We, with the advice of Natalie at the front desk, hired Fredy to take us out of town today. We left shorly after 9am and returned around 6:30pm. Unfortunately, his vehicle had just been stolen so we were in his brother's little Suzuki and it was a bit cramped. But, he was well informed and a great guide. Actually, he does tours for GAP Adventures, the group we are doing the islands with soon. We left Quito at an elevation of 2,850 m above sea level. Quito is the second highest capital city in the world. We drove down and down into the Green Valley and were struck by how dry it was on one side of the road and how lush on the other. They grow fruits and veggies all year round here. Ecuador is also a very large producer of roses. Fredy said you were cheap here if you bought your girlfriend roses ($1 per dozen). The strata of rock from sedimentary to volcanic etc was quite impressive. You could see the years of formation and history. Some of the volcanoes were not that easy to see today with many clouds in the air but Cayambe was impressive (5,790 m above sea level). The equator passes through this volcanic mountain and is the only point on the equator with snow!
We went to the town of Otavalo and spent a couple of hours wandering the market. Many of the stalls had the same jewelery (don't know where it's made) but we got some good deals on Alpaca woolens, silver jewelery, paintings, and some other stuff. Had a lovely fresh coconut to drink - yum.
From there we went to Cotacachi which is known as Leather Town and they mean it. Anne bought a leather jacket for just over $100. I bought a wallet for $10!
We had lunch here at a restaurant selected by Fredy. I had a local specialty cooked on a bbq in the courtyard.
Then we went on to a volcano with a lake in it's crater. It is in a national park consisting of 4500 hectares and extends to the Pacific Ocean. All in all a great day and a tiring one. By the way, Fredy's fee for the day was $130.
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