We got in late last night -- everything went like clockwork -- but it was still late. Our hostel -- a lovely place run by a family -- is almost an hour from the airport. We had to be up at 5:30 to get ready and off to the tour. It started outside a restaurant, so we had a quick breakfast and loaded up.
12-14 people in all, we were packed into a little bus; an oversized van. We had lots of space but we did spend a long time driving. The following is extracted from their website. It wasn't done in quite this order as we did the Otavalo Market last, ending at 3:40 p.m. and then got back to the Q restaurant at 6pm. As I said, a long day.
We also stopped at the equator, the real equator. There are two, an old line-on-the-street and a proper monument that is right at zero.
Did you know that North means Left ? We first-worlders always show the north pole at the top but of course that's simply our imagination; our desire to be "above" the rest of the world. If, instead, you hold the globe with North on the left and spin the globe away from you, there's a different view of things. That said, there is no up or down in space. Any orientation is correct, really (that's me speaking, not the instructor at the Equator).
Schedule
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Itinerary
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07:00
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Leave from 'Q Restaurant' (Plaza Foch, Quito) (for transfer) to Otavalo
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07:30
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Stop at Calderon to see the marzipan figures the area is famous for
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08:30
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Viewpoint: see Cayambe, Guayllamama, Quito, Cotopaxi, Tabcundo and flower farms
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09:00
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Quitsato Mitad del Mundo (entrance fee $1)
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09:30
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Visit the Cayambe bizcochos (local biscuits) factory
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10:30
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Viewpoint of Lagoon San Pablo
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11:00
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Exploring Otavalo Market
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13:00
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Cotacachi leather city
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14:30
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Cuicocha crater lake (entrance fee $2).
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15:00
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Leave back to Quito
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The scenery was wonderful. We got to see the countryside that we missed by flying to Quito. Thank goodness that we didn't drive. Next time perhaps !
I'm a giant ! For the first time ever, I felt tall. Head and shoulders taller than most of the people, it's weird.
Sandy had a rough day. She skipped some of the touring, opting to lie down in the bus. Neither she nor Jason could eat lunch. Troupers both, had we been on our own driving, we'd likely have bagged it for the day.
I'm feeling a little off, but I attribute that to the elevation and the lack of sleep. Sandy is sawing logs right now at 6:45 p.m. and it's unclear whether we'll go outside again. The town was booming when we arrived after 11pm last night, so time will tell. If we don't go out it won't be because the town is closed up for the day.
There is no flat. I have no idea how they managed to build an airport. When I say that there is no flat, we're not talking rolling hills, rather deep cuts in the hillsides. I'm hoping that some of the shots that I took out of the bus window turn out ok. They won't be the best, but perhaps good enough to capture the essence of the area, the people and the culture.
Tomorrow we're supposed to do hop-on / hop-off. We'll see. We have to leave for the airport around 3:30, I think, so we'll be cramming activities into a shortened day.
If everything went according to Hoyle, Sheryl and Jim left this morning and Jerry is in charge, taking care of Abby. I haven't heard anything, so I assume all's ok. I'll shoot Jerry an email to double check.
Onward !
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