Sister Visit! Pt. 1

This post is going to be written in two parts for a few reasons. First, it's how the trip was divided. Second, it will give both Shannon and I an opportunity to talk about some of the stuff that we did.

For a while we have been planning on hosting Shannon's sister Meagan for a trip. The primary purpose of this trip was to have her help us with some of the wedding planning, but of course along the way, we would be doing lots of cool stuff.

The day after she arrived, we drove up to Otavalo, the area of Ecuador where we're going to get married this July. We met with the woman at the property and had some conversations, and most importantly made some decisions for the wedding. I'm not going to spoil any of those decisions here since I imagine 100% of the audience who reads this blog will be coming to the wedding.

After our meeting, we had a nice lunch and checked into the hotel where we would regroup and head out for some adventures. When we got to our room, the strong musk of mold, dust, and decay filled the air. I went outside to sit in the hammock while Meagan laid down for a nap (she was very sick at this point), and after being folded in half 6 feet in the hair due to a poorly planned hammock hanger, we all realized that this place would simply not do. We checked out and found other accommodations. I spent the rest of the afternoon leisurely reading while the two ladies napped in an effort to recharge their bodies from sickness. At least in our new place, we weren't going to get even sicker.

Dude...Condors are Scary

The next morning, after a pleasant and restful night, we woke up early to do a few things. We started things off by going to the Ecuador's famous, Condor Park. We took a taxi up a winding cobblestone trail (note: NOT a road) and after about 20 minutes, we found ourselves at the park. It was a little underwhelming for me at first because the first part of the park is essentially a zoo of Andean carnivorous birds. It was cool to see a wide array of owls, hawks, and eagles but it seemed like just a really cool zoo with an incredible view. We had heard of a pretty impressive bird flight show and as we were making our way there, we saw an area with the big birds. There was an Andean Condor, which was the biggest bird I had ever seen. It stood perched on a log eying us up and down knowing that he could take us in a fight. Just standing on a log, the thing looked to be over four feet tall. These things are birds, and they have a wingspan range of 8-10 feet. Feet. That is like a bird that is wider than Shaq is tall. Anyway, after we saw the Condor we came across a few bald eagles which was really cool because, "Merica.

Go Gringa Go!

Then the flight show started just as we got to our seats. The show was actually pretty impressive. The backdrop of beautiful vistas in the Andes as hawks and different birds twirled and dive bombed and did all kinds of cool stuff was really incredible. The stars of the show were obviously the two bald eagles named Gringa and Gringo of course. It ended up being quite the adventure and definitely worth seeing.

Madness for Carnival

When we left Condor Park, we took another taxi over to Peguche Waterfalls. Our first sign that there was going to be trouble was when we pulled up and the cab driver said "Buena Suerte/Good Luck" as he pulled away. What we didn't realize is that it was Carnival. An Ecuadorian tradition during Carnival is to spray people with foam, dump buckets of water on them, throw colored powder on them, and generally create and promote general tomfoolery.

Victim

We walked through the little street with vendors selling food, beer, ice cream, and of course mischief making foam and powder. We got a few good natured foam sprays on us as we made our way to the waterfalls but left quickly when we arrived because it was becoming sanctioned street terrorism. We were all feeling a little uncomfortable so we decided to head back. On the way back, during our fifteen minute hike, we heard a teenager yell "Vamos, hay gringos!" (Let's go, there are gringos) and we were attacked with foam and water. Along the way, Meagan was water sprayed and had yellow powder thrown on her. Shannon had some punk kid smear black powder on her face. They largely avoided me aside from a few foam sprays.

Otavalo Market

We took refuge in a new taxi and watched as kids threw buckets of water from the rooftops on pedestrians and cars as they passed. We made our way to the Otavalo Market and were safe from then on. We wandered up and down the aisles of indigenous hand-crafted blankets, leather goods, sweaters, and countless other beautiful goods before making our way over to the famous Shanandoa Pie Shop where we ate a lunch of pie, ice cream, and coffee. After our lunch, we went back to the hotel where we were spending the next two nights.

When we got to the hotel, I made my way to the service counter to see if and where I would be able to watch the Super Bowl. I was given directions to the one television with satellite cable on the property and took my snacks and a few beers over there to watch. When Shannon and I got there we met a few other gringos and watched the game in Spanish while all cramped into a tiny room that was about 7 feet wide by 18 feet long. We enjoyed the company and the game throughout the night and Meagan joined us a short while later.

Cuicocha Lake

The next morning, we woke up and had breakfast before leaving to go on a hike. We drove up through more winding cobblestone roads and found our way to a national park center overlooking a huge volcanic crater lake called Cuicocha. As soon as we got out of the car and packed our pockets full of hiking snacks, we were on our way. About fifteen feet into the hike, the heavens opened up and it began pouring rain. We took refuge in a restaurant for fifteen more minutes before deciding that we were going to brave the hike and then we began. Shortly after we resumed, the rains lifted and the view was incredible. We hiked for a few hours before returning to the lodge to have a nice meal.

Cuicocha Lake

When we got back to the room that night, we used our in-room fireplace as a makeshift s'more station and roasted marshmallows. It was an incredible start to our time with Meagan. We did some wedding planning, got attacked, watched the Super Bowl, and went on a beautiful hike. Now we're back at home recharging for our trips the rest of this week to the hot springs of Papallachta and for our triumphant return to the Amazon Rainforest.