Hi All,
Many of you have been following my Sth American journey which is now into the 7th week & drawing to a close. I am now in Equador. Again this is such a contrast to Brazil & Peru where I have spent the first 6 weeks. This country will rival NZ as the adventure capital. It has all the resourses for echo tourism but yet lacks the marketing.
My 4 days on a dive boat in Galapagus was great, diving with sharks & fur seals, stepping over blue footed boobies nests & the amazing prehistoric iguanas. I actually viewed from a distance these Islands back in 1970, believe it or not, from the deck of a ship after leaving the Panama Canal. They always called me back. I am glad I did & will try & learn more of Darwin & his adventures when I return home.
Quito is a fascinating city, my favourite being the old historic centre. Grand candy coloured colonial buildings with the most ostentatious churches you can imagine. The Spanish conquerors filled them with ornate carvings, paintings , statues completely covered in gold. We spent Easter Saturday submerged in the rituals of the local Easter celebrations & although weird very moving & beautiful. At night after a 2 hour mass, which we left & returned twice, we followed a candle lit procession thru the streets. Ladies had bunches of fresh roses to throw.Purple robed priests took down Christ from the cross, put the body of the statue into a glass coffin & this formed the focal point of the procession. We have moved in & out of Quito twice & used it as a base to explore other fascinating places in Equador. Not enough time to start on the wonderful food, lucky we do a lot of hikes.
The journey into the Amazon was exhausting & challenging,just getting there was a flight then a 4 hr 4x4 drive to a river crossing then a 2 hr motor canoe up the river. I loved our boat journeys to view the pink river dolphin or swim in the river at dusk. Always keeping away from the banks as the caimen are quite big there. The accom jungle lodge was challenging & always damp. The staff were friendly & helpful but I am glad I am doing this now & not in a few years time. They had to catch a boa constrictor in the dining room before I could eat breakfast. We visited a local community & had a private audience with a shaiman.Completely decked out with a feather in his nose & jaguar teeth necklace, he was a gentle & humble soul. This was not an act for tourists as somehow we were in a remote & isolated area of the Amazon. I bought a necklace from his wife which has a pirrahana jaw & teeth. I doubt if I will wear it in Sydney but it will certainly be a dinner party conversation piece. We spent 4 days locked in this amazing wild & scary world with strange noises as we tried to sleep in a wooden & bamboo tower on the banks of tribuatory of the Amazon. Jenny didnt fall in love with it at all but I am sure we will only remember the good bits...Not walking thru steaming humid jungle, mud coming up over gumboots, covered in mud filthy & constantly wet. At times so tired to lift our heads to look at the tucans or whatever amazing creature was pointed out.
Right now I am clean & dressed ready for dinner in this comfortable family hacienda & the memories are getting distant. Huge vases of roses next to me & after they light the fire I will be enjoying a drink.
We are now roaming around this fertile & green Andes, again challenging ourselves at altitude. Today been up around 3800 mtrs. Doing fine & seem to thrive on it. Today walked for several hours in the cloud forests amongst wild orchids & thundering waterfalls.The countryside is rich & fertile as this is volcano country, many above 5000mtr with glaciers on the cone. We have our own guide & car for 4 days & staying in some beautiful haciendas. Where I am now in the computer room is full of antiques & pottery, stuffed colonial furniture & grand fittings. They are laying a fire beside me as it is cool up in this altitude. Last night in Banos I sat in the hot thermal pools as a huge waterfall tumbled down the cliff next to me. That is the town for white water rafting, & canyoning etc. The young backpackers are just discovering it but Equadorians have visited the spa towns & volcanos for over a century. It reminded me in a way of the Katoomba or many places in NZ. I am loving Equador & think it is beginning to be my favourite.
Well thats all for now, many more adventures still to come & tomorrow up at 6am for the ride on the Devils Nose train thru the Andian high country, hats & gloves as it has open sides. It is the highest train in the world.
Home on the 21 & although this has been a great experience & I am loving it all I am getting weary & ready to come home.
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