South Via North

Today is Tuesday and there has been a two week absence between blog posts. I am very sorry for the delay but to be honest not too many changes have occurred since the last update. Life in Quito is coming to an end and within two days "home" will consist of sandy beaches and a lifestyle of habitual wandering. Classes at Simon Bolivar Language School wrap up tomorrow and it will be refreshing change the environment despite how helpful the experience has been. Starting Thursday my friend Nick and I will be exploring the Ecuadorian coast beginning with a three day stint in Montañita with a handful of other good friends trekking from Quito then letting the breeze of the Pacific Ocean be our navigator. Nick has to return to Quito for volunteer work in a couple weeks and my plans are an open canvas. Some tentative plans will include Cuenca for its Independence Day in early November then bussing down to Mancora, Peru for a Loki Hostel experiece.

After spending a month in Northern Ecuador the next handful of weeks will consist of constant moving and rambling towards Cuzco, Peru. Since the last blog post I have done my best to improve my Spanish and have been meeting a number of locals through Couchsurfing in hopes of conversation exchanges. This has proved pretty cool because these people have been really open toward exploring the city and since then I have gained a better perspective of how locals carry out their day. One of the highlights has been eating guinea pig then going to a theatre called Ocho y Medio in the La Florista and seeing an Ecuadorian movie with a plot set in Guayaquil which thankfully had English subtitles.

A few side trips have included visiting the Mitad Del Mundo (the Earths equator line) and hiking up Cotopaxi which Is one of the worlds tallest active volcanos. Yesterday a friend from Couchsurfing and I hung out in the Itchimbia District which boasts some good views then today we checked out a museum dedicated to Oswaldo Guayasamin who is a well respected Ecuadorian artist. My friend Jordan from Missoula was in town today and we just had dinner in Old Town with a couple other people.

It will be bitter sweet to leave Quito and the experiences here have been ones that I will remember forever. Ecuador in general is filled with wonderful people, a deeply rich culture, and it has been an honor to have been blessed by its presence. More updates to follow and I hope everyone who reads this is doing well!