This weekend was awesome. Fifteen of us went to Mindo, which is about 2 hours away from Quito. It's a very small town but attracts many backpackers like us. It's warmer than Quito because of its jungle atmosphere. The trip kind of reminded me of summer camp, which for anyone who has been can imagine how great it was. Our hostel had a couple different cabins that were comfortable and you walked on a pathway through big plants to get to different areas of the hostel, including this one patio area over a stream & surrounded by trees. It wasn't your traditional one room, many beds hostel -- there wasn't an age limit either. The owner of the hostel organized all the activities for us & cooked breakfast in the morning all for $10...probably one of the best deals I've seen.
So the weekend was a weekend of firsts. My first new adventure was zip lining across the jungle. You could see everything as we flew across 12 different courses. It took us about 2 hours to complete. I even had the chance to do the "superman" and fly through the air. I can't explain how exhilarating the whole thing was. By far one of my favorite things I've done.
It started to rain in the afternoon just as we were finishing up zip lining, but we decided to continue on to 0ur next activity -- rafting down the rapids (another first). This kind of tubing isn't as intense as white water rafting, but it was close. There were a bunch of tubes tied together in a flower shape, we all wore helmets, and our guides maneuvered around huge rocks and down small waterfalls. It was freezing. The water was titanic like and there was no sun to warm us up since it was raining; however, we were all too excited to care.
At night we went to two of the two discoteques in town. They were crowded with locals (including our zip lining guides and anyone else we saw that day) and other backpackers. We all had fun trying to dance meringue and other Latin tunes. Mindo was really safe at night since there weren't many places to get lost and it was remote enough to keep others out. "Town" included a long street of restaurants, a side street with a small street market, and the other streets leading to a few hostels. During the weekend, you basically saw the same groups of fellow foreigners everywhere you went - whether you were an hour away at the waterfalls or zip lining.
The next morning we headed off to the waterfalls, which I was excited to see for the first time, especially after our side trip to the waterfall in Otavalo was cancelled. We took a ski-type car the other side of a mountain, which probably wasn't top-notch safety rated, but we got an excellent view & it was actually pretty fun. Once there, we headed off with the intention of seeing all 5 waterfalls and the big "reina." However, we soon found out that we were dropped off high up in the mountain and would have to climb down to get to each waterfall and back up & down to get to the next one. We ended up seeing three in the 4 hours we were there. The hikes down to each waterfall were really nice though. I saw all those plants with the big leaves you find in the botanical gardens and a bunch of other jungle plants. It was definitely a tough hike, but it was worth it once we got to the waterfall. We all swam at the second one--the most serene. It was just quiet enough where you could walk in the water and not get pushed over, but rapid enough where the water moved you while you sat.
We rode back to the center of town sitting on top of the Chiva (see below - windowless truck that kind of reminds me of the safari jungle ride in Disney World at Animal Kingdom...except that it's not just for show). As we dodged branches and held on tight through the potholes, all I could think was that this is South America.
This weekend made me realize that I really enjoy "active" vacations. I like going through museums or lying on the beach too, but it's really different when you're experiencing a bunch of outdoor activities you've never tried before. The best part was that this entire trip cost me only $50, meals, activities and transportation included. I couldn't have spent that money any better way...
So the weekend was a weekend of firsts. My first new adventure was zip lining across the jungle. You could see everything as we flew across 12 different courses. It took us about 2 hours to complete. I even had the chance to do the "superman" and fly through the air. I can't explain how exhilarating the whole thing was. By far one of my favorite things I've done.
It started to rain in the afternoon just as we were finishing up zip lining, but we decided to continue on to 0ur next activity -- rafting down the rapids (another first). This kind of tubing isn't as intense as white water rafting, but it was close. There were a bunch of tubes tied together in a flower shape, we all wore helmets, and our guides maneuvered around huge rocks and down small waterfalls. It was freezing. The water was titanic like and there was no sun to warm us up since it was raining; however, we were all too excited to care.
At night we went to two of the two discoteques in town. They were crowded with locals (including our zip lining guides and anyone else we saw that day) and other backpackers. We all had fun trying to dance meringue and other Latin tunes. Mindo was really safe at night since there weren't many places to get lost and it was remote enough to keep others out. "Town" included a long street of restaurants, a side street with a small street market, and the other streets leading to a few hostels. During the weekend, you basically saw the same groups of fellow foreigners everywhere you went - whether you were an hour away at the waterfalls or zip lining.
The next morning we headed off to the waterfalls, which I was excited to see for the first time, especially after our side trip to the waterfall in Otavalo was cancelled. We took a ski-type car the other side of a mountain, which probably wasn't top-notch safety rated, but we got an excellent view & it was actually pretty fun. Once there, we headed off with the intention of seeing all 5 waterfalls and the big "reina." However, we soon found out that we were dropped off high up in the mountain and would have to climb down to get to each waterfall and back up & down to get to the next one. We ended up seeing three in the 4 hours we were there. The hikes down to each waterfall were really nice though. I saw all those plants with the big leaves you find in the botanical gardens and a bunch of other jungle plants. It was definitely a tough hike, but it was worth it once we got to the waterfall. We all swam at the second one--the most serene. It was just quiet enough where you could walk in the water and not get pushed over, but rapid enough where the water moved you while you sat.
We rode back to the center of town sitting on top of the Chiva (see below - windowless truck that kind of reminds me of the safari jungle ride in Disney World at Animal Kingdom...except that it's not just for show). As we dodged branches and held on tight through the potholes, all I could think was that this is South America.This weekend made me realize that I really enjoy "active" vacations. I like going through museums or lying on the beach too, but it's really different when you're experiencing a bunch of outdoor activities you've never tried before. The best part was that this entire trip cost me only $50, meals, activities and transportation included. I couldn't have spent that money any better way...
i am quite jealous. that sounds amazing
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