Chugchilán to Baños! (more pictures to come!!)

The morning of Thursday September 11th was another early one; 5:30am to be exact, which meant that we were up before the sun was. We packed up our stuff and headed next door where we piled into two trucks. Nate and I opted for the back of the pickup truck where there was a cushion, two blankets and all the fresh air we could ever want.

And we were off. To where exactly? To Saquisilí and beyond.

Our pick up trunk bounced over the potholes. We shielded our eyes from the sun and the dust as we picked up speed past school-bound students and grazing cows. We saw some spectacular views such as these:

And

We passed little hidden towns until our Laguna Quilotoa peak could no longer be seen. The sky was a clear shade of blue that rose above the quilted hills that towered above the dirt road. I held my breath as we passed dangerously close to the edge of the road that dropped many many feet down.

Two hours later we passed through Sigchos. The locals looked up and smiled as we saluted from the pick up. The buildings were short and the sun was fierce. In front of the elementary school we picked up Dominique, an animate talks-with-her-hands French woman we had met in the Chugchilán hostel. She had left Chugchilán at 5:30am on the school bus to arrive at Saquisilí early, but the bus had been so weighed down that she ended up missing her connecting bus in Sigchos. Good thing we had passed by because the next bus would be at 2pm!

She and her bag took a seat with us in the back of the truck. As soon as we hit the road, she and her flawless English were going a mile a minute. Her hilarious expressions and frantic gesturing kept me smiling all the way to Saquisilí. Meanwhile, the environment changed. The dirt road morphed into a paved one. The cultivated hills became wild untamed forest. The wind chilled. Two volcanoes appeared on the horizon. We were transitioning; the end of one journey is just the beginning of another.

Nate, tired of sitting down, stretches his legs while holding securely to the main cabin of the truck. The wind whipped through his jacket and hair. He smiles all the way to Saquisilí.

First stop is the animal market. Cows, pigs, sheep, alpacas! All separated into two groups: ‘sold’ and ‘still available, so hurry up!’ We wander around avoiding the piles of animal matter and snapping photos like good gringos.

Back into the truck, we head downtown to drop off our bags at a friendly hotel. We say goodbye to our new friends, not knowing that we will meet up with them in another place and time! Into the cacophony of market colors and smells we go! Mmmm… first things first! A few piping hot corn tortillas filled with cheese straight from the frying oil to curb our hungry tummies.

What a success! We bargain like professionals for an alpaca sweater and a colorful hat for Nate and a light blue alpaca scarf for me. Then we ate some sweet corn bread. That was enough for the day!

We didn't spend much time in Saquisilí, but we got a lot accomplished. Check it off our list and move on to Latacunga and then Baños. The Latacunga bus was 30 cents for 30 minutes. It gave me dreadful chills to be back in that horrendous city. Let's get out of here and QUICKLY!

But not so fast. Oh no! Nate realized that he left his little guitar in the hotel. Oh no! Well, it's not the end of the world, it's not too far away. I volunteer to go back if Nate stays with the bags. We use my chain to connect all the bags together, you know, just in case. It's a lot tougher to steal three bags than just one.

I run and find the next bus to Saqusiilí. Uneventful ride there. Run to the hotel. Pick up guitar. Run and catch the next bus to Latacunga. Uneventful ride back. Indigenous woman next to me ranted about bus fare prices, the soap vendor and politics.

I found Nate back in the bus terminal. He had been working on his "don't mess with me" look to scare off the potential muggers. I was relieved that nothing had happened to him.

We hopped on the bus to Ambato. Ambato bus station was confusing. Buses to Baños left from another station. So we hopped a bus to Puyo and hoped for the best. The ayudante didn't have immediate change for our $20 bill, so we stayed in limbo while he looked for change. The bus ride was short and before we knew it we were pulling into Baños.

We shouldered our packs and walked down to Hostel Plantas y Blanco (plants and white). And would you know that the walls are white and there are plants everywhere! We got a room with a private bathroom. Free internet. Roof terrace. Yummy breakfasts. I like it!

Baños gave me a good feeling almost immediately. It's a tourist town, true, but it's safe and the locals are friendly. The city sits in a valley surrounded by mountains. There's good hiking, theral baths, bike rentals, a bustling market, and outdoor cafes.


What a paradise after all the stresses we've been through lately!