, noise, packaging, rubbish or junk food. Just sweet, simple living.

The village - Shiripuno

This was the hut that we stayed in - fully equipped with bed, hammock and composting loo!

One the first day we made chocolate from cocoa beans, it was absolutely incredibly delicious! we were shown how to make platted wrist bracelets and explored the plantation. Within half an hour of being there we had seen a tarantula - a very big, hairy, and strangely cute one! We both touched it but I couldn't bring myself to hold it.

The second day we took a canoe down the river to visit an animal reserve. The place was amazing, we saw toucans, macaws, monkeys, ocelots, caiman, a tortoise and heaps of other animals. Although it was raining so hard I'm surprised we saw anything. I have never gotten so wet so quickly, it was incredible. Waterfalls and flash flooding were created in minutes.

Eva preparing the fish for dinner

A beautiful macaw

Cooking the fish for dinner on the fire

The third day we trekked through primary jungle with a group of American Uni student volunteers who were on an Outward Bound  program. They were an amazing bunch of people and we shared an incredible experience. We swung through the trees on a tarzan vine, sampled medicinal herbs to treat asthma and sinus - oh my god the sinus remedy nearly blew my head off it was so strong but it definitely cleared things up, and walked to a waterfall and swimming hole. It was an exhilirating day. Absolutely incredible and like nothing that I have ever imagined. I'm so glad that we went.

This was the biggest tree I have ever seen in my life. It would ake about 40 - 50 people holding hands to go around the trunk. Thruly amazing!

Eva making chocolate

Playing with the monkeys in the town.

The monkeys in Misahualli were free to roam whereever they want around the town and they could be seen running along roofs, crawling on powerlines, walking in the streets and the main park, at the beach and of course in the trees. They were incredibly cheekey and mischevious. They loved to steal things and run off into the trees to play with them, just for fun. They would jump onto us without hesitation, just to play, pull our hair, steal our things or check us out - although some liked to bite! I even saw them playing with the local and dogs - that was quite a sight: a monkey pulling a dog's tail! Priceless!

Going to School in Banos

We have been in Banos now for over a week, living happily with the Perez family. They are lovely and with three boys around Eva´s age there is plenty of activity in the house and company for Eva. The father Patricio is the pastor at a Christian Church here in Banos so the living is clean, they play plenty of uplifting Christian music and there are always prayers before meals! ...somewhat of a novelty for Eva and I.

The classes at Mayra´s Spanish School were good. Much better than those in Otavalo, they actually had a program and worksheets. Eva has learnt a lot of vocabulary now but we still struggle with conversation. I can get my point across though and conjugate some verbs correctly! Eva however, has been told three times now by different Ecuadorianos that she speaks very well and without an accent so she was stoked with that. And of course is now correcting my pronunciation.

Mayra (Eva's teacher), Liliana (my teacher) Eva and I on our last day of classes.

Eva the brave, is now going to real school with the boys. She is in a year 4 class with about 40 other kids, so its pretty crowded and noisy! Although I think that 40 is a good class size here in Ecuador.

School starts here at 7:30am which is a bit of a challenge getting ready in time, but they finish at 1pm which definitely makes up for the early morning!

Getting ready on the first day. Obed lent Eva his uniform for the day

Having breakfast with the boys: Mateo, Obed and Joel, before school on the first day

Confidently walking into school with Mateo on the second day.

Lining up for morning assembly.

 









The experience of going to school here is incredible for Eva, it is so very different to home! Things are much more rustic, rules are very different, there is a lot more singing and There is definitely no interactive whiteboard! They also have to do practice drills each week in case the Volcano - Tungurahua erupts. All of the kids have to take a hat, glasses and a mask to school each day, just in case! They had a practice drill for it yesterday afternoon which was something to see.

Eva has been fascinated by the fact that the kids are allowed to climb treees, build cubbies, roll down hills and run amok in general in the playground and its all cool. Eva keeps saying that you aren't even allowed to pick up a stick in the playground at home! Here its like she can do anything!

The girls in the class have also been wonderful - adopting Eva into the group like she has always been there! Despite the fact that they don't really understand each other much. They even invited Eva to come and play after school on the first day.

Eva and the girls hanging out after school in the school playground - check out all the trees!

I just hope that things continue to go as well as they have started for Eva at school and this will definintely be a week to remember for her.

As for me, I'm supposed to be studying and getting Uni work done. At least the room that I am in has a beautiful view of a waterfall cascading down the side of a gorgeous green mountain shrouded in white clouds.

Banos Ecuador

After a day in Quito we headed off on a bus to a small town called Banos. This place is beautiful, set in a valley surrounded by mountains and another stunning volcano. It is the adventure capital of Ecuador and there is so much to do here. We were planning to rent bikes for the day but ended up going canyoning down stunning waterfalls!
 

Here we are, kitted up and ready to go.

We warmed up on a smaller waterfall of about 8 metres, where we had to jump backwards into the water at the bottom. We built up progressively after that, doing 4 different abseils until we made it to the last one, a 45 metre drop!

This is Eva on the first waterfall

Initially we were behind a group of four Argentinian guys but we were faster than them so we ended up together. They were amazed at Eva. She was so brave, often going first - even down the big waterfall. One of the guys didn't even do it!

There she goes, our fearless leader over the edge

Once again my daughter has blown me away with her fantastic attitude and her ability to get in there and give things a go. The elation on both of our faces as we did our little victory boogie at the bottom was priceless!

The Galapagos Islands

This place is incredible!

I am so glad that we decided to come, the experience is like nothing else. We did a cruise for 3 nights which was ok, but ever since we left it and have been doing our own thing, it has been fabulous.

The islands are like a tropical paradise. It is the end of the rainy season so everything is lush and green and the weather has been idyllic; hot and sunny every day and the water beautifully warm. 

Baby Marine Iguanas at Tintoreras

A little penguin  on the rocks at Tintoreras

I was expecting everything to be barren and windy and life harsh, but it is quite the opposite. This is definitely a place that you could hang out in for quite some time. A very laid back island vibe! Who knew that people come here to surf?

La Loberia on San Cristobel Island - full of sea turtles, sea lions, fish and rays

Tortuge Bay  on Santa Cruz - a stunning soft white sand surf beach that stretched for a mile! We saw baby black tip sharks swimming in the shallows right at our feet!

 So, my misconceptions aside, these islands are spectacularly beautiful and the wildlife is incredible!

We have seen heaps of marine and land iguanas, giant tortoises, sea turtles, sea lions, an amazing assortment of tropical fish and birds! The blue footed boobies are favourites, as are the magnificent frigate birds!

Magnificent Frigate Birds with wing span wider than my arms.

We've snorkelled almost every day, even out on the awe-inspiring Kicker Rock in the open ocean. I wish we had an underwater camera because that was where things got most exciting. We've seen Galapagos (vegetarian) sharks, sea lions, rays and turtles all at a very close distance. Almost every time we have been in the water a world of colour has opened up before us, and despite our 90 plus sunscreen we both still got sunburnt!

Kicker Rock - The channel that we snorkelled through. Awe inspiring!

Leon Dormie - Sleeping Lion or Kicker Rock

I didn't expect it to be so beautiful. Alongside that though is the fact that there are a lot of people living here -  definitely more than I thought. Too many considering that they have only been populated since the 1920s. Feral goats, cats, rats and dogs are all problems which are affecting wildlife, as is agriculture and habitat destruction. It seems, as is typical of people the world over, they don't seem to fully appreciate just how precious what they have is.

All up this has been an experience that I am so pleased to have shared with Eva. She has been amazingly brave and able to handle everything, sea sickness, snorkelling with sharks, last minute changes & cancellations, walking for miles in the midday sun and sleeping in the worst hotel ever – called the Albatross - of course!

She has promised to bring me back here in 10 years time so I'm keen to hold her to that!

On Isla Plazas on our last day

Cotopaxi Volcano

We have left study and spanish school behind for the moment and embarked on some serious fun and adventure! Heading a couple of hours south of Quito we made it to Cotopaxi national park and a hostel called the Secret Garden where we camped with an amazing view of the enormous volcano (about 5800m).

This was the view from our tent on our first morning!

We went on a walk to a gorgeous waterfall, rode on the back of a pickup truck with the wind in our hair, and climbed almost a kilometre up Cotopaxi through snow to get to a climbers refuge at 4800m. I have to say that it was definitely the hardest kilometre that I have ever walked! It was a very steep incline, and Eva and I both were affected by the altitude, feeling sick in the stomach, tired and short of breath. The fact that I was carrying Eva on my back for quite a bit of the way certainly added to the physical and mental challenge! It was a a great achievement though and one that neither of us will ever forget! It even snowed on us on our way back down.

On the back of the truck heading up to the mountain

Here we are very keen, and about to start our walk up.

This is our small crew - we made it to the refuge

On our way back down!

The waterfall near the hostel

Today we went horse riding for 4 hours and it was amazing. Although I am in such pain right now in so many places! The horses were spirited, enjoying a trot and a canter and extemely calm as well, handling chickens, barking dogs, motorbikes, cars and tractors passing and an incredible thunderstorm, lightning and driving rain that blew in with about half an hour to go. It was Eva's first ride on her own and she loved it, especially trotting and trying to get her horse to canter! She was really brave until the thunderstorm hit, the rain poured and her fingers froze! It will forever remain a very memorable experience. All the more because a lady at the hostel paid for us to go because she thought that we were lovely....ah. They are some wonderful people in the world!

Here she is about to start the ride. Eva was a natural on a horse while the sun was shining!

All in all it feels like we are travelling now. Great fun!

And tomorrow we are heading to the Galapagos Islands for a week. It is definitely killing the budget but the deal was too good to pass up!

The Ecuator

We went to the Ecuator, stood on either side and saw a map of the world sideways! All in all a pretty cool experience. Ecuador is named after the ecuator and there is a huge monument and park to celebrate it, but they aren't t actually on the ecuator.

We went to the real thing and amazingly, there was no-one else there, except the person looking after it who gave us a really interesting presentation about it!

Standing with one foot on either side