A full,fun and very Ecuadorian day out

At 3am yesterday I was up, dressed, bag packed and Amy and I  had climbed up on the coach for our day trip out to Banos. Woohoo! Sunshine and a day spent at a spa town-what could be better? We found our seats, kicked off our flip-flops and got ready to have a sleep during the 6 hour journey there. Not quite cosy enough to sleep...getting chilly...colder...and colder. Amy and I had not realised we'd be travelling up the mountains and it was cold!! Everyone else on the bus had flasks of coffee, woolly hats, Alpaca wool jumpers, scarves and fleece blankets. We were in flip-flops, t shirts and I was in a short skirt; we were freezing! Amy put on her all her extra clothes and ended up in 3 tshirts and a cardigan and I wrapped myself up in a towel for warmth.

   Just before Banos we stopped off for a cable car trip across a valley. 

I use the words "cable car" very loosely. It was a wire basket with no roof or walls winched across by an ancient engine-all this in the pouring rain and fair winds! Needless to say we got soaked to the skin and if that wasn't "interesting" enough it was then decided to take a short nature walk. Learn from my mistake and never go for a walk up a muddy mountain in a white skirt and shoes! 

   Once we finally made it to Banos we went to the thermal pools. Bright yellow sulphuric water mmm nice! The pouring rain and cold temperatures dampened our enthusiasm a bit but as long as you kept your whole body under the water it was fine. A wonderful moment when we were told that swimming hats were obligatory and Amy had to buy a hat and it turned out to be a shower cap!!! I was very nice and hardly sniggered at all (honest!) but we were both surprised to see everyone else else in the pool wearing shower caps too :)

    Later on we visited a zoo. The conditions the animals were in were not good but sadly here that is what you come to expect. We saw a HUGE condor only 2 feet away which was great and my happiest moment in years when I came up close to the best animal in the whole world- a Capybara! They are like giant, fluffy guinea-pigs. To see one in its' native country was wonderful. The zoo was an interesting experience even without the animals. The paths are not paved but are just natural rock and since you are halfway up a mountain you are basically rock climbing to get to each cage. It is not health&safety, wheelchair friendly, pram accessible or child safe-it is Ecuadorian! 

    After the zoo was the snake house; where the keeper got out a boa constrictor for some "fresh air"! The snake had a slither along a wall while we edged nervously past.  Yet another "Ecuador moment" when we turned a corner in the snake house to find a tropical bird section (why?) and caught sight of UK pheasants. That's right; over here Pigeons and pheasants are exotic, foreign species!

     Our random but fun day ended by a quick stop off at a small town to buy clothes. I invested $5 in a pair of pyjama bottoms to wear under my skirt since I was shivering by this time. During our trouser hunt the bus drove off and left us hunting the streets for it. While searching, we passed a restaurant cooking guinea-pigs! My Ecuador experience is now officially complete!!

  Just another six hour bus trip back to complete the day, was an interesting experience to travel later and later into the night and yet have it grow hotter. A full,fun and very Ecuadorian day out.