5 hour bike ride adventure

Shay and I started the morning by hitching a ride in the back of a truck up to the top of a mountain and the plan was to have just an easy ride DOWN. Oscar, an Ecuadorian guy we´ve befriended here, took us and he led us the wrong way. We got lost and rode UPhill much more than I had anticipated, but it was so worth it. It rained and we got muddy, wet and cold and then the sun came out again and we rode through gorgeous country side, stopping to talk with people and pick fruit from the trees.

Me, Oscar and Shay, eating fruit and enjoying the smells of cows and horses.

Two women we stopped to talk to. They are packing up their fruit (tomato de los arboles, a tomato like fruit that is excellent for making juice with) for the next day´s Saturday market.

A mama donkey and her adorable baby donkey.

We brought some bread from a panateria (delicious fresh bread stores, where they make fresh bread every morning) and a little water. Jay, a guy from Korea we met when we went white water rafting went with us too. He is a really funny Korean travelling for a year or more (so far 104 days, according to him). He started in Cuba, went to Mexico and has been working his way south since then. He was very optimistic and laughed a lot. He´s 32, left his job at an oil refinery in Korea after 6 years of working there, sold his house and the majority of his possesions and is now travelling alone throughout S. America.

Burro Burro.

Workers we asked directions from.

Riding in the clouds. Cold, wet and muddy.

Jay, Oscar, me and Shay, gearing up.

Everywhere down here there are fruit trees, fruit I´ve never seen or heard of before. This is a fruit which I forget the name of, but you crack it open and then suck down the the seeds which are covered in something like a sack of fruit. You can either just kinda drink down the seeds or suck off the fruit off of each seed. Refreshing

The last stretch of the ride was ALL down hill on a paved road, no potholes. I was riding so fast and singing and zooming past all this beautiful countryside. It was so cool. It felt so good to use my biking muscles again. Today, I´m super sore, partly from riding and partly from dancing my butt off the other night. I was dancing with this nice (a.k.a. respectful) guy named Paulo and he kept dipping me back and now my neck muscles are aching. It feels like I was in a car wreck or something.

Volcanos, Orchids and Baños, oh my!

I am still in Ecuador, Baños, to be exact. It is a little town in the central highlands of Ecuador surrounded by gorgeous green mountains and volcanos. The volcano,Tungurahua, makes the water underground REALLY hot and the town has several thermal baths. We went to the baths last night and I felt like I was in ancient Greece, bathing in huge pools with tons of people. The water comes out of the ground a little yellowish brown because of the minerals in it, and I found myself glad that it was dark out because of all the people in the pools and all the pee and what-have-you that I am sure help contribute to this coloring. Entire familes were all in there together talking and teaching their kids how to swim. Old men sat in lines around the edges, watching the young beauties and gossiping together. It was super crowded but with both Ecuadorians and gringos. The water was super hot and it was a cool experience.

Yesterday, Shay and I were invited to go hiking with a Ecuadorian we met at the bus stop coming into town the other night; a true casador de gringas (gringa hunter), as they are called. I will explain later. We took a bus into the mountains and then went hiking all day through pueblitos and jungle-lish trails. The mountains here are cloud forest almost like a jungle. There are a ton of orchids, air plants (which I LOVE!), ferns, mosses, fruit trees and vines growing all over and in abundance. There are waterfalls everywhere. From the center plaza in town, even, you can see a waterfall coming down one of the surrounding mountain sides. Its really quite gorgeous. Shay, William (the Ecuadorian) and I took a cable car across a valley and river to some other trails. We walked to a house where a family that William knew lived. They had a little pond FULL of trout. William handed us a stick with a piece of fishing line and hook tied onto it. We put a tiny little piece of bait on the hook and dropped it into the pond. Within seconds, the trout were attacking the hook and I had a big trout in my hands. The woman who lived there and who kept calling us "Mi vida", then scaled, gutted, threw the guts to the dogs and cat and then cooked the trout for us. She fried plantains in my favorite way and gave us some jelly that looked like apple butter but was made from guava fruit to dip the plantains in. It was the best meal I have had in S. America. The mosquitos were really bad there and I am now covered in red, itchy welts, but it was all worth it. The best days I have had on this trip so far are the days that we go against everything the guide book says not to do.

Today, Shay and I rented a four-wheeler/go-cart and looked like really stupid tourists as we bounced around mountain roads. It poured rain for the first half of the trip and we got soaked and covered in mud. We stopped for lunch, more trout and un grande cerveza, and the sun came out. We laughed at ourselves for being bad tourists as we zoomed past others on their bicycles, but it was really fun. Tomorrow, we are planning on going white-water-rafting.

It is really great to be out of the city. We were in Cuenca for about three days and I was very happy to be out of there. It´s a pretty city, but I´m sick of cities, partly because of one particularly creepy guy who kept turning up at our hostel and asking for us and mostly because of how wonderful open people are in smaller towns. We always meet more locals in pueblos and have really good interactions. The pueblos are safer and much easier to get to know than cities. In the cities, I´m much more wary of everyone.




* * *

Los Domingos: las dias de descansar

Sundays: the days of rest. I love them. No one works. Or many people don´t. Stores are closed. Little girls all wear their fancy white dresses and prance around like little princesses. Their brothers wear their blazors seriously, which are usually a tad bit too small or big. The parks and plazas are packed with families and old men, strolling, gossiping and sitting, people watching. In Peru, the schools practice all week for their weekly parades on Sundays. Parents crowd the streets to take pictures of their children in the marching bands. Old men with old cameras come out to take pictures of people who don´t have their own cameras. They take down their names and addresses and send the pictures to them later.

The markets are in full force on Sundays. Farmers and artisans come from surrounding pueblos to sell their art, fruit and vegetables. Music blares from windows and parked cars. Men gather around volleyball courts, take off their shirts, exposing bulbous bellies and play volleyball in an anything but Olympic way. They cradle the ball for far too long in their calloused hands and never allow the women to play.

Oh Domingos. How I love them here in America del Sur.

Mid-trip Crises

Vilcabamba

On one of our horseback riding trips. Hmmmm. How lovely it was.

River running through the cloud forest outside of Vilcabamba.

"Bridge" crossing.

On our porch in Vilcabamba.

Sunset over Mandango. I heard many tales of UFO sightings above Mandango. Laying down in my bed, I could see Mandango and I waited for strange lights or something. This was the strangest lights I ended up seeing.

We left Vilcabamba yesterday, after almost 3 weeks there. It was really hard to leave, especially since we kind of signed a one month lease the day before. However, after some careful thought we decided that we didn´t want to spend our last weeks in one spot, without seeing more of Ecuador. Shay flies out of Lima on Nov. 14 or something like that. We told the Carpios (the landlords of the house we moved into) that we would be staying there 3 weeks, helping Christina at the Community Center. I was really excited about helping her and working with kids, however, I also realized that I wasn´t ready to settle down for that long. Vilcabamba was awesome. Leaving there was almost as hard as leaving home. I felt really safe and comfortable there. That´s part of the reason I started thinking I should leave.

So, yesterday, we got on a bus to Cuenca. We´re here now. It´s kinda a big city. Very different from what I´ve become accustom to, but I like it. Just a lot less impersonal. I loved Vilcabamba because after just 2 weeks, I knew so many people in town. Everywhere I went, I was waving, being honked at and got smiles from most everyone. I hope I can find another place like that.

I´m starting to plan what to do after Shay leaves. She has to get back down to Lima so I think we´re going to go a little further north into Ecuador and then we will part ways somewhere around Quito probably. I think I will go into the Amazon in Ecuador probably or maybe just head north to Columbia. I was "talking"/listening to these two old obnoxious Americans last night, one straight from New York (accent and sleazy haircut and all) and the other, a non-spanish-speaking Minnesotian that wants to move here. The New Yorker was telling me how dangerous Columbia is and how I shouldn´t go there, but everyone else I´ve talked to have said that Columbia was their favorite place in S. America. Everyone says that because of columbia´s bad reputation, the people do everything they can to disprove that. So I think I will check out Columbia. I met a German girl in Vilcabamba that had flown from Bogota (where I could stay with a friend of a friend), to Leticia, which is in the Amazon right on the Brazil, colombia, Peru border. I could then (as the German girl recomended), take a cargo boat down the Amazon from Leticia to Iquitos, Peru. There are lots of jungle trips I could take around these areas to see small villages and wildlife. There are fresh water dolphins in the Amazon River. They are pink. And they don´t look at all like the dolphins we´re used to seeing.

Cuenca, Ecuador.

Cuenca: Storm coming in.

El Rio de Cuenca.

Cuenca has a real European feel to it.

Una casita....

After two weeks in Vilcabamba and many attempts to leave, we have decided to stay here. For a little while at least. Shay and I met a young woman named Christina from California who has been living here in Vilcabamba for nearly three years. She started a Community Center here and has dedicated much time, energy and a little of her own money into this community and Cultural Center. The center is located in a house which she rents out and is beginning to transform into a community center for the people of Vilcabamba. She created a newspaper in which the local youth contribute to and write articles for, she´s opening a cafeteria catering to locals (as far as prices and food goes), she hosts english classes and tutoring sessions and in general, she is doing EVERYTHING she can to promote environmental and cultural awareness. Her plate is overflowing with things she needs and wants to do and she has been nothing but grateful for the work we have offered her so far. Of all the extranjeros (foreignors), I have met in Vilcabamba, she has appeared to be the least egotistical and most community-centered. I sympathize greatly with her cause and goals and have decided to stay here and help her.

Entonces, Shay and I found a little house to live in for $120 a month, which breaks down to being about $2.50 a day for each of us. It´s located a short walk outside of the center of town and on the hill above Alonzo and Lacy Carpio´s house. They own a restaurant in town and work with an English program called World Teach. This program accepts English speakers and gives them room and board in exchange for a commitment of teaching English. They do not need any more volunteers at this point, so Christina has us in full. At our house, we have a little front porch with a fabulous view of the surrounding mountains and village, a kitchen!!, a bathroom and two separate bedrooms.

Beginning tommorrow, Shay and I are going to help Christina at the Community Center, building tables and chairs and painting them for the new cafeteria. Next week, we are going to start offering tutoring sessions with school children to help them with their homework and whatever else. I´m really excited to have a purpose here in South America. I think it will feel good to be doing something here a little less self-centered than simply travelling around. It feels really good to have una casita and a place to call our own and of course our own KITCHEN! We are quite tired of eating only at restaurants, especially in a pueblo as small as Vilcabamba.

Shay has about four more weeks until she has to fly back to the U.S., so until then, more or less, the plan is to stay here, IN OUR HOUSE! After she leaves, depending on how this experience turns out, I will either continue staying here or continue travelling. Time will tell. My camera broke in the missing backpack episode, so as of now I have no pictures to show, but I´m hoping to buy a new camera in Loja on Friday, so.....

The day I lost EVERYTHING

I put my pack with everything, and yes, I mean everything (my camera, my debit card, all my money, my passport and all my documents) underneath the Sur Oriente bus I was to take 30 minutes up the mountain to an empty bus stop where I and a Belguim guy named Olivier were to hike up to Tina´s farm.

Shay and I had decided to split up. She was going on to Cuenca, I was going to work on the farm for a week. We said goodbye to each other, she had tears in her eyes and a bad feeling in her stomach. Then I got on the bus with only the clothes on my back, $5 in my pocket and my drivers license. I sat down on the right side of the bus, the side which my pack was on, but when Olivier asked me if he stunk because I didn´t sit next to him, I switched seats to the left side where I couldn´t look out the window and see my bag. He assured me not to worry.

So we rode and talked. Some time along the trip, I absently noticed the ayudante (bus helper who loaded my pack) was gone, no longer on the bus.

We got off in Tumianama and I immediatly saw Tina, with her broken foot, sitting on a white horse waiting for the other WWOOFer girl on the bus. I had to get back on the bus to tell the driver to unlock the bag storage. He mumbled something and slowly got off the bus with is head hung low. Olivier pulled off the WWOOFer girl´s pack, then his and stood up. Mine was not there.

"Donde esta mi maleta?"
My head spun.

Tina caught on to what was happening and she started talking/yelling at the bus driver. I started crying with my hands over my head in disbelief. I kept hearing Tina say, "Es toda su vida. Tiene nada ahora." ohhhh....

The bus driver told her that the door holding our packs had opened along the road and only my bag had fallen out. He said the ayudante had gotten out to run back and look it. I didn´t believe him. I knew my bag was stolen.

"Don Francisco, my neighbor, is putting on his shoes and getting his truck. He´s going to drive you back along the road to look for the ayudante and your bag," Tina explained. "Sylvia is telling her mother-in-law to look after her children and she will come with you too. I would come, but my foot is broken." Claro.

"I will come too," Olivier, the saint, said, rubbing my back in attempt to comfort me.

So we got in the truck and drove back the way we had just come, my body shaking, tears coming and going down my cheeks. We got to the bottom of the hill with no sign of either my bag or the ayudante. Sylvia started telling me that we should turn around and stay at her house for the night and wait for the bus to down in the morning and then find the bag. All I wanted was to go back to familiar Vilcabamba where Shay and Gavin and other friends I had made there were. Sylvia was nearly yelling at me trying to explain why it was better to go back up the mountain. My head was spinning trying to comprehend her spanish, trying to decide what was best, trying to pull myself together, trying to remain calm.

"No. Necessito ir a Vilcabamba."

We drove to the only place I knew to go, el Jardin Escondido, the hostel I had just checked out of. I immediatly saw Gavin standing in the street and nearly leapt from the moving truck. I explained what had happened with tears going everywhere. He went to police who where having dinner on the corner and told them what had happened.

"Why did you put everything in your one basket, Libby?" Gavin asked.
"I don´t knowwww..." I wailed.

I went with the police to the station down the street. They got their semi-automatic weapons out of the closet, I gulped, and then we got in their truck. We drove back up the mountain. Olivier tried to comfort me. He told me he would loan me money. He told me I could buy some new clothes. I told him how defeated I felt and how I might go home now. He gave me his jacket to wear.

Suprisingly, we found the bus driver and his bus. The police and him mumbled quietly together, hands in their pockets. I strained to hear and understand what was going on . Noone but Olivier and I were anxious. The police cooly stood aside and smoked their cigarrettes allowing the driver to make phone calls to who knows who. I was sure I was being duped.

Then, up drives another Sur Oriente bus and the ayudante hops off. I tried to get the police to search that bus, but they all dismissed this idea. By this time my tears had turned to rage. I was furious at these indolent bus drivers that kept their arms crossed and their eyes straight on the ground and at the cops who seemed to be doing absolutely nothing but mediating, which where I come from, isn´t their only job. We all stood around, for what seemed like eternity. I wandered to and from every mumbled conversation, uneasy and distrustful of everyone around me.

Eventually, after many ignored "Vamos"´s, we set off down the same road, again, to stop at the houses along the road and question everyone about my missing pack. All six of us, the two police men, Olivier and I, and the two bus drivers, crammed into the police´s king cab truck. We stopped at random houses, I hung my head out the window and searched for signs of my bag in the ditches. After many uneventful stops and promised rewards to whoever found the bag, we made it back to Vilcabamba. We stopped at one last house where the owner of a dump truck, that had apparently been driving near where the bag had fallen off, lived. I don´t know how the bus drivers suddenly knew where this had happened, they hadn´t before. This man again, knew nothing.

We went back to police station and one of the police men told me to converse with the driver and "come to an agreement." I had no idea what that meant.

I told them the value of my pack and everything in it was about $1, 500. I had no idea, but knew a high number would scare the drivers because they or the bus company (most likely the drivers) would have to reimburse me for it. About this time, Shay walked in and my tears instantly returned. By the look on her face I knew Gavin had found her and she knew what had happened. Marcos, one of the owners of el Jardin Escondido was right behind her. He jumped into the situation as only a truly fiesty Mexicano can, pointing fingers and standing face-to-face with everyone.

A couple of minutes later, a huge group of people had gathered in the station. All eyes were on me sitting crumpled in the corner. My spanish was defeated, I wasn´t even trying to understand what was happening by this point. All I knew was everything I had was gone. Everything. Se fué.

Marcos stood up and returned telling me that the local radio station had mentioned my missing bag on the radio and that had resulted in a "tip." So the police left again, leaving me behind this time. Shay brought me some yogurt and Doritos and a half-drank bottle of Rum she and Gavin had been drinking while they waited for me to return. After about 30 minutes, the police came back with my pack in hand.

Everything was there. It looked like it hadn´t even been opened. Even my camera, which was on top, easily accessible, was crushed, but still there. The group gathered at the station turned out to be the bus driver´s family who had driven from Loja to help look for the bag. Somebody started passing around a bottle of whiskey. I started passing around my thanks to everyone there.

It was incredible how this little town all came together and helped me. I felt like an idiot gringa who had put all her eggs in one basket and lost the basket. I didn´t ever think I would see my pack again. I am really really lucky.

I love horses!

Friday.

From the top of Mandango, looking out over Vilcabamba.

After the hike, relaxing with a cold coca-cola. I feel like an actress in a coke commercial sometimes drinking them. But they just taste so good here. No high fructose corn syrup, just sweet sugar cane!

There is a hike above town called Mandango. We hiked up to the cross the other day. I almost threw up from the heat once I finally got to the top. We decided to go during the most intense heat of the day, which wasn´t a good idea. But once at the top, it was worth it. The views were amazing and Shay and I split a juicy mango.

The top of Mandango.
It was a very narrow path and the heat was making me dizzy. I kept having to sit down and get straight. I was nervous about teetering off the side of the mountain.

Walking home from school...

On Saturday, we left Vilcabamba with Gavin, a New Zealander who has been living here for some 25 years now, and the horses. It was awesome! We rode up through this valley going through rivers and farmland. At first I was a little unsure on Colorado (that was my horse) but by the end of the first day, I had remembered my horse lessons from many years back and was riding a lot smoother.

Gavin ahead of me.

Shay-bur, looking elegant in her riding scarf.

We stayed up at the cabin Gavin built. He called it his 5-star resort lodge. There was no running water in the house, only a facet outside that came straight from a natural spring and no electricity. It started pouring down rain about 20 minutes after we got there, so instead of going hiking as planned, we watched the rain and sat in the clouds. Gavin made us bean burritos for dinner and we drank fresh squeezed passion fruit juice with a little vodka.

Edgar feeding the horses panela, their favorite treat.

Part of the view from the valley, looking out from Gavin´s front porch.

The next day rain was still looking ominous so we went for a short walk in the cloud forest and then set off down the mountain on the horses again. It was slow going down the steep, rocky cliffs of the valley, but everytime Colorado and I came to a clearing, I would kick him and urge him to go fast.

Gavin feeding Colorado, his "best friend," panela.

Colorado, looking for a bite of our pancakes.

I LOVE going fast! On the way out of the mountain once we were on wider roads, I got separated from Shay, Gavin and Edgar and was riding through the streets as fast as Colorado would take me. We were zooming past the locals who laughed and yelled "Gringa loca" at me. It was so fun. I couldn´t stop smiling.

The cabin.

Hosing off the horses back in town.

Colorado rolling in the grass.
They reminded me so much of pet dogs. Just a lot bigger, thus more to respect.

Gavin, the guy from New Zealand.

After we came down the mountain and returned to the office, we paid, Shay went back to the hostel and I stayed with Gavin and the horses. We rode the horses back to his house where we took their saddles off and put new horse shoes on them. That was cool. Then, Gavin´s helper, Edgar and I rode bareback up to where he keeps his horses overnight. Oh! that was soo cool. I learned how to make the horse do this fancy walk where he kicks his front legs out to the side. It looks real cool, but it also makes the ride really smooth. So Mescal (the horse) and I were doing this fancy walk through the center of town and then when we got outside, onto the dirt roads closer to the farm where they stay, Edgar was riding ahead of me, showing off and riding fast and so all the horses started going really fast, including Mescal. I almost fell off a few times and I got a little scared, but I still couldn´t stop smiling. It was so much fun. Working with horses is kind of like working with dogs. It´s all about remaining in control of your fears and emotions. The horses are so smart and sensitive to what you´re feeling.

Bareback.
Only a blanket, that ended up sliding off anyway, and the bridle and bit.

Ecuador!!

The Peruvian/Ecuadorian border:
It was super laid back. That guy in the blue shirt running is chasing down our bus. After being on the bus for like 5 hours I had to pee so bad, I paid 1 sol ( $ too much) for the filthiest, foulest-smelling toilet I have EVER seen.

Ecuador...from the bus window.

We´re now in Ecuador!! We got here, FINALLY, last night after a seemingly never-ending bus ride from Piura, Peru, across the border through Macara and finally into Vilcabamba. It ended up being about a 13-14 hour travel day. The bus wasn´t nearly as nice as the Peruvian buses we had been riding on. There were two "bus drivers," one who drove and the other toothless guy who alternated between doing bus driver things like securing luggage and putting on horrible movies like "Rambo," and staring at us and any other woman or young girl who was near him. They were really sleazy and I was relieved to finally get away from them after 12 hours of being gawked at. We stopped so much. Whenever sleazy guy number 1 or 2 wanted a coke or a little snack or whenever they wanted to pick up random people on the side of the road to get a little extra cash in their pocket, we stopped. The only good things about the ride were the Peruvian highschool wrestling team that was on the bus with us and the scenary. Ecuador is BEAUTIFUL! It´s so green and lush and mountainous and wonderful.

Part of the highschool wrestling team that, for some reason, wanted a picture with us in it. I, for I guess the same reason, wanted one too.

The lushness of Ecuador!

We arrived in Vilcabamba tired and hungry and ended up staying at a little residential hostel where this kooky lady showed us a tiny room with no windows and no fan and two beds. We were really tired and accepted the rooms for $4 a night. We ate dinner and then went to sleep.

Vilcabamba, Ecuador.

This morning I woke up breathing stale air and sweating. I hadn´t taken a shower since we were in Huanchaco, about 4 days ago, because the previous hostels we stayed at had atrocious bathrooms. So I was really ready to take a shower. I tried for several minutes to take a shower before asking a man living there if he could help me with the water. He tried and after a while asked the Senora about the water and came back saying, "Que pena, no hay agua." So I washed myself in the wet-wipes Dana bought me. I tried the faucet again a little later when I heard the toilet running and out came a spew of brown sandy water.

I found Shay, we ate some breakfast and now have switched Hostels to one down the street for the hefty price of $9 a night, which includes breakfast, real hot water, a queen size bed, a pool!, a private bathroom WITH free toilet paper and clean sheets! It´s like a resort. It´s called el Jardin Escondido (the hidden garden) and has wonderful gardens throughout with hammocks and clementine trees.

Today, we are looking into going horseback riding tommorow through the mountains to waterfalls. There are horses and cowboys walking all through town here. Vilcabamba is a tiny quiet town. Everyone seems to know each other and it seems very safe. They use the american dollar here in Ecuador which is really weird but it gives me a real perception of just how cheap everything here really is. I was a little sad to leave Peru so soon, but I figure I will be coming back to it, so I´m keeping my Peru-God, I mean, -Guide book in the bottom of my pack.

I called Yves, the guy who runs the farm just outside of Vilcabamba and we are planning on hiking up to the farm two days from now. He sounds real nice and I´m excited to live like a comunal hippie on a farm and take care of the animals. There are lots of chores to do around the farm and you can choose which ones you want to do. I will hopefully take care of the animals!
Once a week, someone takes the donkey down to town to get groceries for the farm. There are no phones and no internet. Since Shay has only about 6 weeks left of travelling, we are planning on staying on the farm for only about 2 weeks.

Our Cali-girl family in Huachaco.
Lulia, Laura, me, Shay and Jordan.

Huanchacho:
Don´t know if you can see it, but there´s a dog caught in this fishing net.



Huaca de la luna:
Incan ruins we went to outside of Huanchaco.


Sunset in Huanchaco