Hacienda Cusin

Hi Everyone,
The past two days have really been incredible. Yesterday after my post at 2, I ventured into Otavalo to see what all of the excitement was about. Well, not much. The city of 25000 people has obviously made an attempt to make themselves a tourist destination but I was not impressed. I'm sure the drizzly weather didn't help but there were lots of chintzy shops, trash in the streets and angry looking vendors.

It is famous for it's market. The market had sweaters, dolls, and other Indian works but nothing worth the $3 unfortunately. I'm probably being exceptionally critical but I (and probably everyone else) would have preferred something a little more authentic and rustic. Anyways, the experience itself (as anything) was worth it. It's different and new to me and I'm glad I saw it. I tried to eat while I was there but my $5 bill (they use American dollars as their official and only currency by the way) was beyond them making change and thus I was left hungry for a while.

I had wanted to experiment with their infamous (in a good way) bus system but the town of my hotel Quichinche is a little remote and the buses stopped at 6. As a result, I splurged for the $3 cab.

When I got in, I stayed up for a while chatting on skype and thinking about what the next few weeks holds in store for me. I realized that I have a brilliant opportunity right now to travel and check out the rest of the country before the agency I will be working with starts up for the year. The director doesn't arrive for 3 weeks so I'm heading out tomorrow. I'll tell you where in a minute but that's for the next bit.

This morning I woke up and (after the fresh fruit again, still amazing!) decided that I needed to get to the top of one of these cloud covered mountains. I only had an hour so I hiked pretty hard and thought I might pass out a few times. It was invigorating and I reached the top in 40 minutes (approximately 9500 feet). The clouds hindered most of the potential view but still well worth it. I ran back down knowing that I had to gather my things, walk into town to catch a bus to the sister hotel, Hacienda Cusin (http://www.haciendacusin.com/) to meet the owner for lunch.


I made it to the bus terminal in time, although slightly sweaty and winded, and caught the bus. $0.25 for a 30 minute ride! Incredible, and relatively clean and efficient (I say efficient in a very developing world sense of the term).

I approached what has to be the most beautiful hotel/resort in the world. My pictures, nor those from the website, can possibly do it justice. Nik and I chatted over coffee in the lounge and then lunched in the dining room. Exquisite food and great conversation. I discovered the history of the area, some of the problems it faces, got some in-depth and detailed travel and living advice and all sorts of other chatter that will probably come in handy somewhere along the way. The waiter then informed me that my horse was ready.

I rode a testy horse named Poblano up the mountain and around the lake. The views were breathtaking and by the end of it, I think Poblano may have been warming to me...


I got back and joined Nik for some tea in the lounge. He then invited me to dine with some American friends (an anthropologist and journalist) who were in town to visit. Keep in mind, he had now met me as a complete stranger, fed me lunch, coffee, tea, paid for my horse excursion, and then invited me for dinner and drinks. What an incredible man and a wonderful day.

Before I close for the night, I'll explain my new plan. Nik and I came to the conclusion that if I flew down to Loja near the Southern border, I could spend 2 weeks backpacking my way back up. I know flying definitely violates backpacker code but the bus takes 20 hours and costs about $30, or I can fly for $80 and be there in 47 minutes. Anyways, along the way up, I can stop in Cuenca, Banos, Macas, and see the sierra, amazon, volcanoes, all in two weeks. So, I leave tomorrow for Quito where I will spend the night and catch a 7am flight to Loja on Saturday. From there, the sky is the limit. There is a good quote from Motorcycle Diaries I want to use write now but I'll save it for a more introspective blog.

I cannot thank everyone enough for the blog comments and emails. It really makes my day when I'm down here alone so PLEASE keep writing. Tell me about your lives so I can keep up.
GO GATORS!!!!!

Love
Kent