With one week left in Ecuador time was due to do something else than hiking. Galapagos is too expensive, the coast something I´ll get enough from in New Zealand, so the choice fell on going to the Amazon jungle for a few days.
After a beautiful 5 hours busride, I arrived on monday at 3pm in Tena, a 10.000 habitants village located at the gate to the Amazonas. The climate was quite a change, beautifully hot and sweaty humid. Two big rivers - Pano and Tena - come together here and build the heart of this adrenalin tourism place.
Parque Amazonico
One thing I´ve noticed very fast was that the girls from Tena seemed to like me a great deal for some reason. I wasn´t in town for half an hour, when I suddenly found myself accompanied by two of them for a visit to the Parque Amazonico, a kind of zoo stretching over about a squarekilometer. The girls were everything but shy and wouldn´t let go of me till I caught a little ride on a rope between two towers.
Finally free, I enjoyed the most peculiar zoo I´ve ever seen. There are some interesting plants and very few animals, of which particularly the Jaguarundi impressed me, locked up in cages. Since the park lies on an island, however, most animals are walking aroung free and are about as shy as the two girls.
So you suddenly hear a noise in the bush and out comes a wild pig on a mission, you look amazed into the snakes cage and a monkey grabs your legs and looks at you hopefully or you have to get away from the track cause a big fat tapir ir filling it all up - welcome to the jungle.
Jungle experience near Serena
The next day I met Fausto at 6.30am to spend a day out in the forest and discover its miracles. He is a native from a tribe near Coca, studied chemistry and biology and has a travel agency in Tena. We went by bus to a small native village called Serena, where he prepared a wholesome breakfast. Then we went for a walk straight into the jungle, where he explained me fascinating things about the whole ecosystem. There weren´t many animals, mainly insects and butterflies as well as a sloth and a snake, but therefore a broad range of beautiful trees and a stunning view over the hilly countryside. After the tastiest spaghettis I´ve ever had in my live, I relaxed at and in the nearby river, visited a museum about the Kichwa (native people), a large family from the town as well as the local school and caught the 6pm bus back to Tena.
Kayaking with more girls
On wednesday I tried myself in a new sport - kayaking. With all the equipment and my private teacher Boylan, a young fella just slightly older than me, we drove up the river Pano to a nice beach where the water is deep and calm. One day is very little time to learn kayaking and I first just tried to get comfortable in it.
It went all well till noon, when about 15 jungle-beauties arrived to swim in the river. Whilst I was trying to focus on learning the escimorole - something very difficult for me because being head upside down in the water isn´t exactely where I feel comfortable - they all gatered around me, asking me all sorts of questions (Where from? Girlfriend? How long in Tena? What doing tonight?) and making remarks (ojos bonitos, muy simpatico).
After being head upside down for at least 30 times and being kayaking for about five hours, I was getting really exhausted, blisters all over my hands, and decided to call it a day. The weather had been most welcoming the whole day, but now a storm was creeping up and we tried to make it back to Tena before it started to rain. This didn´t work, but it did´t matter anymore anyway cause the river had been stronger than me, leading me too close to some low branches and I capesized, just about saving my paddle. Luckily Boylan caught the kayak and we somehow made it back without another accident.
After this tough day out on the river, I just relaxed the rest of the time in Tena, enjoying the good restaurants and bars as well as reading near the river. I was quite happy to make it back to Quito on thursday night, since the mozzies got me really badly. Apparently there are very few in Tena, I hadn´t seen any at all, but I had at least 50 bites in each of my calves.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Ecuador - Laguna Quilotoa and Cotopaxi Volcano
After finishing my four weeks course at Simon Bolivar Spanish School in Quito, I had two more weeks left for traveling the small but diverse country of Ecuador.
The time at school was great and learnful. In a total of 80 private lessons with my teacher Julio we went through the grammatical basics, but most of the time we were just conversating freely about all sorts of things (mainly girls). Therefore I feel very comfortable in talking and understandig, but am usually just guessing the right conjugation.
Fiestas de Quito
The last week at school coinicided with the fiestas de Quito, celebrating the foundation of the city some 474 years ago. On friday afternoon, the school held a party with heaps of silly foodgames, shows and more. After skipping out of the salsa show the night before, I was still busy taking part in all the games, a funny play and - last but not least - the Miss Simon Bolivar election. Me and four peers dressed up as girls and did some catwalk and dancing in front of a laughing-out-loud crowd. I came runner-up...
Beautiful Quilotoa
Ecuador has basically four different regions - the mountains, the jungle, the coast and the galapagos islands. The first week was supposed to be spent in the mountains, with a climb to the top of the Cotopaxi volcano as the big objectiv. Davide from Boston and Daniel from Sydney, two peer students, had the same plan, so we decided going there together.
To succeed in climbing up to 5897 meters above sea level, we were desperate for a good acclimatisation. We had started with hikes around Otavalo two weeks before, then climbed the Pichincha volcano near Quito twice, before catching a bus to Quilotoa on Monday. This little village on slightly less than 4000 meters altitude was a highlight in itself.
The reason is a beautiful lagoon in the middle of a fascinating mountain landscape. The volcanoes definitely created some nice places on this planet, and I reckon Quilotoa is the greatest of them. We walked all around the lagoon on the crater, which took us about 4 hours, and then enjoyed a great dinner at our hostel. In the evening, a strong wind was blowing some chilly air and was shaking the house during the whole night. I went out for a little walk in the bright full moon and the sparkling stars, deciding that, apart from Maria Island, this was the most awesome place I have ever been.
Bloody Dogs on the Way
Next day, we walked down the crater, did some kayaking on the lagoon (where I got my only long pants soaking wet) before we walked off to Chugchilan, another little town some 12 kilometers away. The challenge was to work out the right track and, most of all, surviving the protecting dogs on the way.
I do not have anything against dogs in general, but I can´t stand the barking ones. Last year in Italy I was attacked on the bike by four huge dogs fearing death and escaping luckily - an event which will leave me traumatised forever. The experience here was nothing in comparsion but scary nevertheless.
What happend was, that a little black dog was barking at us, more afraid of us than we from him. My mates, armed with sticks and stones, considered it harmless and everbody thought we were out of trouble once he moved off the track and let us pass. Shortly after, however, I felt a bite in my left shoe.
We made it safe and sound to Chuchilan where we spent one and a half days relaxing in a hostel with a remarkably tasty dinner. Then we caught a 3am bus to Saquisili, where we visited a big market, eating all sorts of stuff and observing the buy and sell of chicken, rabbits and guinea pigs among others.
Freezing, Cloudy, Snowing - We Made it
After spending the night in a luxurious hostel with a godly wirlpool, we set off towards Cotopaxi on friday. Together with our guides Fernando and Sergio as well as Ryan, a former Simon-Bolivar-student from California, we got all our gear and drove off to the parking lot on 4500 meters. From there we walked to the basecamp Jose F. Ribas, located just below the snowboundary on 4800 meters above sea level. There we made last preparations, got some food in our belly and slept a few hours.
The climb started at 1.20am, in order to walk on compact snow. The weather was really ugly, it was snowing most of the time and troubling our adventure. Despite fears of having to return, we were right below the top at 5.30am - too early. We had to wait for dawn before making the last 100 meters to the peak, where it was so cold that the water in my bottle froze. Usually there is a breathtaking view up there, but unfortunately it was all cloudy this saturday morning. However, we were just happy that we all had climbed the highest active volcano in the world without any problems.
The time at school was great and learnful. In a total of 80 private lessons with my teacher Julio we went through the grammatical basics, but most of the time we were just conversating freely about all sorts of things (mainly girls). Therefore I feel very comfortable in talking and understandig, but am usually just guessing the right conjugation.
Fiestas de Quito
The last week at school coinicided with the fiestas de Quito, celebrating the foundation of the city some 474 years ago. On friday afternoon, the school held a party with heaps of silly foodgames, shows and more. After skipping out of the salsa show the night before, I was still busy taking part in all the games, a funny play and - last but not least - the Miss Simon Bolivar election. Me and four peers dressed up as girls and did some catwalk and dancing in front of a laughing-out-loud crowd. I came runner-up...
Beautiful Quilotoa
Ecuador has basically four different regions - the mountains, the jungle, the coast and the galapagos islands. The first week was supposed to be spent in the mountains, with a climb to the top of the Cotopaxi volcano as the big objectiv. Davide from Boston and Daniel from Sydney, two peer students, had the same plan, so we decided going there together.
To succeed in climbing up to 5897 meters above sea level, we were desperate for a good acclimatisation. We had started with hikes around Otavalo two weeks before, then climbed the Pichincha volcano near Quito twice, before catching a bus to Quilotoa on Monday. This little village on slightly less than 4000 meters altitude was a highlight in itself.
The reason is a beautiful lagoon in the middle of a fascinating mountain landscape. The volcanoes definitely created some nice places on this planet, and I reckon Quilotoa is the greatest of them. We walked all around the lagoon on the crater, which took us about 4 hours, and then enjoyed a great dinner at our hostel. In the evening, a strong wind was blowing some chilly air and was shaking the house during the whole night. I went out for a little walk in the bright full moon and the sparkling stars, deciding that, apart from Maria Island, this was the most awesome place I have ever been.
Bloody Dogs on the Way
Next day, we walked down the crater, did some kayaking on the lagoon (where I got my only long pants soaking wet) before we walked off to Chugchilan, another little town some 12 kilometers away. The challenge was to work out the right track and, most of all, surviving the protecting dogs on the way.
I do not have anything against dogs in general, but I can´t stand the barking ones. Last year in Italy I was attacked on the bike by four huge dogs fearing death and escaping luckily - an event which will leave me traumatised forever. The experience here was nothing in comparsion but scary nevertheless.
What happend was, that a little black dog was barking at us, more afraid of us than we from him. My mates, armed with sticks and stones, considered it harmless and everbody thought we were out of trouble once he moved off the track and let us pass. Shortly after, however, I felt a bite in my left shoe.
We made it safe and sound to Chuchilan where we spent one and a half days relaxing in a hostel with a remarkably tasty dinner. Then we caught a 3am bus to Saquisili, where we visited a big market, eating all sorts of stuff and observing the buy and sell of chicken, rabbits and guinea pigs among others.
Freezing, Cloudy, Snowing - We Made it
After spending the night in a luxurious hostel with a godly wirlpool, we set off towards Cotopaxi on friday. Together with our guides Fernando and Sergio as well as Ryan, a former Simon-Bolivar-student from California, we got all our gear and drove off to the parking lot on 4500 meters. From there we walked to the basecamp Jose F. Ribas, located just below the snowboundary on 4800 meters above sea level. There we made last preparations, got some food in our belly and slept a few hours.
The climb started at 1.20am, in order to walk on compact snow. The weather was really ugly, it was snowing most of the time and troubling our adventure. Despite fears of having to return, we were right below the top at 5.30am - too early. We had to wait for dawn before making the last 100 meters to the peak, where it was so cold that the water in my bottle froze. Usually there is a breathtaking view up there, but unfortunately it was all cloudy this saturday morning. However, we were just happy that we all had climbed the highest active volcano in the world without any problems.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Ecuador - Yasmin
Quito is about 50 kilometers wide and divided into two parts, the north and the south. Whilst being in the north, which offers all the parks, attractions and beauties, you easily forget that you are in a developping country with lots of poverty and problems, located in the south of the city - where people just pay 90 bucks for a 3-room-apartment a month, but where there is a lot of traffic and violence.
On tuesday last week, I was walking along a street coming from a tennishit, when a little girl overtook me with a huge smile, pointing to her pocket and offering me a bunch of candy. I shook my head, but she was explaining me that it wasn't a question, but an obligation. She put the candy in my hand, asked me for 25 cents and ran off happily and lighthearted.
On friday, she wasn't happy anymore. When I walked past her, she was sitting in a dirt corner, her head hanging lifeless on her neck, with a sad and hopeless look. Again she offered me some candy, which had been as oversugared and horrible as expected, and again I shook my head. If her expression was hopeless before, it was the saddest look in the world I've ever seen afterwards. It really touched me, so I took out a dollar, bought one of these delicious fried bananas, walked back, shared it with her and gave her the change. We talked a little, her name was Yasmin, 12 years old, orphan, living in the south, comig to the north to sell candy every day.
There is a lot of poverty on earth. Especially in south america, there is this huge difference of wealth and poverty in such a little space, in order that you really have to ask what is going wrong in this world. And you can't help it. Giving money, charities, whatever - these things are not gonna change anything. They may be able to support idividuums, give them a little pleasure or hope or just quiet their hunger. But in the longterm, there is only one thing that can help: If humanity stops thinking that money is the most important objective and starts putting in an effort in giving everbody food, water, warmth, education and hope for the future.
On tuesday last week, I was walking along a street coming from a tennishit, when a little girl overtook me with a huge smile, pointing to her pocket and offering me a bunch of candy. I shook my head, but she was explaining me that it wasn't a question, but an obligation. She put the candy in my hand, asked me for 25 cents and ran off happily and lighthearted.
On friday, she wasn't happy anymore. When I walked past her, she was sitting in a dirt corner, her head hanging lifeless on her neck, with a sad and hopeless look. Again she offered me some candy, which had been as oversugared and horrible as expected, and again I shook my head. If her expression was hopeless before, it was the saddest look in the world I've ever seen afterwards. It really touched me, so I took out a dollar, bought one of these delicious fried bananas, walked back, shared it with her and gave her the change. We talked a little, her name was Yasmin, 12 years old, orphan, living in the south, comig to the north to sell candy every day.
There is a lot of poverty on earth. Especially in south america, there is this huge difference of wealth and poverty in such a little space, in order that you really have to ask what is going wrong in this world. And you can't help it. Giving money, charities, whatever - these things are not gonna change anything. They may be able to support idividuums, give them a little pleasure or hope or just quiet their hunger. But in the longterm, there is only one thing that can help: If humanity stops thinking that money is the most important objective and starts putting in an effort in giving everbody food, water, warmth, education and hope for the future.
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