Home Leave V: Banos and Puyo, the Last Stops in Ecuador

Since we had arrived to Puyo at night, it was surprising to me to wake up in the morning and be surrounded by steep green mountains jutting into the mist.  We were in a narrow valley, surrounded on all sides by verdant peaks.  Banos is a small town nestled in the foothills of the Andes on the Amazon side of the mountains.  It is an outdoor adventurer's paradise, and as such a major gringo locality.  That has its pluses and minuses.  Pluses: a range of fantastic food, both local and international.  Minuses, it is a bit more touristy.  But the town survives on this tourism focused around the rainforest, rivers, canyons, and mountains, as well as the natural hot springs, from which the name is derived.

Banos de Agua Santa

We had a delicious breakfast at our hostel, which in and of itself was a fantastic place.  We stayed in a hostel that was a working art studio and sculpture workshop.  It was open and airy and massive with large fireplaces and many rooms clustered on two floors around the workshop.  The woman cooking us breakfast helped us to iron out a plan to get up to the swing at the end of the world, and so after eating we set off to find a taxi.

A taxi took us up a steep winding road to the top of the mountains.  He let us out, and we had to hike another 250 feet up or so to a small tree house that is built on the edge of a mountain ridge.  There is an active volcano very near the swing at the end of the world, and the tree house was built as an observation point.  Now, naturally, it serves as a place to swing out over a dramatically steep and deep valley floor, and feel the earth drop out from under your feet.  It was a magical thing to swing out over a valley floor hundreds of feet below.

Lee on the swing!

We hiked down the mountain to a terrific restaurant, and then eventually all the way down to Puyo town.  It is an extremely steep and intense trail, but often provides breathtaking views.

Hiking down down to Banos

That evening we went to the hot springs.  That was an interesting cultural experience.  There were so many people that you had to basically stand or squat pressed against all of Ecuador.  We had to rent swim caps to avoid getting hair in the water.  So we looked like a lunch lady convention had made it to the hot springs.  The water was hot and soothing, though it smelled metallic.  There were very cold plunge pools fed by the nearby waterfall, so we would soak until sweating in the hot pools, then jump into the cold water.  Apparently it is good for circulation.  When we left, after all that hot water and good circulation, I finally didn't feel cold in Banos (so far everywhere had been cold).

The next day we hiked to Pailon del Diablo, a stunning hike and gorgeous waterfall.  We took a bus for about 40 minutes to a small town in between Banos and puyo.  The trail head was a quick walk from the bus.  We hiked for about 40 minutes to the valley floor, before ascending to the waterfall.  once we reached the waterfall (nestled in mountains so green and lush that it was astounding) we had two options, climb through a tiny tunnel, army crawling to a platform where you can stand behind the waterfall and watch it roar down, or stand on the viewing platform.  We decided we had to scramble up the rock birth canal to the top of the falls.  It was very worth it.  The sound of the water was deafening.  It was impossible to stay dry, but so mesmerizing to stand behind such force.  The cave climb was amazing too, dripping rock, squeezing on all sides with occasional cut-away views of the jungle-enrobed valleys and the falls.

El Pailon del Diablo

After the waterfall we went back to Banos to gather our things for our quick trip to Puyo.  We rode in the back of a truck with two exceedingly nice, and overly curious Canadians and an Argentine.  We chatted them up, then went to our hotel when we arrived.  We gathered our stuff, then hopped on a bus to Puyo.

Travelling towards Puyo, the mountains gradually began to recede, and the rainforest began to grow denser and closer on all sides.  After an hour and a half, the Andes and dissolved into a shadow behind us, and we were in the flatter Amazon basin, right on the edge in Puyo.  We walked to Lee's house where she had been living with the ARP.  I got to meet her coworkers, see where she had been living, see the place in person where she had skyped, and get a tour of her little compound.  We spent a little time there, then we went to drop our stuff at our hotel and head to dinner.  We went out that night to her local bar and I was able to meet some of the friends she had made there.  It was awesome to see that she knew the bartender and had become a local at Desigual.

In the morning we woke up very early to take the bus out to the school where she had been working in a village called Esfuerzo.  We rode the bus with some college kids volunteering for her organization.  I slept as we drove out deeper into the rural amazon countryside.  I woke up and was excited to finally meet these people I had heard so much about.  I met Olguer, the school director at Esfuerzo.  He was a lovely man.  he showed us the gardens, the chicken coops, gave us fresh eggs, and told me all about his work in Ecuador.  It was so neat to be able to just jump into conversation with him, and feel like I was really meeting a friend of Lee's in a different cultural setting.  It was amazing.  I met the kids she worked with and the kind Andean doctor who helped her when she was sick.  People were genuinely curious about my work in Africa, and had a lot of questions for me.  It was fantastic.

I helped in the classroom teaching a lesson about public health, hand washing, parts of the body, muscles, and the skeleton etc.  We played games and the kids were so adorable.  They asked me endless questions about my life and about teacher Lee.  I was lucky to meet some of their parents who were there to practice traditional dances with Olguer, and then at around noon, we headed back to the main road.  This time we walked.  It was hot and humid walking back to the bus stop on the main road.  Just as we were all approaching, the bus passed, leaving us 50 meters from our ride back to town.  Luckily, after not too much waiting we hitched a ride into Puyo.

Lee in the classroom

Lee and I stopped for local brew and local food (steamed fish in a banana leave, and chicha).  Then we cleaned up at the ARP office, packed her stuff and went to meet her ARP colleagues, Puyo friends, and school directors for Volqueteros.  Volqueteros are plantain chips with tuna, onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and ahi.  It is a good snack.  We all chatted for about two hours before we had to part ways so Lee and I could get back to Banos to leave for Quito in the morning.  It was such an immense pleasure to meet Olguer and Carlos, the two school directors I had heard so much about.  I was so happy being with Lee and seeing how happy she was.  It was funny to be in this little town in the Amazon, but the people were fantastic, and I am already looking forward to going back to see them all again.

Downtown Puyo

We went back to Banos on the bus and spent time rearranging and packing our things.  Then we went for a fabulous dinner of tapas at a Spanish restaurant in downtown Banos.  In the morning we took an early bus back to Quito.  We stayed at Lee's favorite hostel which had stunning views of town from the rooftop terrace.  We went out for that dinner and I had the requisite dinner of Guinea Pig.  It was a bit like greasy rabbit, or game-y rabbit.  It was an interesting food, called cuy in Spanish.  It is an important traditional and available source of protein in the Andes.  While perhaps a bit off-putting in the presentation, the meal itself was awesome.

Guinea Pig (cuy)

We went to bed early as we had to be up at 4:30 to go to the airport for our flights to Bogota, then Cartagena!  That will be for the next instalment.

Home Leave Part II: The Latin America Chronicles Quito to the Coast

I was so excited to land in Ecuador.  I knew that Lee would be waiting for me on the other side of customs and immigration.  After months of waiting, being apart, skype calls, phone calls, g-chats, text messages, and every method of communication in between, we were finally going to have physical contact with each other.  I of course wanted to do what I could to look put together, so I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and put on a spritz of my cologne before getting in line for immigration.  The line was slow-moving, but I eventually made it through, got a stamp, picked up my bags, and headed out the sliding doors into official Ecuador territory.  And there she was!

She had written out a sign for me "el chico mas guapo en todo el mundo" and had a huge, beautiful smile on her face.  We hugged and kissed, and generally made a romantic movie scene in the arrivals hall at Mariscal Sucre airport.  Then we made our way into Quito.

Quito is an amazing, sprawling city built primarily in a long valley in the Andes mountains.  The elevation is very high, at 9,200 feet.  The city is extensively built up, with sky scrapers lining the avenues of the valley floor, and neighborhoods clinging to the slopes of the steep mountains on all sides.  It makes for beautiful views everywhere you turn.  We went for a a coffee at Kallari Cafe in the Mariscal area of Quito, then we sauntered around, looking at different plazas and neighborhoods along the way.  We walked through Parque El Ejido, a lovely park with plentiful green space, eucalyptus trees, pine trees, volleyball courts, and a whole walkway lined with artisan vendors.  The sun was setting as we were walking, and it was amazing how the temperature began to drop as soon as the sun was going down.  The elevation of Quito makes for VERY cold nights.

          

That evening we went for drinks in a very cozy bar called El Pobre Diablo.  It is known for live music, and an avant garde feel.  There were plenty of young, hip Quitenos in the bar sipping cocktails and sharing plates of cheese, olives, and various meats.  We enjoyed some national beers and also shared some appetizers while waiting for two of Lee's college friends to show up.  They eventually made it, we had another round of drinks, and then made our way to an upscale sushi restaurant in the Bellvista neighborhood of Quito.

We sat outside under heat lamps and ate delicious Japanese-Peruvian fusion sushi.  It was great to get to know Lee's friends a bit better, and enjoy not travelling on a plane.  I was tired as I had flown overnight, and the past two weeks of travel were catching up with me.  Plus I was with Lee, and bundled up in many layers for the chill air, and finally felt like I was adjusting to a time zone.  I was beat.  We called it an early night, and then headed to our hotel for bed.

In the morning we had a leisurely breakfast, and then we met up with Lee's friend KK to go to "La Mitad del Mundo," the place where the equator crosses through northern Quito.  It was a 30 minute taxi ride out there, and I slept the whole way.  The taxi driver tried to make conversation.  He was a gruff guy with neoprene sleeves that made it look like he had tattoos.  I was too tired though.  La Mitad del Mundo was warm, windy and dusty.  We took a tour where we were shown some of the interesting gravitational effects of being on the equator (draining water does not make a spiral, strength is different, sun clocks show different time) mixed with some information about traditional indigenous tribes in the area.  It was an interesting and informative experience.




























After La Mitad del Mundo, we left Lee's friend KK, and we headed over to the Centro Historico to tour the basilica, see the city from the heights, and wander around the city a bit before hopping on an overnight bus to the coast.  The basilica itself, "La Basilica del Voto Nacional" was stunning.  The views were even more breathtaking.  We climbed hundreds of stairs to reach the top of the cupola high above the city.  The stair climbing left me winded at that altitude, but the views and the experience were well worth the time.  From above, the views appear as though you could reach out and touch the clouds.  The mountains, the sky, and the city all seem so close together at that altitude.  The city stretched in all directions, only bounded by the inclines of the mountain slopes.


















After a lovely stroll around the cathedral, and meandering through old town, we needed to make our way back to the hotel to pick up our bags before heading to the bus terminal.  We went on a mad search for a particular empanada place called las medialunas de Abuelo.  It was to take on the road.  We gathered our belongings and hopped in a taxi with Lee's taxi driving friend Alex.  We crawled north through rush hour traffic, fearing we would miss our bus to the coast.  We arrived at the bus terminal (a large, modern, beautiful terminal reminiscent of an airport) and had to run through the chaos of people, out to the buses in order to get on the bus in time.  Running with a 35 lb pack at 9000 feet is tiring, but we made our bus and we were on our way to the coast!