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Monthly Archives: July 2015
Otavalo
We bid farewell to the historic center of Quito on Saturday morning as we headed out for Otavalo at 8am. It was an easy 40-minute 25¢ trolly ride from Santo Domingo to El Ejido to Terminal Norte. However, Terminal Norte … Continue reading
Posted in Ecuador
Tagged cascada de peguche, lago san pablo, laguna cuicocha, otavalo market
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Quito
At 2,850 meters high Quito is the second tallest capital in the world after La Paz. This long city stretches from north to south, with the primary tourist neighborhoods of Historic Quito (Centro Historico) and La Mariscal situated in the middle … Continue reading
Quilotoa
The Quilotoa Traverse, a multi-day trekking excursion from village to village in the Ecuadorian Andes, was actually what I looked forward to the most in mainland Ecuador. Typically hikers follow this standard 4-day route from south to north: 1. Arrive … Continue reading
Baños
I didn’t realize that Quito’s international airport was so far from Quito (and a whopping $35 taxi ride into the city!), and because we wanted to go straight to Baños after the Galapagos, we spent the night in Pifo instead … Continue reading
The Galapagos
We came to the Galapagos for one primary reason: to experience the wildlife, particularly the blue footed boobies. They say that you will take many more pictures than you anticipate, and they were right. Wild animals, galore! During our transport … Continue reading
Galapagos on a Budget
We told everyone we weren’t going to the Galapagos since we had already planned one expensive island excursion to Easter Island. However once I arrived to Cuenca, I couldn’t help but keep an eye out for last minute deals for … Continue reading
Guayaquil
On July 4th after celebrating Independence Day in Cuenca with American retirees over hotdogs and hamburgers, we headed out to Ecuador’s largest and most populated city, Guayaquil. Guayaquil is really more of a 1-day stopover for tourists before visiting the … Continue reading
Cuenca
About 4 hours by bus north of Vilcabamba is Cuenca, Ecuador’s beautiful colonial city, Ecuador’s third largest city, and our new favorite city in South America. As it is nestled in lush, green valleys and surrounded by rivers, the architecture … Continue reading
Hitchhiking for Beer and Fireworks
Little did we know that our adventure to Vilcabamba, Ecuador would begin right in Maria, the little village nearest to the ruins of Kuelap. We returned to Maria after our morning exploration of Kuelap at 1:15pm, which we believed would be ample time for … Continue reading
Kuelap
Day tours from Chachapoyas to Kuelap, the largest pre-Incan ruins in South America, must only appeal to people with little time; they depart every morning and return every evening for 6 hours of just driving roundtrip. After having spent the past … Continue reading
Posted in Peru
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