Quilotoa

Laguna de Quilotoa

Home at two am this morning
Drunk...
Over slept, my tour was supposed to start at 7am
They came and got me at my hotel.
Wish they had left without me.

                                                Live stock at the market of Saquisili

Went to the Saquisilí market.
Its considered the countries biggest and most important market
They sell animals, grain, textiles, fruits, fish, etc. Anything you would want or need can be found here.
It is still very traditionally indigenous. They come down from the hills
around 4am. Before they had pick up trucks they used start walking down from the surrounding hills
around 1am to be at the market by 5am. Its all over before noon.
The animal market ends around 9am.

It is also crawling with thieves.
All the markets are.
If you decide to go to one take nothing,
make sure nothing is in your pockets
And carry your bag in the front
Had my broken camera stolen with all my images of the past two months
Along with my chap stick...
Didn't feel a thing.
Having someone cut you off from your group is the most common way.
One person cuts you off someone else bumps into you
from behind. Poof your stuff is gone. Takes half a second.
It was a beautiful clear day
Terribly windy, so strong it was hard to stand up right
We were on the road called Latacunga Cevedo
Amazing view of the páramos on either side
Everything is golden because it is harvest time
They grow broccoli up to four times a year
It all gets exported to the US.
Potatoes is a main staple in the Andean diet.
The still live very traditionally like they had for generations.
The worst thing is when they go off to school
in the city because very few ever return home.

Girl running through the paramo

We stopped by Tigua.
Tigua is an artisan town. For the past 40years it has dedicated it
self to the arts. Their work is sold throughout the country
Some artist have even reached international acclaim.
In Tigua I learned about the legend of the Cóndor
The Cóndor is found in all the traditional paintings.

"A shepherdess was very sad and lonely.
She would go out and care for her sheep over the páramos
When one day a boy appeared dressed in white scarf,white pants
and a red poncho. "He was the Cóndor.
He approached her and would help her heard her sheep.
With the passing of time
she would invite him to walk around la Laguna Quilotoa
But one day while heading the sheep,
he took her far away. The girl had two dogs Azucena and
Amapola. They took the the sheep back to her parents
and told them what happened. That the Cóndor had kidnapped
the girl and took her to a place called CONDOR MATZI.
The family went off to eschew her.
The found her in a very high cave. They managed
to get her down with some rope. They locked her in her room.
She was so sad. She managed to make smoke signals.
The Cóndor saw the smoke and went to her window.
He took her far far way. In a few days she too turned into a cóndor
and they lived happly ever after".

I was not enjoying any of these places
I was only thinking of my lost images
Each one would flash in my mind
So vividly reminding me of what I will never be
able to recapture.

After more sweeping views and going up and down the Andes
We finally reach Quilotoa.
Quilotoa is a water-filled caldera about two miles wide
It is beautiful. Soft turquoise water with the twin Illinizas in the back
ground. Only the south Illiniza has a snow cap.

As you go down the path to the base of the crater
it feels like Greece with the white winding cliffs.
and mules bringing tourist up from the lagoon.

The soft white volcanic sand and the slight steep decline
made the going a little hazardous, but the
only thing that was really in danger was my ego
hate to make it down sliding on my ass.

My "horse"

As you get closer to the water you can see lots of tiny bubbles coming up to the surface. The water is sulfuric and also has a very high salt concentration. Legend had it that it used to be connected to the ocean.The water is nice and cool. Some areas around the crater are thermal.

I took the "horse" ride back up the crater $8.
I have never ridden a horse.
Technically I still haven't.
I was terrified.
Had trouble getting on the poor beast.
Then it started moving. I almost chickened out.
My heart was pounding out of my chest.
I must of had ten minor heart attacks!
Just as I finally figure out how to hold on to the
saddle they coil the rope into reins and hand it to me!
Of course the poor thing has to just walk up on the very precipice of the cliff. (Did I mention my fear of heights) and the Andean boy who was trailing behind kept pulling his tail and hitting him with a stick not helping at all. I felt like I was going to slip off the sides. It sure felt nothing like a carousel.
After a while I started to get the hang of it.
I started to enjoy the view winding back up.
Except when we were on the very edge then I just looked away.
It is actually a very pleasurable experience
being on a saddle....

At the top after a bit of fussing I managed
to get off in one piece. It is so windy at the top.
Got a new grey alpaca poncho $15(over paid). Did I mention how
much I love alpaca. Warmer and softer than
cashmere. Slept the 4 hour+ ride back to Quito.
I normally would of been in love with the view
Going though the valley of volcanoes. But I was still to upset
about my camera. At least I didn't let it completely
ruin my trip. The lagoon was so worth visiting.

Skip the markets, not worth the effort.