Family Travails...uh, Travels :)

My parents arrived in Ecuador on January 20 for their long-awaited visit. They missed my birthday by a day, but hey, better than by a month! We spent the night after their flight in Guayaquil, and then jumped on a bus to Riobamba the next morning.

We had hoped to ride the train down the Nariz del Diablo on Friday, but found out before we left that they were all sold out for the month. No matter, we headed to Riobamba anyway where I got to enjoy pizza and beer for my birthday (a nice change from the chicken/tuna and rice diet we have at home), and then got to visit with another woman from our department who is doing her research down here too.

The hotel we stayed at had colonial charm and probably colonial comfort as well. The pillows were lumpy and the beds were small, but otherwise things were basically clean. The elevation in Riobamba hit me hard (I guess after Cuenca I’m more susceptible, and my cold was hanging on in my lungs), I was dehydrated after the journey, and I think I was having an allergic reaction to the ash that Tungurahua was spewing. I woke up in the morning with a migraine, and spent the whole time sniffling and with watering eyes. I don’t think Riobamba made my return-to list, but maybe I should, just to see if all of that was a fluke.

Tungurahua spewing

We left Riobamba the next day and took a bus to Guaranda. Though BG and I were passed out for most of the ride I did get to see some views of Chimborazo, though the summit was covered in clouds.

Guaranda was small and charming, and I was feeling enough better that we I enjoyed the little walk around the town. Near our hotel were the Parque Bolivar and the cathedral, as well as some nicely refurbished colonial buildings. Our main reason for going to Guaranda was as a jumping-off point for a visit to Salinas de Guaranda – home to cheese, chocolate, and salami. Salinas was very charming, and we got to try all kinds of goodies (including some fabulous soy-flour cookies), and buy some for our continued travels. We also gave in and bought some fabulous sheep and alpalca wool sweaters (which we promptly sent home with my parents, and look forward to wearing in about 8 months time).

From Salinas we headed back to Guaranda and caught a bus going to Ambato, transfer point for our final destination of Baños. The road to Ambato goes over 12,000 feet in some points, and you could feel how thin the oxygen was. Since I have a tendency to fall asleep in any moving vehicle, I can’t say for sure, but I think I passed out from oxygen deprivation.

We switched buses in Ambato and made it to Baños around 7pm. The hotel we stayed in, La Casa Verde, was fantastic! It’s outside of downtown Baños (which was perfect for us-less noise), but still just a short taxi ride away from everything. It’s right along the river too, so there are stunning views. It’s run by an Aussie/NZ couple with a little boy just a month older than BG. They’ve set it up to be eco-friendly, and actually do more than lip service to the concept. The rooms are big, bright, and airy, and the water pressure in the showers is amazing. The breakfasts that they provide are huge, with fresh fruit, homemade yogurt, and fresh baked bread (made by the owners), among other things. I haven’t plugged a business like this on here before, but seriously, if you go to Baños, stay with these guy!

We spent a good portion of our time in Baños just chilling out in the hotel. After all our bus travels I think we needed it. We finally got geared up to go into the town around lunchtime on our first day. We ate at an amazing restaurant, the Swiss Bistro, where I had steak tenderloin in a mustard sauce. Sooooo yummy! We wandered around the town and did the tourist thing, bought some stuff, and then picked up a few pizzas to take back to the hotel for dinner. The Italian restaurant where we got them was run by a Guayaquileño, Fernando, who ended up in Baños via Miami. He was able to talk to my family in English, and he and I chatted in Spanish. He paid me one of the biggest compliments when he told me my Spanish was so good he thought I was a Latina, and said that my coastal accent felt like home to him. We commiserated over the odd, mushy Spanish that many people in the area spoke (incomprehensible to me at times). He and his wife fussed over BG and loved her hair. Fernando just about melted when BG gave him the usual goodbye peck on the cheek. Good luck to him and his wife as they attempt to expand their family!

Our second day in Baños we headed east out of town to the Manto de la Novia waterfall. We took a cable car across the river, which was quite exciting, and then hiked a little backed down to the river and crossed on a suspension bridge. BG rode in the kid carrier on Steve’s back, and was passed out for most of the hike, but woke up in time for our accent of the cliff via a second cable car.

The Manto and it's cable car.

Steve and I holding BG in the swaying cable car

We hopped on another bus and traveled a few more km to Rio Verde and the Pailon del Diablo. That was quite the experience! After a nice little hike on a well maintained trail we got up close and personal with the waterfall. The owners of the property had constructed viewing balconies that got you within about 100ft of the roiling water under the falls. Steve and I left BG with her Nana and Thor and followed a path that scrambled over rocks and through a cave to get right behind the waterfall. We got soaked, but it was very cool!

Dennis (Thor) at the Pailon

Mom (Nana) and BG bonding during our trip to the falls.

Unfortunately that was it for our time in Baños. We caught a bus the next morning heading (eventually) to Guayaquil. We got in to our hotel in time for dinner, and then spent a relaxing night in. The next morning saw us on yet another bus (I’ve lost count at this point, really) to get us out on the coast and show my parents where we live. My mom had some real issues that first night, adjusting to the heat and humidity. They’ll take mountains and snow over beach and sun any day. Because of that we didn’t do a whole heck of a lot, but I did get to show them my site on Thursday. It was great being able to share that with them, and show them what I do, and I think they got a kick out of it too.

On Friday I took Mom to a friend’s shop where she picked up a few handmade crafts, and then we headed into Montañita for lunch and too see them off to Guayaquil. We almost ran into trouble, as the direct bus was entirely sold out for the day, but when one came in at 3pm there were a few open seats, so they were on their way. They got home on Saturday, with relatively little excitement.

Saying goodbye was hard, but the visit was so much fun. BG got some good quality time with her grandparents, and I got to see Mom and Dennis. In some ways I hadn’t realized how much I missed them until they were here, but it reminded me how much I enjoy spending time with them. Hopefully, when all is said and done, we can end up a little closer to home, but who knows how many years away that is!

Kathy and David visit Ecuador

We had the pleasure of having Steve's cousin Kathy and her husband David spend Christmas with us. it was a really wonderful visit! We spent one day on the beach in Montanita, which we had previously avoided like the plague. But, on a weekday, it's really not too bad. The gringo quotient was at a minimum, and the beach was empty enough to enjoy it. The water was a lovely temperature and the sandy beach was so nice! BG threw sand around, tried to bury Steve, and giggle insanely when the waves would splash against us.

The next day we walked about half an hour past my site (about 2km from the village) and were regaled with the calls of a troupe of howler monkeys. How cool is that? It was a great little hike, even though BG didn't want to be in the kid carrier and insisted that Mommy carry her for the whole hike. I was quite sore afterward, but it was worth it!

On Wednesday we set out to spend Christmas in Cuenca! BG did great on the bus rides (3 hrs and 5hrs) and only threw up a little bit on the first ride, so it was not nearly as traumatic as it could have been. The bus ride up and over the mountains to Cuenca was absolutely stunning! It went from lush tropical mountain sides, to an environment quite reminiscent of where we lived in Wales. Beautiful!


On Christmas Eve day, Cuenca hosts the elaborate Pasado del Nino, a parade incorporating nativity scenes, reenactments of moments of Jesus' life, people decked out in their finest indigenous dress, and displaying the bounty of their year. It started around 10am and continued until 5pm, a constant stream of people. One of the best things is that the parade route ran just a block from our hotel, so we could go out and check it out, and then pop back for BG's nap, etc., and still see most of it!

Cuenca is an absolutely beautiful city, and I highly recommend visiting it if you get the chance. Unlike Guayaquil, or even Quito, the urban sprawl and slums are somewhat minimal, so the overall impression is of a clean and prosperous city. This isn't to say that poverty doesn't exist, or isn't prevalent in the nearby indigenous villages, but overall, it's a really nice place. It was a nice treat just to be able to walk around and discover neat places and things, without being on a strict schedule. We managed to get in a little shopping and a lot of good meals and company! We even visited a "Panama" hat workshop, where Dave bought his very own. BG had a great time trying on and stacking the hats!

We gave up on our plan of visiting Ingapirca on the 26th, and just came home instead, parting wasy with Kathy and David as they continued their travels towards Quito.With my cold that's been hanging on the altitude really got to me, and I had a lot of trouble breathing. Add on hauling around a 25lber who refused to be touched by anyone but Mommy, and I was pooped. We had a close call of almost loosing BG's travel tent (including her blankie and doggie!) but managed to retrieve a lost bag, get lunch, and get on our next bus home all within a 45 minute stop over at Guayaquil's bus terminal. It's nice to be home, but the heat and humidity have increased in our absence, and after the cool and dry weather of Cuenca, I am suffering!

What a week!

Packing for Ecuador was quite the experience. We didn't really start until Sunday afternoon, and had to be on a shuttle to the airport at 6:30 Monday morning. We literally stayed up all night packing, and finally decided around 5 am that there was just no way to fit all of our things into 4 duffel bags, so we gave in and paid for an extra bag. With all the stuff we had and the exhaustion of getting no sleep we managed to only forget one critical piece of equipment, the telescoping level. Fortunately FedEx delivers to Guayaquil, so I should have it some time next week.

We arrived in Guayaquil on Monday night, and after an extremely long wait to get through customs and immigration at the airport we finally made it to our hotel around 11:30 at night (if you're counting, that's 17 hours of travel). Mario (the owner of the house we're renting) and Luis (my guide in 2006) from Dos Mangas met us at the airport and took a bunch of our bags back to the village. It's going to be so nice not to have to haul around a bunch of luggage when we take a bus out to the site!

On tap for this week was registering our visas and getting Ecuadorian ID cards, getting the permit approval for my project, and hopefully showing the family around Guayaquil a little bit in the process, all before we head out to the site on Friday. Even though we got off to a rocky start, we made it! We picked up our registered visas this morning (Thursday), then went to get the ID card, and came back to get the permit proposal. I'm giddy over the fact that it all worked out! Tomorrow we'll get to sleep in and then catch a bus out to the site in the early afternoon. I can't wait to get there and get everything in place to start mapping and excavations on Monday!

In between all of our errands we spent a lot of time walking the Malecon along the Guayas river. I was actually really impressed with all of the gardens and public architecture. Even Baby Girl enjoyed it! We stopped in one of the bars along the Malecon to watch the Ecuador-Argentina football game (soccer, to you Americans), and got there in time to see Ecuador score its two goals and win the game!

I'm looking forward to getting out to the coast and hopefully in to some cooler weather. Guayaquil has been either blazing hot and humid, or overcast and really humid. I can't wait for the garua and the cool coastal breezes!!!!