Tuesday 7th October

Heading back to Misahualli today breakfast at 8am boiled eggs, 3 small slices of bread toasted, jam and butter, coffee with powdered milk, yuk milk goes all lumpy for some reason don´t like it much and we are given a knife and fork to eat a boiled egg in it´s shell not quite sure about that. Depart 9am for 2 hour jungle walk with our guide Wilfredo who teaches us a lot about the medicinal and culinary uses of the jungle plants, even tricking us into eating lemon ants, none of us are very impressed when he tells us, shows just how gullible you can be. Gemma, Rebecca, Louise, Sarah and other Gemma decide to return to camp by floating down the river on inner tubes while the rest of us go back in the canoe. I have a bad back so decide I may be better off in the canoe but I would really like to go in the tubes. I get soaked in canoe on the way back going through the rapids when water washes over the canoe and at this stage have no more dry clothes so decide to sit in the sun and dry off until lunch, I actually lay down on a seat and go to sleep and when I wake I have a group of about 10 native children standing over me, maybe I was snoring and they were intrigued I´m not sure but I wake up and entertain them with some drawings which they enjoy but then they are very easily pleased as my drawings are not brilliant and they always have a smile. After lunch we sadly depart for Misahualli, I have enjoyed my time in the jungle more than I thought I would and the native people especially the gorgeous children are so freindly. Tomorrow we head to Banos which we are all looking forward to as there are lots of adventure activities to keep us busy. Banos is a scenic little town named after the 5 sets of thermal baths found there and is a part of Llanganated National Park nestled on the side of Tungurahua volcano. In spite of the volcanic activity that forced an evacuation from Banos during 1999/2000, the town is a popular tourist destination, the attraction being the hot springs, the amazing scenery and the accessability to the jungle. Banos here we come.

Monday 6th October

Up 7am today breakfast at 8am leave Misahualli 9am decked out in gumboots and looking very elegant, we can only take our day packs containing pyjamas, change of clothes, toiletries, cameras, insect repellant and leave the rest of our worldly goods in the safe keeping of our hostel. Travel by motorised canoe to go down Rio Napa River(a tributary of the Amazon) to a point locally known as Monkey Rock, the official starting point for our first jungle trek of approx 5 hours taking us through the secondary jungle, pretty tough going at times with the heat, humidity and especially when it rained quite heavily making it very muddy and slippery, we negotiate what we are told by our guide to be 4 quite steep hills but I am sue there are many more. On arrival at jungle hut site we have 20 mins to freshen up for lunch which is local food served in a larger jungle hut. As we settle in for lunch Gemma notices a small tarantula spider(just a small one but still far too big in my opinion) sitting very quiet and still beside her on the banana leaves which are used as a tablecloth, one of the staff at her request very nicely pick it up and throw it outside. Lunch is lentils, rice, carrot and parsnip and banana chips. We have some time to rest up after lunch and then at 4.15pm we are once again transported by canoe up river to visit a native family who demonstrate basket making to us, we also try some local mashed potato and a nasty drink made from same potato. The father demonatrates how to use a poison dart to catch prey of which I also try but am sure I would starve if having to depend on this as my weapon of choice to catch my food (guess it's a good thing I don't live in the jungle). The family have 13 children but 2 months ago acquired a television set powered by solar enery so I guess now they will have something else to do. We head back to camp where dinner is served at 7.30pm more lentils, carrot, parsnip, rice, curried chicken and dessert is tree tomato in a sugar syrup very nice. We make a camp fire and sit around and talk but everyone is ready for bed by 9.30pm it´s been a big day.

Sunday 5th October

We have a 7 hour bus trip today so up at 7am will depart 10.45am gives me time to go to supermarket up road and also internet cafe, this will be our last chance to communicate with family and friends as we are going into the jungle. We catch taxis to bus station for our journey to Misahualli via Tena, stop along road at 2pm for lunch buy ham and cheese rolls for 50c each. Misahualli is a small quaint town very close to the river with lots of monkeys around. Check into our rooms and then some of us go for a walk to take photos of monkeys and also to check out the small and intriguing shops. We see a monkey take off with a tourist's mobile phone, watch it sitting under a tree and it actually looks like it is trying to send a text message, obviously has been observing us humans and our mannerisms, we see another with a cigarette lighter and Sarah becomes worried when she sees flames thinking the monkey is going to set itself or the jungle on fire, they are very clever little monkeys. Dinner tonight is at restaurant at our accommodation, beef, beans, fried banana, after dinner we go upstairs to bar and dance till 9.30pm. During dinner Carla gives us a briefing on the next 2 day's activities in the jungle, sounds like the trek in is going to be quite tough going but should be fun. Sharing with Julia tonight who is from Switzerland just get nicely settled into bed when she finds a rather large flying insect in her bed so she changes from the top bunk to the bottom, our pillows tonight are like rocks and I end up tossing my on the floor and sleep without it. Didn´t get much sleep it was so humid and the fan was whirring away all night and also lots of bugs in our room, I am wondering how much worse it will be in the jungle but hey it's an adventure.

Saturday 4th october

Still in Otavalo, love this place, leave at 8am to go to the animal markets and also craft markets wow so big and so many colourful and interesting things to buy, I buy a necklace and 2 scarves everything is so cheap it´s hard to control myself. Depart 9.45am to return to Quito, catch taxis to bus station. I am told by Carla our guide to sit in front so what do I do but go straight to the drivers side as that would be the passenger seat at home as they drive on the right side of the road here, everyone thinks its very funny and ask if I am going to drive ha ha. 2 hour bus trip back. Return Hotel Cayman 1.30pm, Sarah kindly makes me a very nice salad roll and a cup of coffee for lunch as I didn´t have any breakfast and have a splitting headache, her and I are sharing room tonight. Leave 2pm for $40 city sights tour with another guide Elena, we tour the old city and also the new city which are quite different and this city is so big and spread out with a population of just over 2 million. Also visit the historical centre and El museo De Sitio Intinan where we stand on the equator and do several experiments which you can only do at the equator, find it extremely interesting like balancing an egg on a nail. We continue some of our tour on foot to see Plaza San Francisco with the Monastery of San Fransico Ecuador's oldest church and Plaza de la Independencia, also La Compania de Jesus one of the richest churches in South America and stunning to look at with all the gold, it rains very heavily so we buy $3 umbrellas, we then rejoin our bus and drive up to the top of the city to see the Virgen de El panecillo(The Virgin of Quito) which is a huge statue of an angel with wings which looks down over the city, this area was once an Incan stronghold as it has 360 degree views over the city. We climb up inside the statue to the top and the views are amazing, no photos as camera batteries are flat. We arrive back at hostel 6.30pm ready for dinner at 7pm, I have potato, cheese and avocado soup, steak and fries but struggle to eat it as am full after soup. Back to room 9.30pm to write up journal, emails etc.

Friday 3rd October

Leave 8am for Otavalo today, famous for it´s markets the biggest in Ecuador where we spend the night so just take our daypacks and leave the rest in our hostel. Catch a public bus very interesting ride local hawkers jumping on and off bus to sell snacks, icecreams and water, one guy who has a lot to say may have been preaching as I don´t understand the language not sure. On arrival do a group walk around town, market stalls very colourful and people very friendly which I am finding everywhere we go. The Ecuadorians are lovely people with a ready smile and always say hola as you pass and I have absolutely fallen in love with the gorgeous children. Have lunch together in town and then we a retransported by ute, some of us riding in tray (illegal at home) to Cotopaxi(volcano of same name) where we do a walk around lake Cotacachi which is a volcanic crater, very beautiful, we then come back to town and have free time shopping. The town is renown for its very good quality leather goods, wish I had more room in my bag, am being careful not to buy too much as I still have another 6 weeks to go but I do buy a small leather shoulder bag which of course I need. We then go to visit an Indian family where we watch a demonstration of making Andean musical instruments(pan pipes) and traditional dancing. Tea tonight is at a very small and quaint Mexican restaurant where we enjoy very good fajitas prepared by a very friendly and efficient little old lady and her daughter.