Ecuador, Day 2

     Woke up to a mealy breakfast this morning.  Geovanny keeps pestering me, saying that at some point I should cook for them.  Sad thing is, I almost don't know how to cook, let alone what to cook.  But this is the breakfast I had, very typical of the coastal Ecuadorians.

Upon finishing breakfast, Geovanny and I went by way of motorcycle to a place only known as the Cascada to me (I've already forgotten the real name).  It's not that impressive, given that much of its water is dammed up and stagnated.  But its surroundings are beautiful.

We left the cascades for Sucre, at 24 de Mayo, where I had my favorite smoothie of all time, avocado smoothie.

Next, we headed to Senora Jackie's place, who's house I remember but unfortunately I don't remember her from the last time.  No matter--I will remember now ;)  After a light lunch, we rode towards Visquije, where I saw my host family from 2009.  As Geovanny said, these are honorable people, honest and humble.  Very grateful I was able to see them--in fact, I wish I could have spent more time with them, but we were pressed for time.


To cap it off, we saw Maria Cecilia and Isabel, though not at the same time.

Ecuador, Day 1

    I've arrived at Ecuador.  Needless to say, I never thought I would come back.  But here I am.  The flight from Chicago to Guayaquil was smooth--very few layover hours.
     Upon arrival at Jose Olmedo airport, I waited about an hour until Geovanny and Magaly arrived.  It was good to see them both.
      Here is where I am currently staying at.

     From the viewer's eye, this might not be much.  However, if you're looking for a place of peace and tranquility, and temporary removal from the larger world's problems, this is a good place to come to.  On top of that, the hosts are amazing.
     Though unfortunately, I have no pictures of today's events, it was a full day.  After arriving at Geovanny's house, which is about 3 1/2 hours north of Guayaquil, we went to the beach at my favorite place of old: Crucita.  The water was amazingly warm, though the beach itself was nothing like I knew it to be back in 2009.  Geovanny and I both dipped in the water, allowing the waves to break upon us, then sitting on the sand, allowing the tide to pull us as we resisted.  One thing, however, about this water is that it's called "agua mala," or bad water, because of some kind of hair the whales leave behind that wash ashore.  They sting almost like jellyfish.

Prep for Ecu/Col Trip

Hello!  My previous attempt to blog about Europe didn't last very long, so I hope this will be different.  My express purpose for this trip is to see Geovanny, my good Ecuadorian friend who I met during my internship there.  Second, to see the beauty of Colombia--all dangers aside, I hear it is gorgeous.