Beautiful Otavalo

We crossed our first border yesterday! La frontera, as they call it in Colombia was a busy place with people entering and leaving Colombia and Ecuador. We had a day full of logistics including transportation on taxis, colectivos (taxis that carry as many passengers as can fit and charge less money), big buses, and a brief walk across a bridge that served as the official border crossing.

Our last night in Colombia was spent at El Sanctuario Las Lajas, a little tiny town just outisde of the border town of Ipiales. There is a church there that was built in the early 1900´s after an image of the virgen appeared on the rock wall of a sheer canyon. The church was built around the image on the side of the canyon supported by an arched bridge that stradles a little river fed by a waterfall. There are many pilgrims that come from both Ecuador and Colombia to visit the sanctuario and there are many very cheap hotels to house all of the visitors. We stayed in La Casa Pastoral which is run by nuns and is decorated with religious imagery. The rooms were just big enough to hold a double bed, which I really think was a mattress filled with straw on top of some very hard boards. It was a beautiful place to finish our travels in Colombia.

Without any problems, we received a stamp in our passports and arrived in Ecuador. Easily, we caught a big bus and rode 3 hours through the gorgeous countryside. We are now staying in a beautiful hostal/farm called La Luna, about 4km outside of Otavalo. La Luna has a lot of space that includes dormitories, regular rooms, and also spaces to camp on their lawn, which we decided to do. It´s fun to take out our tent and have our own little space especially when we can also spend time socializing with other guests in the common areas (which all have fireplaces) and use their bathrooms, showers, and kitchen facilities. We woke up this morning to the crowing of roosters and the sound of a very pregnant horse munching some grass right beside the tent! Also, we have perfect views of two spectacular volcanos that border the valley where Otavalo lies. Today is Saturday and it is the big Otavalo market day. It is a market I have heard about for years from my grandma DJ who visited it in the 70´s and I feel very excited to be here. Brad and I woke up at 6am to walk the 45 minutes downhill from La Luna to be in time for the Feria de los Animales (animal market) which starts early and ends early unlike the crafts and food markets that stay open all day. There was a lot of action among the local people who bring their cows, chickens, pigs, alpacas, kittens, ducks, and guinea pigs to sell and to trade or purchase other animals. Many people wear the traditional clothing of colorful shawls and skirts and both men and women wear their hair in long braids often coverd in woven cloth. It is interesting to be inside of this market that has been happening for hundreds of years in this same beautiful valley. After we write these blog entries, the plan is to stay in town and look at the crafts, purchase a backpack load full of fresh fruit and eat some delicious street food for lunch! I feel super relaxed in this town and I think we will be here for quite a few days, camping, visiting with people and taking walks in the green countryside to nearby lakes and waterfalls.

It is very exciting to be in a new country! I didn´t anticipate feeling a huge difference between Colombia and Ecuador so soon after crossing the border but I do feel a larger sense of security here in Ecuador. The recent history of violence in Colombia is definitely fading away with the increased police and military presence on roads and in cities. There were many police checkpoints on long bus rides where we had to show our passports and Brad got searched but it was all out of concern for the safety of the bus passengers. The Colombians themselves are extremely friendly and helpful but they are quick to remind foreigners of the need to be wary of personal safety and the security of belongings. I think that tourism is increasing and with a few more years of safe progress, Colombia may become a hot spot for travelers because it has so much to offer in terms of natural beauty and cultural variety unique to each region.

With that, it´s time to enjoy the market! The sun is shining and it is a gorgeous day in Ecuador.

I´m not sure what Brad wrote about in his post because we´re not consulting each other, but if he didn´t write about climbing the 15,000 ft. very windy volcano in Parque Nacional Purace then I´ll have to write another entry soon!

Love,
Anika