C & C globetrotting around the world…

From Otavalo we headed South, passing through Quito until Banos. The area was beautiful and we saw many mountains and volcanoes shrouded in mist. This small town is a famous tourist destination because there are lots of activities to be done. The green peaks around town are perfect for hiking and there are also lots of adventure sports such as mountain biking and rafting on offer. The town has its name from the thermal baths caused by the nearby Tungurahua volcano. Unfortunately during our stay the weather didn’t cooperate, so we couldn’t do any of the fun activities. The rain kept us in, but we used the time to catch up on our Blog and emails. The sun came out every 2 hours for 10 minutes, just enough to allow us to go for lunch or to go for a small walk around town. One evening we met up with some friends we had met in Otavalo and went to a microbrewery (“Stray Dog”) together, so that was fun.

The next day was just as rainy as the first one, so we stayed in again. In the evening the rain stopped and we took the “Chiva Bus” tour. It’s a party bus that goes up to Mirador de Bellavista (2,800m, compared to Banos at 1,800m). Unfortunately there was no view because it was extremely foggy, but eventually it cleared up a bit and we could see the town. Up there we got a free cinnamon tea and there was a “magic show”. The show was a total joke, but it was funny to see how the guys made a show out of nothing. It was all in Spanish and the locals enjoyed it, but to us it was just hilarious to see. We then took the bus back down and it stopped in front of a bar. We sat down with some people we had met on the tour and all got a free shot of “volcan”, which was very strong. Overall it was a fun evening chatting with everyone.

The next day the weather was perfect: sunshine and warm. Too bad we had to leave Banos already, but our friend was waiting for us in the next town. The drive to Guayaquil was really pretty, passing through beautiful landscape. Looking back to Banos, we saw smoke coming out of Tungurahua volcano. We also think we passed Volcan Chimborazo. Not only is it the highest mountain in Ecuador (6,310m), but its peak is also the furthest away from the centre of the Earth (due to the Earth’s equatorial bulge). Eventually the grasslands gave way to more lush green forests and deep valleys. As we came down from the mountains into the lowlands and approached the coast, the climate got increasingly hotter and agriculture increased. We passed by plantations of bananas, cocoa, sugar cane, tomatoes and corn. It’s really impressive how big the difference is in just a few hours.