Hello everyone! I haven’t updated lately and for that I am sorry. I’m also sorry you can’t access my photos very well from this WordPress blog. I will try to get them uploaded as soon as I can.

            This weekend was a lot of fun. I went with four other students from all over the world – from Montreal and Sweden, to Arizona and Florida – to Otavalo. It is a great indigenous town with a rich history that is known for its markets, particularly its Saturday markets. We took a bus from Quito on Saturday to Otavalo. The bus ride took about three hours and the bus stopped along the way to pick up more people heading in that direction. We arrived at Otavalo in the afternoon and browsed the market for good deals and great souvenirs to take home. We stayed in the Hotel Otavalo, and it was definitely worth it. With nice beds and breakfast included in the price, we were sold!

            That night, we ventured around Otavalo a little and ran into another student, Kelly, which Heather, the student from Florida, knew from when Kelly stayed with her host family for a night in Quito. We ate at a restaurant and talked about our lives, our time in Ecuador so far and our plans for the next day, and finally went to bed around 11.

            The next morning, Hotel Otavalo did not disappoint us with its breakfast. Pineapple juice, orange juice, coffee, bread, and eggs were among the things four of us consumed while the student from Arizona, Andre, slept in. Later, we went back to the market, which was much smaller on a Sunday morning than the popular Saturday market is, but it still had great deals and a large selection. I found some good gifts for friends and family, as well as some things for myself, and afterwards met up with the students to go back to the hotel, pack up and check out before heading to Lago Cuicocha, a beautiful lake located in a crater about 45 minutes from Otavalo. We met up with four other students, and our big group took a bus to Quiroga, a town not far from Lago Cuicocha, and then from there hopped in the bed of a truck to drive up to the lake. The drive up was fun, with the wind whipping our hair and us waving at the locals we passed as they trekked on foot, on motorcycles or also in trucks with standing room only.

            Lago Cuicocha was very pretty, and it was fun seeing the locals because there was a festival going on in this indigenous region, and so we saw some song and dance. The lago was very pretty and peaceful; it was well preserved with mountains and trees on all sides, and some islands in the middle of it. If it weren’t for the power lines and the dock housing boats which people could ride on to tour the lake, it would look like something out of the TV show Lost!

            After we took some pictures and decided what to do next, our group followed a narrow dirt trail up to a restaurant that overlooks the lake. The view was great and the service at the restaurant was good too. Later, we took another truck down to Quiroga, rode a bus back to Otavalo, and then our smaller group of five parted ways with the other students at the terminal, taking a bus back to Quito, which ended up being a much shorter ride than the ride to Otavalo.

            I had a really good time and hope anyone deciding to visit Ecuador considers going to Otavalo and Lago Cuicocha. You definitely won’t regret your time there!

            Until next time,

            Megan