The hustle and bustle of La Paz

(We all write) La Paz is quite a change after a quiet week on the coast of Ecuador. It is very busy, very noisy, very smelly (exhaust fumes mainly) and very colourful. It is also very stimulating, but there is also a lot of poverty. We have seen more shoe shiners here than in the last 4 weeks put together. It is hot and sunny during the day, but cold at night. Lots of indigenous people still wear traditional attire, many selling their wares on the side of the street.

We visited the Iglesia de san Francisco and the associated museum. It wasn't really leaning like this.

The roofscape was amazing from the top - you can see the city sprawling up the hillside.

There were some excellent sculptures too.

We also visited the Coca museum, tucked away in an atmospheric little courtyard. It was very interesting, but the cafe's principal ingredient meant we went somewhere else for lunch ( we had already had a few coca sweets and tea!)

There are loads of markets covering hectares of the city. One of these is the Mercardo de Hechiceria - the witches' market. Very weird.

Dried baby llamas!

Dried small animals - we think they are from this planet.

Even the purveyors of this stuff found something to laugh about...... Maybe us!

The main markets were wonderful and colourful.

Mummy bought some bed socks, Lucas bought some old coins and Lyra bought lots of stamps in the post office. Daddy bought some coca sweets because he was suffering a bit with the altitude.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Goodbye Ecuador...hello Bolivia!

(Shelagh writes) Three days and three flights since last blog update. In the typical relaxed latin american approach to time, most flights have times changed (by several hours) and are late setting off. We flew from Manta on the coast back to Quito, arriving late evening. The taxi from the airport couldn't find the hotel and then when we arrived there was a fiesta in full swing - music, partying and fireworks to the early hours! After spending a 'dead' day at the hotel we went back to Quito airport for the last time and flew to Lima, Peru. As with a lot of flights into and out of Quito, there was a lot of turbulence - this flight actually managed to induce screaming in about a third of the passengers! Once again a delayed flight and a short overnight stopover before finally taking the flight today to La Paz, Bolivia. What a lot of paperwork we have completed and what a lot of time spent in queues!!

The airport at La Paz is 4,100m above sea level - the highest international airport in the world. Lots of warnings about attitude sickness, but other than a shortness of breath we seem to be ok so far. La Paz itself is about 500m below the airport...but what a setting for a city!

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

More snails on more tails of more.....

(Lucas writes) Today we have to fly to Quito from Manta, but we thought we could squeeze in some more whale watching first! We saw even more than last time and they were even closer. At one stage we saw a big male splashing his tail up and down for ages (the white tail). We saw 3 whales at one time. It was fantastico!

All ready to go.

Snails on both edges!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Markets and more sand 26th July

(Lyra writes) Today we got up early and went off to the fish market. The small boats unloaded their catches directly onto the beach, where the Frigate birds competed with the buyers.....

...and the pelicans...

There were loads of different kinds of fish... which they filleted on tables on the beach.

That's a big one...

There were lots of stalls on the sand where the fishermen could buy their breakfast...

Hammerhead sharks are protected in Ecuador, but a loophole in the law allows fishermen to land those caught by accident. Unfortunately we saw these....

We also visited the fruit and veg market and swam in the sea opposite the hostel...

It was very hot today. We are all fed up of the sunscreen and insect repellent cocktail, and the itchy bites!

 

Posted with Blogsy

A snail on the tail of a humpbacked whale...

(Lyra writes) Today we went whale watching! Humpbacked whales swim from the Antarctic up to the coast of Colombia to give birth to their young. They perform off the coast of Ecuador along the way. Sometimes you see no whales, sometimes you see lots, but today we were lucky and saw a pair of lovers.

We saw the tails many times as the whales surfaced for fresh air. No snails so far!

They came up perfectly, together.

Again, a swishing pair of tails before another dive down to the depths.

Sometimes they dramatically jumped out of the water-hard to catch on camera. Breathtaking, especially when they jumped up nearby.

Lucas must have enjoyed bouncing along the waves-totally unlike me as I was feeling sea-sick.

 

On the way back, Dad and Lucas went snorkelling and saw lots of fish.

We also saw a sleeping turtle on our way. A truly wonderful day !¡!¡

 

Posted with Blogsy

Puerto Lopez.

(Lyra writes) yesterday we travelled south to Puerto Lopez, only around 40km. This is a town, much bigger than Puerto Cayo and definately a lot busier. There is a long beach, but it is mainly a fishing port-there are loads of boats.

Loads of brightly coloured fishing boats.

The roof of our hostel !

Lucas struggled to see whales from the shore...

Typical Ecuadorian wiring.

The main road is mud, but the street is buzzing with life.

Posted with Blogsy

Mermaids and Monopoly!

Most of today was spent on the beach. We started off with a sandcastle competition ... No prizes for guessing who won

Yes, the toilet seat was triumphant ! Roberto, the manager of the Sanctuary, selects the winner. Roberto has been fantastic, working really hard to ensure our stay has been perfect, and smiling all the time. A great place and superb service.

A close up of the tail

And the face

We spent hours on the beach jumping about and riding the huge breakers/ waves that come crashing in from far across the pacific. They were huge, pelicans were diving in the waves catching fish and the water was warm ...... What could be better..?

We played a 3 hour game of monopoly ( mum won), then Lucas relaxed

For dinner we had a local speciality called cazuela manabita , a sea food casserole with green plantain as the base for the sauce, with squid, octopus, prawn and fish... Gorgeous!

 

 

Posted with Blogsy