Sitting at the port and watching the pelicans fishing.
Earlier this morning landed at the Baltra airport and took a ferry+bus through the Santa Cruz Island to Puerto Ayora. Very expensive and touristic here. (Everybody is selling "I love boobies" T-shirts.)
Being an inhabited place, Puerto Ayora is not the best place for wildlife spotting. Nevertheless we have already seen frigatbirds, pelicans, finches, a heron, lizards, crabs, sea lions, and marine iguanas.
2010-01-16
Guayaquil Airport
In 30 minutes flying to Baltra, Galápagos Islands. Will spend there a week. On Tuesday will join a 4-day trip around the Santiago Island.
Blue boobies, here we come!
Blue boobies, here we come!
2010-01-15
McDonald's, waterfront, Guayaquil
Arrived yesterday in Guayaquil. Staying in Hotel Ecuador (11 USD per dbl with bath). Today exploring the possibility of going to the Galapagos Islands.
2010-01-14
Hostal Transilvania, Baños (leaving)
Today finally leaving Baños and going to Guayaquil. Will look for a cheap tour to Galapagos there.
Activities done in Baños:
Best hostel in Baños: Hostal Transilvania
Best restaurant in Baños: Pizza restaurant Garfield
Activities done in Baños:
- 2010-01-05 Arrived in Baños, checked in at Hostal Plantas y Blanco (9.50 USD per person, no TV, no breakfast, wireless barely worked), had a pizza
- 2010-01-06 Slept, took ibubrofen and Neocitran, slept some more
- 2010-01-07 Slept, took ibubrofen/Neocitran, visited the church, slept
- 2010-01-08 Visited the doctor (he spoke a little German, so didn't really understand what the sickness was, something with tonsils, his diagnosis was confident though: the tonsils were all covered with white puss), moved into Hostal Transilvania (7 USD per person, incl. TV, breakfast, free wireless)
- 2010-01-09 Watched TV (Lost, Friends, American Wedding, ...), took antibiotics and paracetamol, slept
- 2010-01-10 Watched TV (Lost, Friends, ...), took antibiotics and paracetamol, slept
- 2010-01-11 Viewed volcanic activity on Tungurahua from Bellavista (400m above the town), took antibiotics
- 2010-01-12 Viewed volcanic activity on Tungurahua from down-town Baños, took the last set of antibiotics
- 2010-01-13 Biked to Mera, viewing the many waterfalls on the way, took a bus back to Baños (tracklog: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http://files.dropbox.com/u/1397729/trip2009/kml/20100113.kml)
Best hostel in Baños: Hostal Transilvania
Best restaurant in Baños: Pizza restaurant Garfield
2010-01-13
Hostal Transilvania, Baños
Biked from Baños to Mera today, about 45km downhill, and then took a bus back to Baños. Originally hoped to reach Puyo (65km away) but it was getting late and we got worried that we wouldn't make it to the last Puyo-Baños bus (at 6 o'clock). The whole trip took longer than expected because the road contained many uphill parts, although descending some 700m in total.
There are many waterfalls along the first 20km, most impressive being the Pailón del Diablo.
There are many waterfalls along the first 20km, most impressive being the Pailón del Diablo.
2010-01-07
Baños, Ecuador
Came down to the small town of Baños, located at 1800m in the Andes. The surroundings are amazing, high mountains, very green, but unfortunately since 3 days not really visible, as it is always cloudy and since yesterday it has been raining on and off. Rather on than off... We chose this de-acclimatization because Kaarel felt sick and probably it is not the best option to cure a cold or a flu at 4000m high in the hidden village of Quilotoa with an average temperature of 10C.
Actually I think Kaarel is just faking this sickness because he was too lazy to hike. :o) It is really a pitty, as the landscape was truly amazing. Quilotoa is located on the rim of a crater with a beautiful green-blue crater lake in its perfectly round full caldera. The lake is some 400m lower from the rim and is about 250 m deep.
The water is salty and sulfuric (the vulcano is still active), so it is not potable and has no fish. The weather was not really good and unfortunately we could not see most of the surrounding mountains, including the two most famous vulcanos, the Cotopaxi and the Iliniza. There are several hiking options in the area, but we only hiked down to the lake and back up to the village. Still that hike was pretty awesome, especially when the sun came out from behind the clouds and made the lake change its colors.
The locals in the village were very friendly, they clearly live on tourism, as every second house is a hostel and the rest are "art galleries" or small grocery stores. Still the local women kept their traditional wear of black shoes, white stockings, knee-high dark skirts, blankets around their shoulders and small hats sometimes decorated with peacock feather. Even young girls wear this outfit, but the boys and men do not seem to care that much about tradition and run around in normal clothes. Occasionally some of them do wear a poncho though.
So unfortunately we had to leave this Andean paradise and now we are waiting for better weather in Baños, so we can do some downhill mountain biking to Puyo which is 60 km away. The route should be spectacular, passing by many waterfalls in a beautiful valley as it arrives to the steamy jungle. As its name suggests, Baños is also famous for its thermal water. But as it is pretty wet outside, it does not make much sense to visit the spas until the weather gets better.
Actually I think Kaarel is just faking this sickness because he was too lazy to hike. :o) It is really a pitty, as the landscape was truly amazing. Quilotoa is located on the rim of a crater with a beautiful green-blue crater lake in its perfectly round full caldera. The lake is some 400m lower from the rim and is about 250 m deep.
The water is salty and sulfuric (the vulcano is still active), so it is not potable and has no fish. The weather was not really good and unfortunately we could not see most of the surrounding mountains, including the two most famous vulcanos, the Cotopaxi and the Iliniza. There are several hiking options in the area, but we only hiked down to the lake and back up to the village. Still that hike was pretty awesome, especially when the sun came out from behind the clouds and made the lake change its colors.
The locals in the village were very friendly, they clearly live on tourism, as every second house is a hostel and the rest are "art galleries" or small grocery stores. Still the local women kept their traditional wear of black shoes, white stockings, knee-high dark skirts, blankets around their shoulders and small hats sometimes decorated with peacock feather. Even young girls wear this outfit, but the boys and men do not seem to care that much about tradition and run around in normal clothes. Occasionally some of them do wear a poncho though.
So unfortunately we had to leave this Andean paradise and now we are waiting for better weather in Baños, so we can do some downhill mountain biking to Puyo which is 60 km away. The route should be spectacular, passing by many waterfalls in a beautiful valley as it arrives to the steamy jungle. As its name suggests, Baños is also famous for its thermal water. But as it is pretty wet outside, it does not make much sense to visit the spas until the weather gets better.
2010-01-04
Wilson y 6 de Diciembre, Quito (leaving)
Leaving Quito and start going South. First stop Latacunga from where we plan to visit the Quilotoa crater lake and climb the Cotopaxi volcano.
Activities done in and around Quito (will write more about them later):
Activities done in and around Quito (will write more about them later):
- Visited the old town (e.g. the San Francisco church)
- Visited Mitad del Mundo, where two fake and one real equator line pass through
- Climbed the Pichincha mountain (4700m), turned around 50m from the top though (unlike Humboldt who reached the top in 1802)
- Visited Otavalo, at the market bought a sombrero de paja toquilla, pants, and a bag for cables, and later in the night saw a cock fight
- Visited the basilica del voto nacional in down-town Quito, climbed to all the towers (highest was 310 steps)
2010-01-01
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