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I´ve had a great few last days and paying for it now with muscle aches but more of that later. After arriving back in Quito I headed out to the house for one last lunch with my Ecuadorian family. I ended up spending so much time there I spent the night. Woke up Monday morning not feeling the best, having a dizzy spell, so stayed a few extra hours to sleep it off. It was then time to say goodbye and the tears were flowing. Very difficult to say goodbye. I had a quiet afternoon in Quito and repacked a small bag for the next couple of days.
Tuesday morning caught a 7.30am bus to Latacunga and then connected with another bus to Chugchilan, this remote village. While sitting on the bus waiting for it to leave, you would not believe the amount of people that came aboard to sell things - snacks, drinks, fruit, toothpaste, clothesline pegs, DVD's, CD's, etc ,etc. Was glad to get going. The bus was full with people standing in the aisle and it only got worse as we went along and picked up more.
About 4hrs later we reached Chugchilan. Tiny little town where the Cloud Forest Hostel I chose cost $10 a night for a private room including breakfast and dinner. Pretty sweet deal. Not much to do except sit in the lounge by the fire and read. After dinner the owner came around to see what you wanted to do the next day. I mentioned a horseback ride and he said some others were also doing it.
So, Wednesday morning after breakfast we were introduced to our horses. I had Linda. So we went for a leisurely walk up the hills making our way to a cheese factory. After a little while the walk became a trot and this is why I am now paying for it (one of the reasons). We did a little galloping which was less painful but a bit more scary but fun too. The cheese factory was tiny, they make local fresh cheese and swiss cheese. Had a try and it was pretty decent. We were meant to continue to the cloud forest but the clouds were closing in and it looked like rain so we headed back down. 4-5hrs on horseback and it was pretty difficult to get off the horse at the end and sit down for the rest of the afternoon. Luckily, again there wasn't much to do but relax.
That night at dinner I mentioned I wanted to go to the Laguna and walk back. My options were to get the 4am bus or pay $25 for a private ride. The owner said he would ring the other hostels and see if they had any people going out. I was in luck, there was a group heading there and they could pick me up, the lift would cost $5, we were leaving at 8.30am and they were walking back also. Much better.
So woke up Thursday morning feeling rather sore. The ride to Laguna Quilotoa took just over 1 hr but I was standing up in the back of the ute the whole way and it is not a paved road. Lots of bumps. Reached the laguna and my first view took my breath away. Just as beautiful as the photos I had seen. It is an old collapsed volcano and just stunning.
From the crater there is a 7.5mile hike back to Chugchilan. The other group had bought a guide with them and so off we set. You walk about 1/4 way around the crater rim before saying goodbye to it and heading down into a valley. This was pretty hard on the legs. We were at about 3800m elevation. In the valley we walked past houses, fields planted with potatoes and a small village. We finally reached the canyon and on the other side you could see Chugchilan. The only problem being, to get there we had to go down into the canyon and then back up. Urgg
We had lunch on the edge and enjoyed the rest but then it started raining and didn't stop till we reached Chugchilan. So off we set down and it was not fun. Narrow path, slippery dirt and rocks and very hard on the knees. Finally reached the bottom and looking up I realised how far we had come down and how far we had to go back up. Took my time, very slowly, sometimes feeling like a goat scrambling up some of the dirt paths but very happy to finally make it to the 'Welcome to Chugchilan' sign. We did the walk in 4hrs which I was happy with as I was expecting 5-6hrs. This walk is also the reason for my current suffering...
Hot shower and hung my clothes up by the fire to dry and a relaxing afternoon once more. Different people arrived each day and it was good to be able to chat in Spanish to French and German tourists.
This morning I was on the 6am bus out. I was lucky, because most days there is only a bus at 3am or 4am. Changed in Latacunga and back to Quito. Put laundry in to be washed and have repacked my bags once gain. Tomorrow I meet the rest of the people on the tour which leaves Sunday. Tonight I had dinner with Nikki, one of the girls on the tour and we had a good laugh about who our roommates might be, aswell as groaning about having to pack our bags.
So my independent travels have finished which I am sad about but looking forward to more adventures.
By the way, I need to clear something up about the blog on Otavalo. The way I wrote it sounded like they sell cats and dogs for food. I was actually talking about the guinea pigs. My grandfather said I needed to watch what I ate......
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