On a role with posts, EH?

Just after New Year and before school started up again on Monday the 6th, we decided to visit a few markets south of Quito. we booked at a nice hacienda with a great view to Tungurahua Volcano just outside Banos. This volcano has erupted twice  while we have been stationed in this country, last year at this time, while we were in Banos with the kids, did not see it due to overcast days, and again in July, while we were away on holidays. Should it happen again, and thinking about my own experiences and not of people living near the  volcano, I hope it will happen, we will book into same room with front row seating at hacienda Manteles.

Cotopaxi volcano seen just as one leave Quito on the Pan American Highway

We visited the Thursday market in Saquisili, a small town with markets on all 4 city squares and an animal market on the outskirts of town

Sherry negotiating on baby llamas, $100 for one. Although they are cute still too big to bring home in the car, so we walked away

Ilinizas volcano in the background

breakfast

A walking supermarket, anything you need from cooking oil, toilet paper, toothpaste, cleaning chemicals, candles, matches

reused old tires, those buckets can hold water

street kitchen

the view of Tungurahua from room at Hacienda

Second day of the trip, we drove up on the paramo in Llanganates national park

 

On the way back we came through a village, Pillaro. Here they have a festival each year during first week of January, a parade of men and women in costumes with devils masques. One legend says that many years ago the village chief got tired of young men from the neighbour village coming to steel the young women, so the chief created the devil masque to scare the intruders. Result anyway a very colourfull parade twice daily for a week.

New Year in Quito

In the afternoon  of Dec 31, young men dress up as girls and women, and stop cars in the street to ask for money, they are the widows of the old year and need donations. Interesting tradition that these days are a bit of an irritation as the young ones are every few hundred meters in more or less every street in town.

The last few days before New Year every street corner have these "dolls" for sale (stuffed with newspaper or straw). They are burned in the streets during new years eve, and symbolize burning the bad old things for good luck. Some are cartoon characters, some hero types and quite a few politicians.

And then they burn, either one by one or piled in heaps in the streets

Starting little by little after dark the night turns into an image of civil war at midnight and for hours later. Big parties in the streets and ear shattering loud music until the morning.

 
 

Christmas on Galapagos

posts getting fewer and further between, and thats, well, thats the way it goes

 Galapagos for Christmas, evolution more than Christ, and it was a very fine change.
Galapagos is magic, and until just after Christmas we saw fewer people (they arrived after in tons) but lots of sea lions, tortoises, sea iguanas, and birds in all shapes and forms. Magic.

We had decided for an Island tour, not planned by tour agency, but just two different hotels on two different islands, and then taking day tours as we felt like, biking, hiking, and boating. Next time we will do a boat tour and see if we missed anything, but dont think that could be the case really, we saw lots, on the beach, in the water and up in the highlands and on one volcano. Perfect weather too, but sea temp a little lower than hoped for, however, anything under 28c is cold to me, but wet suits work wonders.

All these pictures from Santa Cruz Island.
We spend the first 3 days there. Its the Island with most people and tourist as well. All cruise ships come to port.

And then we took the 600HP speed boat to Isabela. About 2 hours in a 14 passenger boat in rough seas, a few very sick people, but really a great trip over the waves.

it is paradise, can't eat the fruit from the trees

less likely to pad one of these on the head

 

swimming with these guys, they were huge, was fantastic

He looked as lonesome as lonesome George

sea lions all over the place

very fast swimmer, thank Darwin we never encountered one in the water

A 8 km hike up to the worlds second largest volcano crater

last eruption in 2005, did not explode so all lava still in the 12 by 10 km crater

Last day we again spend in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz, before the taxi, ferry, bus, plane, taxi  6 hour trip from this paradise in the mountains to the other on the sea.

look closely and see every boat has a sea lion dosing

Beautilful streets of Puerto Ayora