 |
Made it! Before the mist descended as well - added bonus! |
 |
Hmmm - Tony was all for
purchasing, but Annaliza
and Jumbo voted against -
probably a good thing! |
 |
Just a small part of the huge market... |
Recently, tourists have been kidnapped in the Ecuadorian
jungle close to the Colombian border, so most tour companies have decided to
put a stop to tours there. Despite Tony’s adventurous desires, common sense
prevailed and we decided to use our spare pre-Galapagos days in the mountain
forest area of Otavalo. The famous Saturday market was the overriding factor –
a perfect opportunity to spend some $$$$ on unnecessary pantaloons, fridge
magnets and artwork – Annaliza does love any opportunity to showcase her
bartering skills!
 |
Started off looking lovely |
 |
Steeper than it looks! |
Jumbo had yet to be acclimatised to the heights of Quito, so
a perfect solution was to take him even higher up to the Mojanda Lakes, and the
Fuya Fuya mountain, a breeze at 4,270m! The slope at the start, potentially the
unofficial route (!), was severe to say the least, and regular pit stops were
required. Upon bagging the summit, we could see for yards and yards, but
fortunately it cleared as we devoured one of Annaliza’s many birthday packets
of Percy Pigs (to reduce our luggage, obviously!).
 |
The mist coming in quickly |
 |
Also doesn't look too impressive - got to be the camera angle |
 |
Get ready for the hail! |
 |
Climbing down using the
reverse spider technique |
Feeling rejuvenated on the way back down, we decided to take
a plunge (not literally!) and walk round the lake. Looks were deceptive in
respect of the distance, and the hail storm was a bit of a dampener
(literally!), and we arrived at the clump of buildings looking forward to a sit
down and decent feed. What we got was a scary looking dude who spoke no English,
so pretty swiftly high-tailed it out of there! On the way back the dog that had
accompanied us the whole way somehow caught a rabbit (better it biting that
than Annaliza!), and the long grass gave us a thorough soaking. Wet and weary, we took shelter at the
makeshift ‘restaurant’ for a well-deserved coffee and interesting Empanada. The
wait for the taxi tested the nerves – never ideal when you’ve got no idea if
your repeated Spanish attempts at ordering a taxi has been successful!
 |
The volcanic cones at Cuicocha |
 |
Enjoying the improved weather at Cuicocha |
Jumbo had almost got through his first altitude test
unscathed, so the next day we took off on another adventure in the hills, to
the volcano cones in a crater lake at Cuicocha. Didn’t have time for the full
loop so opted for getting nearer the 2 cones and
then stopping for some more bartering over leather goods in Cotacachi. Not
wanting to arrive in Quito in the dark, after ‘enjoying’ some painstakingly
slow wifi in a café and sorting our accommodation we said goodbye to Otovalo…
 |
Got to love a panoramic picture! |
 |
The view from outside our
abode - no insectoids as
they only came out at night... |
 |
Get in! The top of a volcano in view
from our hostel |
Key Learnings:
1. The outskirts of Otovalo are littered with
impressively large insectoids.
2. James isn’t the biggest fan of impressively
large insectoids…