We spent our time in Cotacachi playing with Isa Ecuadog (Mary's adorable 12 week old puppy), shopping around at all the leather shops in her town, traveling to Otavalo to buy souvenirs at the huge outdoor artisan market, eating expensive pie at the Shanendoah pie shop, riding a boat on Lake Cuicocha, and just catching up with Mary and Nancy.
Although we were there for Christmas, it didn't feel even remotely like Christmas Day, though Nancy did bring her iPod with Christmas music and we did see parades with little angels and wisemen. We are a little bummed that we didn't get a chance to stop in Puruhantag (which we passed along the way and heading back home) to visit our host family from training. But hopefully we will get a chance to do that in the future...the next time we decide to brave such a long bus ride. Though we did enjoy theatrical delights on the bus like XXX with Vin Diesel and some horrible movie with Dolph Lundgren. Never heard of him? Neither did I before I came to Ecuador!
Streeview from Mary's porch
And the other direction! As others have mentioned, it does seem like we are in a little beach town, but she is smack in the middle of the Andes!
View from her front door onto the street
Her central park! So clean and pretty!
Of course Isa is just a puppy, so we were practicing our good "No" voices. In this picture, Adam is saying "No biting Isa! No biting!"
I want a puppy!
And another Isa picture
We ate great at Mary's house- homemade English muffins from scratch! We are definitely getting a great lesson on making things at home instead of picking them up at the store!
Honey, jam and fresh squeezed oj!
We are wishing we had a porch to sit out and breakfast on!
Just another porch photo
Coffee sock in action- I can't wait to drink coffee brewed from a machine in Feb!
$2.80 for pie and ice cream??? I know, that is cheap by American standards, but for us PCVs it was more than a drop in the bucket!! But it was delicious (even if Adam insists that it was way too buttery and not as good as his apple pie...which I agree to but you can't compare apple pies to apple pies)
Jewelry in the Otavalo market
Adorable Ecuamommies with their little babies
Thunderstorm coming in over the central park in Cotacachi
Boat ride on the Crater Lake Cuicocha? Don't mind if I do!
Looking good in our life jackets- we all know I need one!
Nancy and Mary getting wet from the rain
Ducks on the crater lakeAnother parade passing Mary's house on Christmas night- and yes, they are lighting fireworks at the front of the parade, nearly missing pedestrians and passersby! It was an old man holding the fireworks and another guy lighting them. I figure if he has lived to be that old, it must not be that dangerous...ha!
2 comments:
18 Hour Bus Ride to Cotacachi!! ¿Starting where? It is only a 1-2 hour ride from Quito, where i live.
From Loja to Ambato, it took 12 hours, and then we took a bus from Ambato to Cotacachi which took another 6 hours because of all the stops (since it was during the day, you can imagine how often it stopped to pick up and drop off people)!!! Amazing huh??? I think in a car, it would probably have taken no more than 10-11 hours to get to Cotacachi from Loja.
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