Ecuador

I had a great time in Ecuador. Made some good friends. In total I visited 7 provinces out of 23.

The few days that were between the coast and the Andes were especially beautiful. An hour inland I really liked the area around Jipijapa (pronounced hippiehapa to cool) and south. Lots of orchards and farm land. Nice weather and only an hour from the coast. Lomas de Sargentillo was celebrating 27 years of independence for the province. It was September 5th a Thursday, the whole town and province was shut down for the parade which was huge and great fun. Every school in the province had dancers and marching bands in the parade. Lots of smiles and laughter.

Driving through the village of Pilalo which was just below the clouds was very pictureqes. When exiting the clouds it was so different then other parts of the country I had been in. Small population with mostly indigenous people. Driving livestock down the middle of the road. Pack horses and mules are just tied together after dropping off their packs and sent home by themselves. Through Zumbahau into Quilotoa where the lake is in the crater of a volcano. Spent the night in Chugchilan which is the end of the road. Dark when we arrived and in the morning I watched parents walking their children to school. I could easily spend a month or two exploring this area.

All in all I would like to go back to do some more exploring of this country.