I made a goal for myself before coming to Colombia to travel to at least one other South American country while living on this vast continent. Some countries are easier to get to than others. So when my friend Brighid said she wanted to return to Ecuador after studying there, I jumped at the chance to join her.
Some say Ecuador and Colombia are like twins. It’s undeniable that they are similar. But after just our first day there, we agreed that both countries have unique personalities, and I would tell anyone both countries are worth visiting. In some ways, I preferred Ecuador to Colombia. The women wear fewer heels, the food is a little bit tastier, and the indigenous culture is a little bit stronger. And many of the great things about Colombia can be found there as well- fruit juices, beautiful biodiversity, Spanish that is easy to understand. Of course living in and visiting countries are hard to compare. But I know I would love to return to Ecuador, and would put it on my list of possible places to live in the future.
So what did I love about Ecuador so much? Let me show you! (In 50 words or less for each, I promise.)
QUITO
In list form: my new favorite hostel "Travellers Inn;" amazing Mexican food at "Red Hot Chili Peppers;" giant virgins overlooking the city; the centro is the first UNESCO World Heritage site; It's like Bogota but a bit warmer and a lot smaller; the people were super friendly; and the souvenir shopping was Ah-maz-ing!
OTAVALO
We joked about bring back a real alpaca, and I think we pretty much did with the amount of blankets, ponchos, hats, socks, etc we found. Stuff is made locally, with good quality, and thanks to Ecuador using the US Dollar- SO cheap. It was a little slice of consumer heaven even for the non-shoppers like me. I also loved the people wearing traditional, indigenous dress around town. The people are beautiful and seem to preserve their culture carefully despite the influx of alpaca-hungry tourists.
MINDO
One of my favorite places on Earth. Because: chocolate tour, sustainable eco-tourism, community ownership over development, waterfalls! butterflies! zipling and hiking and sleeping a tree house! It's a cloud forest only two hours from Quito. No Amazon this year for me, but this was a pretty wonderful consolation prize.
COTOPAXI
If someone asked me, "Hey, would you like to hike up the world's third largest active volcano?" My answer probably would not be an enthusiastic yes. I huffed and puffed my way a few hundred meters to the Refugio at about 16,000 ft, and had one of those "Wow, I really just did that" moments and even more surprisingly thought next, "I really want to do that again!" Volcanoes are beautiful and hiking them is badass. Also, if you weren't already sold, there were beautiful wild horses.
Stay tuned for the second week of vacation round-up! Medellin and Guatape and Ben's visit!
Some say Ecuador and Colombia are like twins. It’s undeniable that they are similar. But after just our first day there, we agreed that both countries have unique personalities, and I would tell anyone both countries are worth visiting. In some ways, I preferred Ecuador to Colombia. The women wear fewer heels, the food is a little bit tastier, and the indigenous culture is a little bit stronger. And many of the great things about Colombia can be found there as well- fruit juices, beautiful biodiversity, Spanish that is easy to understand. Of course living in and visiting countries are hard to compare. But I know I would love to return to Ecuador, and would put it on my list of possible places to live in the future.
So what did I love about Ecuador so much? Let me show you! (In 50 words or less for each, I promise.)
QUITO
In list form: my new favorite hostel "Travellers Inn;" amazing Mexican food at "Red Hot Chili Peppers;" giant virgins overlooking the city; the centro is the first UNESCO World Heritage site; It's like Bogota but a bit warmer and a lot smaller; the people were super friendly; and the souvenir shopping was Ah-maz-ing!
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| Overlooking colorful Quito with "the Wolfpack." From left to right: Me , Natalie, Vanessa, and Brighid |
OTAVALO
We joked about bring back a real alpaca, and I think we pretty much did with the amount of blankets, ponchos, hats, socks, etc we found. Stuff is made locally, with good quality, and thanks to Ecuador using the US Dollar- SO cheap. It was a little slice of consumer heaven even for the non-shoppers like me. I also loved the people wearing traditional, indigenous dress around town. The people are beautiful and seem to preserve their culture carefully despite the influx of alpaca-hungry tourists.
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| A beautiful (and feisty) saleslady in traditional dress. Please note all alpaca goodies behind her. Photo courtesy of Brighid Carey. Read her version of vacation on her blog here! |
One of my favorite places on Earth. Because: chocolate tour, sustainable eco-tourism, community ownership over development, waterfalls! butterflies! zipling and hiking and sleeping a tree house! It's a cloud forest only two hours from Quito. No Amazon this year for me, but this was a pretty wonderful consolation prize.
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| You can barely capture its green beauty in a picture. |
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| ...or two. |
If someone asked me, "Hey, would you like to hike up the world's third largest active volcano?" My answer probably would not be an enthusiastic yes. I huffed and puffed my way a few hundred meters to the Refugio at about 16,000 ft, and had one of those "Wow, I really just did that" moments and even more surprisingly thought next, "I really want to do that again!" Volcanoes are beautiful and hiking them is badass. Also, if you weren't already sold, there were beautiful wild horses.
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| Photographic Evidence! |
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| And like I said, wild freakin horses. (Cotopaxi in the clouds to the left) |
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