Today was a great day. At 8:00 am we set out on the big bus for a two hour drive into the countryside. Quito was quiet this morning after the wild celebrations of last night which included a beautiful fireworks display right across the street from the hotel. Fun to watch from the comfort of my fluffy bed.
I woke early and mentally tried to review all the many things we have done and seen. Nearly impossible to believe. Ancient Incan ruins in Machu Picchu, villages with livestock markets, handicrafts, changing of the guards at a palace, one foot in either hemisphere, endemic creatures in the Galapagos and so much more. Once I started thinking my brain wouldn't shut off. So I was up early and had breakfast and got ready for our trip to the Otavalo Indigenous Craft Market.
The ride was great with several stops. Can you believe there are snow-capped mountains sitting right on the equator? Volcanoes in the valley of the volcanoes are snow capped yet straddle earth's belt. They are topped with snow year round. You can't ski because they are too high. Mountain climbers can only climb then from midnight until about 5:00 am because in this country with no seasons the sun is too hot at the mountain tops that are 19,000 feet above sea level which is several thousand feet higher than Mont Blanc which is Europe's highest Alp.
We went up and over mountains, through valleys, over more Andes heights, and finally into the valley where Otavalo sits. I am not a shopper. Especially not for souvenirs but I reallly had a good time here. I can't say here what I bought because they are gifts. The particular skill of this town is with fabrics and weaving. The next little town was filled with leather goods. Beautiful things at bargain basement prices.
We spent several hours in the warm sun browsing the crafts and chatting with the cheerful sellers. The market was lively and but not noisy and no live animals, just handicrafts. Younger children played games while hiding under tables to keep cool in the shade. Infants suckled at their mother's breast while she asked me if it was possible I might like to buy what she was selling. Each stall is family run and the children learn early to help out. As I was purchasing items from one little girl I could see that her eyes kept looking over to dad to make sure she was not reducing the price too much. Whenit came to making change, she looked to her mom to be certain that I was not asking too much cash back.
The ride back was quiet as most of my fellow travelers dozed off. Our trip tomorrow to the cloud forest is cancelled because most of those who wanted to go and were very excited about it have decided that they are just tired and not ready for even one more thing. So I have arranged for a taxi for four of us to go to the Jardin Botanica to see the orchids. I am sure it will be a nice ending to the trip.
We can be in our rooms until 5:30 pm and then at 7:00 the bus picks us up to go to a Farewell Dinner in an Ecuadorian restaurant and then on to the airpport for the not so long flight home. It has been a wonderful opportunity to see parts of the world that I never in my mind's eye ever dreamt of seeing. I hope some day you too will see these wonders of the universe.
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