Well I have had a fantasic birthday week despite hoping to keep it quiet that I am now well on the way to my thirties... The week began in a pretty surreal way with my host family inviting me to take part in their "El Niño" fiesta which involved attending mass for several hours, throwing rose petals in the path of my host brother as he walked with a cradle containing the el niño doll, and then feasting for several hours with about thirty members of the family (much more my kind of thing!) I think this is a fiesta specific to Ecuador and it was an honour to be invited although most of the time I had no clue what was going on. Basically, every house has an "El Nino" (baby jesus) which stays in their house to ensure them safety throughout the year. Then once a year each family has a mass especially for them, to bless the baby for the next 12 months. It was a bit like going to a wedding, without the happy couple, but with the confetti, the speeches and the wedding breakfast. Definitely a unique experience.
Tuesday night started out being a quiet drink with a couple of people and ended up being a big night out with a mixture of people I was in the Amazon with, school friends and people from the hostel. There were presents, cake and salsa dancing! No pictures to show as yet. I didn't dare take my camera out, but I believe there are some incriminating pics somewhere which might make it onto this blog but will most likely be destroyed. It was very touching my new lovely mates bought me a woolly hat and beautiful indigenous woven scarf to take on my next expedition. And they even sang! We did wimp out a bit on the salsa though simply because the dancers here are just soo amazing. It was a bit intimdating but amazing to watch.
So my next trip actually on my birthday day was to the thermal baths at Papallacta,a tiny village high in the Andes. I lay about in volcanic pools for most of the day before an amazing power shower with a fireman's hose followed by the best massage ever. Could have stayed there for weeks. But with my Spanish lessons over for a couple of weeks I decided to go to Quilatoa for a couple of days. Photos above and below.
The two days hiking included a visit to the Quilatoa Laguna, a huge lake in the crater of a distinct volcano at about 4 thousand feet... absolutely beautiful although the pictures don't really do it justice. (Please note:new birthday hat!)We (me and 4 other English girls) rode donkeys and walked miles through the Andes staying the night at the Black Sheep Inn, a famous eco lodge in the middle of nowhere which is totally self sustaining and gives you the feeling you are at home as soon as you walk in the door (definitely helped by the home made cookies on arrival). Here is the view from my front door...
The second day included more walking through the Andes and in particular the cloud forests where you could almost be on another planet. We had a picnic feast of local cheese, homemade bread, popcorn and more cookies (provided by the Black Sheep Inn) looking down on the clouds. Amazing. But apparently all this is nothing in comparison to the Galapagos Islands. I leave tomorrow so expect pages and pages of photos in about a week... Adios x
Well I have had a fantasic birthday week despite hoping to keep it quiet that I am now well on the way to my thirties... The week began in a pretty surreal way with my host family inviting me to take part in their "El Niño" fiesta which involved attending mass for several hours, throwing rose petals in the path of my host brother as he walked with a cradle containing the el niño doll, and then feasting for several hours with about thirty members of the family (much more my kind of thing!) I think this is a fiesta specific to Ecuador and it was an honour to be invited although most of the time I had no clue what was going on. Basically, every house has an "El Nino" (baby jesus) which stays in their house to ensure them safety throughout the year. Then once a year each family has a mass especially for them, to bless the baby for the next 12 months. It was a bit like going to a wedding, without the happy couple, but with the confetti, the speeches and the wedding breakfast. Definitely a unique experience.
Tuesday night started out being a quiet drink with a couple of people and ended up being a big night out with a mixture of people I was in the Amazon with, school friends and people from the hostel. There were presents, cake and salsa dancing! No pictures to show as yet. I didn't dare take my camera out, but I believe there are some incriminating pics somewhere which might make it onto this blog but will most likely be destroyed. It was very touching my new lovely mates bought me a woolly hat and beautiful indigenous woven scarf to take on my next expedition. And they even sang! We did wimp out a bit on the salsa though simply because the dancers here are just soo amazing. It was a bit intimdating but amazing to watch.
So my next trip actually on my birthday day was to the thermal baths at Papallacta,a tiny village high in the Andes. I lay about in volcanic pools for most of the day before an amazing power shower with a fireman's hose followed by the best massage ever. Could have stayed there for weeks. But with my Spanish lessons over for a couple of weeks I decided to go to Quilatoa for a couple of days. Photos above and below.
The two days hiking included a visit to the Quilatoa Laguna, a huge lake in the crater of a distinct volcano at about 4 thousand feet... absolutely beautiful although the pictures don't really do it justice. (Please note:new birthday hat!)We (me and 4 other English girls) rode donkeys and walked miles through the Andes staying the night at the Black Sheep Inn, a famous eco lodge in the middle of nowhere which is totally self sustaining and gives you the feeling you are at home as soon as you walk in the door (definitely helped by the home made cookies on arrival). Here is the view from my front door...
The second day included more walking through the Andes and in particular the cloud forests where you could almost be on another planet. We had a picnic feast of local cheese, homemade bread, popcorn and more cookies (provided by the Black Sheep Inn) looking down on the clouds. Amazing. But apparently all this is nothing in comparison to the Galapagos Islands. I leave tomorrow so expect pages and pages of photos in about a week... Adios x
1 comment:
It all sounds fab. Glad you are having a good time and have not a) fallen down a ravine, b) been eaten by a giant spider or c) joined 1980s faux-Inca folk band Incantation and begun playing popular hits on the panpipes. Keep enjoying yourself. See you soon and Happy Birthday Grandma. Lots of love Exx
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