After a rock and roll night of hammock swinging and card playing we woke up early in the morning and had our last breakfast; scrambled eggs, a bowl of delicious fruits and fresh naranjilla juice, with Delfin and his family. After breakfast we presented our gratitude with a tip and by giving three badges; one symbolizing friendship, one from our book bus project and the last one of the union jack, and said our goodbyes. Adios Casas Pimpilala and our Kichwa homestay family.
Our journey then continued through to Tena. First we traveled by public transport. After spending 2 hours on the bus, we jumped off the public bus and switched to a private coach, leading us to Otavalo; a city well known for its colourful markets. On our way to this vibrant city we stopped over to grab a bite to eat at a mini market at the gas station (boy were we hungry!) After our short stop we grabbed cheese and ham sandwiches with some snacks and hopped on the bus excitedly ready for our journey to the Equator with our picnic. Once we arrived at the Equator we were given a short presentation about the earth and its orientation. After the presentation we had a mini ceremony, in which Beth, Katie, Shona and Kiera made their Promises and Steph was awarded her leadership qualification, ON THE EQUATOR. In addition we all renewed our Promise watched respectfully by our tour guides and bus driver. They've already picked up our accent and how to get our attention by raising a hand! After many many pictures, we were back on our way to Otavalo.
Once we arrived in Otavalo, we dropped our belongings at the hotel, and made a visit to the famous Otavalo market. We practiced our bartering skills in preparation for our big shop tomorrow. Dollar dollar!
For dinner we went to a local restaurant, where once again we enjoyed the delicious Ecuadorian cuisine. As a bonus we were able to tune into the Olympic games where we watched Usain Bolt triumphantly win the 200 meters. After dinner we hit a funky local bar full of South American vibes which helped us to restore our positive energy. Then it was time to hit the hay after a very very long day,
Adios Amigas,
Maeha, Shona and a bit of help from Ella.
We are a group of 18 Girlguiding Senior Section members and 4 Leaders from across London Over the Border County (East London and West Essex area). We are celebrating 100 years of The Senior Section by visiting Ecuador in August 2016. We will be staying with a community deep in the Amazon, exploring the Andes and working with The Book Bus on two service projects in the Galapagos. We plan to develop our understanding of the challenges that tourism brings to a delicately balanced environment.
Congratulations to the Equator Promise girls
ReplyDeleteWow, the equator sounds really exciting. Congrats everyone who made their promise- what a cool place to have done it.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you're being top Girl Guides by hanging out in bars ;)