Mariposerio
View from the lodge´s deck.
My home for a night.
It is not a coincendence that Mindo rhymes with ¨Lindo¨
Oh you know, just hiking through a cloud forest...
Tulipe--ceremonial grounds of the Yubo tribe.
Palulauja--a little town inside a crater.
It´s been four days of Ecuadorian bliss, I suppose I´ll just start at the beinnging.
Maybe in the grand scheme of things, Thursday night was pretty unimportant, but for the first time, I saw Quito´s historic district at night. Beautiful. Then Pilsener and pizza. Equally beautiful.
This is where things really start happening...
I woke up so early on Friday morning, we left the HECUA office around 8 in a little bus/really big van. This was the first of a series of 3 program sponsered side trips. First stop: One of the only inhabited craters in the world. We only hung out at the top for a bit, and took some photos, but in the future, I hope to climb down--which is entirely possible.
Next stop: Tulipe--a ceremonial center used by the Yubo tribe of the Incas. Petroglyphs, and rocks stacked in the shape of the moon, the sun, and a jaguar.
Then: We drive and we drive and we drive and we drive and then we find ourselves in a cloud forest. It is defenitely beautiful. We keep driving and end at a nature reserve/lodge. Think of a rustic structure of wood, surrounded by tree covered hills, and this is where we stayed. After an amazing lunch, featuring Tiramisu made by a real live Italian which was also a birthday cake for Anna, a fellow student who was lucky enough to turn 20 in one of the most bio diverse places on earth.
THEN, we meet our guide, pull on some rain boots and beging braving the muddy trails of Mindo. It rained a bit in the beginning, and usually rain makes me sad, but this time I didn´t even care because I was walking in a subtropical rainforest, where the trees and the clouds literally meet. We walked and we walked and we walked and everything was so beautiful. Every 20 paces our guide would stop and point out a medicinal plant. We saw little waterfalls and a gallo de peña, which is, based on what we were told, pretty rare.
After about 2 1/2 hours, we were back at the lodge, we wanted more Mindo, so most of us did a small hike to the top of a mountain. It was muddy, and beautiful.
It is also important to note, that in no way, shape or form could ANY description or photo properly do justice to the views and sounds of a subtropical cloud forest.
After 5 hours of walking, we enjoyed a much needed, and, again, delicious meal at the lodge. The rest of the night consisted of celebrating Anna´s birthday with Pilseners, and card games--including one which involved slapping other players hands, and resulting in my waking up the next day with a few bruises.
Saturday began with breakfast and a little drive to the actual town of Mindo. We visited a Mariposerio, or, um, well, more or less a butterfly farm/sanctuary of sorts. So you´re in a screened off area, which is kind of landscaped like a garden, and there´s butterflies EVERYWHERE. It was great. There were little bits of melon out, and you were encouraged to put a bit of juice on your finger and attempt to hold a butterfly. Some of us were successful, others, not so much. I fell into the later catagory.
Post-mariposerio, we put on swimming suits, life jackets, and helmets. Imagine 7 standard black tubes tied together, with 6 people and a quide sitting in them, and being hurled down Rio San Carlos over rocks and rapids. That´s what we did. It was amazing and scary and fun.
Finally, lunch with a view. By view I mean LOTS of hummingbirds, and a tour through an orchid garden. Mindo is known for their Huge variety of fuana and flora.
Before we knew it, we were back in Quito. I showered, found a slug amongst my things, and slept A LOT.
On Sunday I did the usual yoga and capoira in the park, then a delicious brunch with other students at a place in the Mariscal called the Magic Bean. Strong coffee, chocolate chip pancakes and bacon. Exactly what I needed. Later in the day, Marie Antoinette with my host parents. Sunday afternoon movie watching has certainly become a tradition, and one I could get used to.
In the next few days, look for more details about my host family, and the small posibility of going to Colombia on Friday...
No comments:
Post a Comment