Right, that was enough of Quito, although I am using the city and Hostal Sur as my base while travelling around (that way I can leave the big rucksack behind and use a smaller bag). Booked myself return flights to Cuenca in the south of Ecuador (for about £75, not bad) arriving 22/08 returning 25/08. Chuck in a hostal for £9 per night (private r...

Stayed for one more night in Guayaquil after flying from the Galapagos as I didnt get back there until nearly 4pm & I was feeling a bit rough and too tired to face a further 5-hour bus trip to Cuenca the same day. I felt rather sick and dizzy as if I was still rolling around on the boat so I just grabbed some quick food and an early night to...

So, we finally did it. We left Mancora, and believe us, it was hard. We almost didn´t, as the Ecuadorian man (we´re not sure of his name so that´s how we referred to him the whole time we knew him) offered us a ride to Guayacuil tomorrow, and we were pretty close to taking it. We knew, however, that if we didn´t leave today, there was a very re...

Just got to tell you about this trip. A day in the Cajas National Park. Our guide tested our walking ability at altitude by a brief walk to one of the highest points in the park. 14,000 feet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At the top our breath was taken away literally. The views brought tears to my eyes- truly truly amazing. Although we had to pause for ai...

Hey guys! So I am here in Cuenca and it is amazing! I have been here for a little over a week and it finally stopped raining the other day. It rained for almost a week straight! It was crazy, especially considering that it´s supposed to be the dry season right now! I got here last Tuesday night and met my family. I got settled into my room, rel...

Llegamos a Cuenca en la tarde después de 5 horas de recorrido en bus por unos paisajes bellísimos. Tuvimos la suerte de tomar un bus que se metió por el parque nacional El Cajas (no me pregunten por la armonía entre el artículo El y el sustantivo CAJAS) donde pudimos ver lagunas y montañas estilo Chingaza. Luego llegamos al terminal y un señor n...

Camera + card + battery = $400USD lost....plus a full card of pictures. Must have been taken off my back and then had my pack re-zipped without my knowledge. Off to Quito on the overnight bus.

We've just returned from our ridiculously long distance trip to Cuenca and we're absolutely exhausted after experiencing ten hours of darting in between traffic and potholes on terrible roads, sometimes on the wrong side of the road, sometimes not on the road at all and frequently with juggernauts bearing down on us. Only when we got back did we...