We have left Banos to start towards the west coast of Ecuador. It is definitely sad to say goodbye to all the amazing people that we met at merazonia and hope to cross paths with them in our future travels. Making our way by bus to Riobamba we planned to stay a night near the Chimborazo volcano so that we could plant our flag at the highest point away from the center of the earth. Fortune seemed to smile upon us on this day as we met a man who was willing to take us to the villa we were staying in by pickup truck. Despite the fact that the trip ended up costing more than we anticipated (it was quite a distance) the views from the back of his pickup truck were well worth the price.
Arriving in Chimborazo we dropped off our bags and bought some snacks from the very friendly senor who owned the place. It was a great opportunity to practice our Spanish skills as he was very patient, understanding, and made an effort to not talk a mile a minute. Equipped with our water, snacks, and warm clothing we started the ascent. In order to even get close to the gargantuan volcano we had to climb a series of extremely steep mountains. The terrain was extremely difficult to traverse and we were quite winded after making it to the first 4,500 meters. Mountains always seem to inspire a jaw dropping effect but the magnitude and multitude of all the peaks surrounding us from this height was definitely a trip topper. After stopping to rest and capture some of the breathtaking views at the top the Canadian lads decided to test their luck making it to the next peak. The altitude and steep incline turned us around just shy of a pack of llamas making their way across the volcano.
Arriving back at the villa tired and hungry we realized there was no places to get food in this rural area, and we were anxious to make our way back to Riobamba in order to get to the coast ASAP. A consensus was reached that we would try and catch a bus back to Riobamba immediately even though our gracious host was unsure that any buses would come that late, and we felt guilty for saying we would stay and then bailing. Jesse and Jason pooled their limited Spanish knowledge in order to figure out how to say that we would try and catch a bus, and if we couldn't come back for the night. In the end we had to leave a note and some money for the host's hospitality and headed out. Waiting on the road trying to flag a bus down we ran into the owner of the villa and got our plan across. Luckily he was super chill and were glad that we were able to leave without offending him. Finally a bus came by as it was getting dark, we all cheered and hopped aboard. Getting to Riobamba we hopped into two cabs and gave the address of the hostel we planned to stay at called Hostel del Floris. Graham, Jesse, and Jason left in the second cab and after the cabbie had to stop to ask 3 separate people where the hostel was, and 30minutes of driving around, it was apparent we were lost. Grabbed another cab in hopes the other cabbie would know where it was, got lost again, couldn't contact the Irish and Lee, so decided to head to the restaurant we talked about going to in hopes they would come there searching for us. Luckily tired hungry minds think alike and they arrived with a similar story of a hostel not seeming to exist (the two roads the address mentions do not intersect). We treated ourselves to a meal of meat and headed back to a different hostel to rest our weary bones.
We have been in Puerto Lopez, on the West coast of Ecuador for 3 days now and I don't think anyone wants to leave. The bus ride from Riobamba to Guayaquil was long and uncomfortable, mainly due to the transition from a rainy, but not too hot Amazon, to the humid and sweltering beaches of the low lands. Seeing the mountains disappear behind us was fun.The bus ride wove in and out of mountains where the clouds swallowed the road. After descending out of the mountains it became clear that the beaches will provide us with the relaxing experience we most desperately needed. Puerto Lopez is unbelievable! As the description in Lonely Planet states, its a place where one may never leave. The beaches are lined with white sand and blue water. We arrived late on the first night so we hastily became introduced to the owner of the Hostel Maxima. Surprisingly, the owner's name was Maxima and she quickly became our friend. She has many animals that live around the hostel; a kinkajoo - similar to the one's at Merazonia only smaller, three dogs which are playful and awesome, a rabbit, a turtle and two parakeets! When we first arrived, this guy that brought us to the Hostel from the bus wanted us to sign up for this whale watching excursion, which would cost us close to 40 dollars. Creepily, he wouldn't leave us alone long enough for us to grab our bearings. Maxima came to the rescue and told us that we shouldn't pay any more than 25, so she arranged for a tour with a company that she new was reputable and we went to bed with ease knowing we were in good hands. The next morning we prepared ourselves for the boat ride to Isla de la Plata, also known as the Poor Man's Galapagos. While waiting for the boat to pull closer to shore, a few local fisherman were spotted dragging two decently sized sword fish onto the beach!! We seized the opportunity for pictures. The boat ride to the island was about an hour long and everyone was poised on observation duty for approaching whales, but alas, they were silent :( The island was neat. We took a long walk through a curvy path searching for flora and fauna. We were introduced to blue footed and red footed boobies (not the delightful objects on the female body). These birds became the animal that seemed to dominate the island. There were other tiny lizards and birds that we saw occasionally, but to be honest, we really thought we would be seeing more stuff; I guess that's why they call it poor man's galapagos...We did, however, see a few large sea turtles just after our pathetic snorkeling period. Snorkeling was fun only because we needed to get into the cool water after roasting on the hot island, but we only saw tiny boring fish and the time I went in Cuba far surpassed this meager experience. All together it was a lovely day, and after everyone achieving several sun burns, we decided that the next day we would spend relaxing and just chillin on the beach with drinks. Today we plan on going to Los Frailes, the most beautiful beach in Ecuador!!!
