Goodbye to Ecuador

I'm reaching the end of my travels with a word of caution.  If you want excitement in your life, travel in a Latin American country during Carnival!  It's a big holiday here. There are parades, bands and horses in the street. All the kids have squirt guns and you're bound to get a little wet, which isn't a bad thing on a hot day. Schools and many businesses are closed and people get together with family and friends ... and the buses are packed.

I set off from Baños early on Saturday morning. The first bus was full and I had to wait for another.  This should have been my first clue. In the meantime, I became friends with a great couple from Ohio. We had so much in common and we were all heading to Cuenca. Cuenca is a beautiful city towards the south.  It is Ecuador's third largest city and for good reason, it is called the Paris of Ecuador.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

In Riobamba, we had to change buses. The only seats available to Cuenca that day would have had us arrive at 1:30 am.  Needless to say, we weren't too keen on that arrangement. My new friend, Carmen, came up with an excellent Plan B; we'd take a taxi to Cuenca and split it three ways. It cost me $45 to travel the 254 km of rugged mountains and beautiful valleys, less than what I pay to go to the airport in Ottawa. 

An older house in Cuenca

We travelled past the snow-covered peak of Chimborazo, Ecuador's highest mountain. Because of the earth's bulge at the equator, people who climb Chimborazo are closer to the sun than those who scale Everest. We travelled over foggy mountains passes, barely able to see more than ten feet. We drove past a blue-domed monastery perched precariously on a mountainside, and past roasting guinea pigs and roasted hanging pigs, in raincoats to protect them from the dampness.

After five hours on the road, my amicable companions and I reached our destination. Because of a mix-up in their reservation and because it was Carnival, my friends had nowhere to stay. Well as luck would have it, I had booked a room for three because it was one of the few rooms still available.  After a lovely dinner and a stroll around the lively central square, the three of us bedded down for the night.

Ecuadorian doll

The next morning, I went on a bus tour of the city. My seat mate was a lovely young woman from Guayaquil, Angel, who was visiting Cuenca with her family for the holiday. We enjoyed chatting and each other's company during the tour and toward the end, Angel gave me the cute doll in the photo.  I came back to the hotel to find that Carmen and her husband, Michael, had dropped off these gorgeous glads. For someone who isn't religious, I surely felt blessed.

Over the next couple of days, I walked the city and fell in love with Cuenca. I bumped into Carmen and Michael occasionally and on our last night together, we ate with two Norwegian women and a couple from Vermont.  There is something about travel that opens up the mind and our conversation was spirited and interesting.

On Friday, I'll come home to a very cold Ottawa with a very warm heart.  Tonight I am sitting in front of a roaring fire in the home of the great Latin American liberator, Simon Bolivar.  Travelling solo is not for everyone and I had my share of mishaps. But I never felt alone.  I encountered the most patient and kind Ecuadorians and met many wonderful people from around the globe. I have walked in the footsteps of history and know the human spirit endures.  It is alive and well in Ecuador.