Ecuador – Land of Biodiversity

On September 25, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn South America10 Comments

Ecuador is a country made up of three distinct regions, each with their own opportunities to discover. There is the coastal region, which also includes the Galapagos Islands, the highlands with the Andes mountains and all of the volcanoes, and the Amazon with the largest variety of plants and animals of any country. We did not visit the coastal region or the Galapagos Islands on this trip, but instead focused our time on the highlands and the Amazon.

One thing was immediately clear upon our arrival in Ecuador, it is a country that is embracing eco-tourism. Although the country is still heavily dependent on the revenue from oil, there is a conscious effort to embrace tourism as the future of the country. Changing the currency to the US dollar in 2000 has also made it easy for visitors from the States to travel to Ecuador. Spanish is the official language of Ecuador, but there are still many indigenous people who speak Quechua, and English is commonly spoken.

Our time in the highlands was highlighted by visiting three of the many volcanoes, both active and non-active, that exist in Ecuador. One of the most famous is Cotopaxi, which has been active since 2015, although fortunately it has only spewed ash and steam and not lava. The snow covered volcano peaks can be seen on clear days from the capital city of Quito and are a constant reminder to the volatility of the forces that have formed the landscape of Ecuador.

Ecuador gets its name from the equator line, which runs through the country. Visiting the equator actually involves seeing two separate sites. There is the equator monument, commonly referred to as the historical equator as it was originally calculated as the center of the world in 1736, but was later proven to be wrong. With the use of GPS, scientists were able to calculate the true equator, which is actually slightly north of the monument that people often visit. Going to both equator sites is worthwhile as it is interesting to learn about the history of the equator and how indigenous people were able to calculate the center of the world thousands of years ago even closer than more modern scientists.

The Yasuni National Park in Ecuador is considered to be the most biodiverse location on the earth with all of the varieties of birds, amphibians, insects, plants, and trees. It is run by a group of indigenous natives and even has two tribes inside of the park that have no contact with the outside world. Despite the reliance upon oil, Ecuador is trying to balance the need for drilling with the desire to protect their natural resources. Spending time in the park is something that was truly special and we will treasure forever.

Napo Wildlife Center in the Yasuni National Park

Ecuador is a wonderful country and we enjoyed the time that we spent in the country. We didn’t have enough time on this trip to visit the Galapagos Islands, so we will definitely return sometime in the future to go to the coastal regions. Considering the variety of things to see and do in Ecuador, it is definitely a country that deserves to be visited.

Quito, Ecuador – Old World Charm

On September 22, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn South America11 Comments

During our time in Ecuador, we made Quito our home base and then did excursions from there. We had a lot of things planned for our visit to Ecuador, so we sandwiched our excursions with time in Quito before and after our various adventures. It worked out really well because we had a couple of days to get acquainted with Quito before leaving every day and then we had a couple of days on the back-end to relax and enjoy the city after seven straight days of waking up early, most days at 5:00 am. Our hotel was perfectly situated between Quito’s old town and the restaurant district called Mariscal. There was also a park on one side and a market selling local products on the other side.

On our first day in Quito, we had to walk through the park on way to the old town area and on the weekends artists sell their originals all around the park. We strolled along the sidewalks looking at the artwork and various items for sale. We didn’t buy anything that day, but we did see a watercolor painting that we knew that we wanted and we returned the following weekend to get it as our memento of our trip. There were so many wonderful paintings that we wish we could have purchased several of them. The walk to old town takes you by many small shops specializing in a variety of products such as shoes, suits, toys, etc., plus there are many tiny restaurants, many of them selling ice cream to the cars that were passing by as well as the pedestrians on the sidewalk.

As with many cities, there are several churches and cathedrals that are the highlights to see and the most beautiful of these was the Basilica, which also provides the opportunity to climb to the top of the tower with wonderful views of the city. The Basilica del Voto Nacional is the largest neo-gothic basilica in the world and its architecture is truly stunning. In addition to the Basilica, San Francisco and La Compaña are two must see churches. Seeing the gold-plated walls of La Compaña is something that will stay with us for quite some time. Each of these churches was beautiful in their own ways and are definitely worth visiting.

The other location that we spent a fair amount of time at was the Plaza Grande, also known as Independence Square, with monument to the independence heroes in the center of the plaza and two palaces around the square. You can also see the changing of the guards at 11:00 am, but the crowds can be quite large. There is also a shopping area inside of one of the palace buildings with wonderful restaurants and excellent local artisan crafts. It is an excellent place to sit and have a glass of wine and people watch. It was also where we saw the most tourists of any place that we went to during our time in Quito.

Another location that is definitely worth visiting is Calle La Ronda, which is a street with old world architecture. You definitely can feel the history as you walk along the cobblestone streets and in many ways it almost transports you to Spain. The balconies with their colorful flowers, small shops and restaurants, and bustling streets are very fascinating. Although we didn’t take the time to go up to it, you can’t miss seeing the Panecillo statue, the statue of the angel that oversees Quito’s old town. There are several other sites to see while you are in Quito, but these are the ones that we felt were most important.

Quito is like any major metropolis with different neighborhoods of various economic wealth. There are definitely places and times when you need to be aware of the possibility of petty crime and pickpockets. With that said, just like any city, you just need to be smart about where you go and be aware of your environment. We found everyone to be extremely friendly and helpful wherever we went in Quito. Especially in the old town area, Quito’s old world charm was very interesting and enjoyable. It is definitely a city that deserves at least a couple of days in order to fully see everything that it has to offer.

Coming Home, Does it Make You Happy or Sad?

On September 21, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn South America, Travel Tips22 Comments

Returning home after a trip is always a mix of emotions, the comfort of being home and sadness to see a journey come to an end. There is definitely a different sense of emotions as you fly home as opposed to heading to a new destination. The trip home is subdued and usually a general sense of exhaustion, while the time you spend on the way to a new location is filled with anticipation and excitement to see new things. We will be sharing specifics of our trip over the next few days and apologize for having not been able to keep in touch as often as we would have liked, but we made the most of our time, so we were out from dawn until late every day. We are just now starting to go through all of the photos that we took, which is a daunting task in and of itself. Being home definitely provides a sense of normalcy, the known versus the unknown, but there is a sense of something missing. If travel never came to an end, there would be nothing to compare it with, so in a sense the trip home is a necessity in order to make you appreciate travel even more. What are your thoughts on returning? Do you look forward to a night in your own bed or feel a sense of depression upon your return?