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Wednesday, September 8, 2010
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Thursday, August 12, 2010
Chugchilan.... The Highlands
After four days in the jungle we rolled out and headed back up into the mountains.... higher than we'd been yet. The Andes are huge.... too big to fit into a camera. You get a feel for how big they are when you drive uphill for five hours straight, passing through various climactic zones beginning with hot and steamy jungle and ending up in a freezing treeless tundra-like zone way up in the clouds, surrounded by snowcapped peaks. We made it up to 12,000 feet.... thats well over two miles high..... and you can feel it.... the air is thin. You can see farther and everything is crystal clear.
On the way to Latacunga.... bus station food.... yummy.... not!!!!!!!!!!!! (We opted for juice and chips)
Latacunga.... we stopped for the night here before heading way up into the hills.... a cool town, loaded with old school Ecuador flavor, not too touristy:
Palm trees suggest warmth, but it was an illusion.... it was cold here:
On the way from Latacunga to Chugchilan, the road turned from pavement to dirt as we continued up higher and higher into the mountains.... we began to pass snowcapped peaks.... I think this is Volcan Cotopaxi:
Chugchilan.... Our final destination.... It was cold here.... felt like November with lots of sun.... very cold at night.... some of the most beautiful country I've ever seen. Chugchilan was a tiny little hamlet, too small to be a town or village. The nearest town was over an hour away. We went for a nice afternoon walk the first day.... This might just be our favorite place yet.... it was by far the quietest place we've been to.
Chugchilan:
The next day happened to be my birthday.... Lisa decided it would be nice to do something special.... we ended up hiring horses for an all day trip to Laguna Quilatoa, a volcanic crater lake even higher up than we already were.... seemed like a great idea and it was.... This was my first time ever on a horse. I knew that my ass would be sore the next day but I had no idea what I was in store for.. We set out early in the morning with a guide. The ride out was amazing.... we traveled through some truly spectacular country. We road for about three hours before reaching the lake. As we continued to gain altitude, November turned to January. It was cold! Very cold..... my hands felt like they were going to fall off and the icy wind numbed my face.... regardless, the trip was amazing. I'm not exactly a cowboy..... I just hopped on the horse and away we went..... three hours there, and three hours back.... with about an hour to hang out by the lake and have lunch. All along the way, the locals smiled and laughed at us.... in a very good natured way.... I assume that this is because a couple of gringos who obviously have no idea how to rided horses must look very silly. They were amused. I would have laughed to. When we finally got back to Chugchilan, we were a little sore, but not too bad.... The next day..... wow! I felt like I'd been run over by a truck. Every part of my body ached.... It was hard to move, but I felt a strange sense of satisfaction. I'd do it again if given the chance.
Laguna Quilatoa: so cold, but beautiful:
Of course, the locals were on hand to make a few bucks..... warm hats, gloves, scarves, and other odds and ends for sale:
We had a nice lunch here.... a few hundred yards from the crater rim:
We wondered why people choose to live in freezing conditions at 12,000 feet when surrounded by far more hospitibal alternatives:
Traditional houses:
It just so happened that the family who owned our guest house had a daughter who was celebrating her 7th birthday.... they had a nice little birthday party planned for that night. Lisa let it slip that it was my birthday to. The family insisted that I join in. After singing felice cumpleanos, she blew out the candles which were then re-lit.... Everyone sang happy birthday to me in Spanish and in English and I blew out the candles..... I felt a bit awkward, but I was touched by their kindness.... I can't remember where I was on my birthday last year. This was one I won't forget.
On our way to the coast....
On the way to Latacunga.... bus station food.... yummy.... not!!!!!!!!!!!! (We opted for juice and chips)
Latacunga.... we stopped for the night here before heading way up into the hills.... a cool town, loaded with old school Ecuador flavor, not too touristy:
Palm trees suggest warmth, but it was an illusion.... it was cold here:
On the way from Latacunga to Chugchilan, the road turned from pavement to dirt as we continued up higher and higher into the mountains.... we began to pass snowcapped peaks.... I think this is Volcan Cotopaxi:
Chugchilan.... Our final destination.... It was cold here.... felt like November with lots of sun.... very cold at night.... some of the most beautiful country I've ever seen. Chugchilan was a tiny little hamlet, too small to be a town or village. The nearest town was over an hour away. We went for a nice afternoon walk the first day.... This might just be our favorite place yet.... it was by far the quietest place we've been to.
Chugchilan:
The next day happened to be my birthday.... Lisa decided it would be nice to do something special.... we ended up hiring horses for an all day trip to Laguna Quilatoa, a volcanic crater lake even higher up than we already were.... seemed like a great idea and it was.... This was my first time ever on a horse. I knew that my ass would be sore the next day but I had no idea what I was in store for.. We set out early in the morning with a guide. The ride out was amazing.... we traveled through some truly spectacular country. We road for about three hours before reaching the lake. As we continued to gain altitude, November turned to January. It was cold! Very cold..... my hands felt like they were going to fall off and the icy wind numbed my face.... regardless, the trip was amazing. I'm not exactly a cowboy..... I just hopped on the horse and away we went..... three hours there, and three hours back.... with about an hour to hang out by the lake and have lunch. All along the way, the locals smiled and laughed at us.... in a very good natured way.... I assume that this is because a couple of gringos who obviously have no idea how to rided horses must look very silly. They were amused. I would have laughed to. When we finally got back to Chugchilan, we were a little sore, but not too bad.... The next day..... wow! I felt like I'd been run over by a truck. Every part of my body ached.... It was hard to move, but I felt a strange sense of satisfaction. I'd do it again if given the chance.
Laguna Quilatoa: so cold, but beautiful:
Of course, the locals were on hand to make a few bucks..... warm hats, gloves, scarves, and other odds and ends for sale:
We had a nice lunch here.... a few hundred yards from the crater rim:
We wondered why people choose to live in freezing conditions at 12,000 feet when surrounded by far more hospitibal alternatives:
Traditional houses:
It just so happened that the family who owned our guest house had a daughter who was celebrating her 7th birthday.... they had a nice little birthday party planned for that night. Lisa let it slip that it was my birthday to. The family insisted that I join in. After singing felice cumpleanos, she blew out the candles which were then re-lit.... Everyone sang happy birthday to me in Spanish and in English and I blew out the candles..... I felt a bit awkward, but I was touched by their kindness.... I can't remember where I was on my birthday last year. This was one I won't forget.
On our way to the coast.... 
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