This country is rich with indigenous heritage. The various cultures (tribes) are respected and honored with positions in the government and opportunities to improve their communities. Many traditions and practices continue to be a part of their daily lives. Raising, cooking and eating cuy is one of those traditions. Cuy (in the USA we call … More Ecuador- Daily life and history combined.
Baños is a bustling town built in a volcanic valley. The weather is nearly perfect year-round. The main business is tourism, and everything revolves around that income. Good restaurants, thermal pool spas, massage parlors, night clubs, a few parks and a beautiful church. The cathedral is the central point in town, as always. And while … More Ecuador- The Baños area
No visit to Ecuador would be complete without leaving the Andes and heading into the Amazon area. This hot, humid jungle is known world-wide for its variety of species, the life-changing ayahuasca experiences and even for the tribe that produces shrunken heads as a part of their ceremonies! But, fortunately we avoided much of that! … More Ecuador- Visiting the edge of the Amazon
We came back into Ecuador at the busy little Colombia/Ecuador crossing and quickly secured the necessary paperwork for the three of us and also the truck to stay 21 more days. This was the amount remaining on our original visa. Mike enjoyed a HUGE and drippy hot dog. This delicacy costs $1.00 and includes a … More Ecuador- The volcanic Andes
We returned to Colombia, South America with a lot of luggage and a very tired dog. She was a trooper, but was really happy to be back in the familiar city of Bogota with her dear friend, Julian and his puppy, Catira. We took care of some business in the city before we picked … More Back to Colombia- again!
We really weren’t sure what to expect at the Equator. We have crossed the Tropic of Cancer a couple of times and posed at the sign. One crossing was in the Volkswagen Van during our time in Baja, Mexico. Another crossing was in the camper in mainland, Mexico. But we never saw any signs like … More Ecuador- The line that passes through!
Several different sources told us that the Otavalo Market is one of the largest weekend markets in South America. We decided to check out the city and specifically the market. On the Google maps it is called Plaza del Ponchos in reference to the HUGE number of vendors selling knit ponchos made from native llama … More Ecuador- Otavalo area. Markets, condors, views and a stuck truck!
The city of Villa de Leyva is known for many unique features. We stayed there long enough to fully explore the city and many of the surrounding villages as well as several lesser-known attributes. One of the most interesting things in Villa de Leyva is the proliferation of fossils. The soil composition, volcano formation and … More Colombia- Villa de Leyva, a Spanish colonial city with much to offer
For this round of our explorations we spent time in a wide variety of interesting places. But of course, before starting a rigorous round of exploring, we had to stop and visit this cool cat at a hot springs soaking area. Then we were ready to climb into the hills and look at the amazing … More Colombia- fossils, glaciers and soccer balls!
El Remate was the gateway village to visit the ruins of Tikal. This Mayan architecture is notable for its size and some unique building features. The most visible unique feature is the stone “crest” on the top of the main temples. Some of the temples at Tikal have been featured in many photos and even … More Guatemala- Tikal