Another Adventure in Ecuador Day 3

My last day in Ecuador! To be honest, I already want to go back to Mancora. I'm tired of traveling. I miss my new friends there and I can't wait to settle down in the same bed in the same room in the same hostel. After meeting a lot of backpackers, I thought I also wanted to do like that. But I don't think I can do anymore because the long bus ride and waking with a huge luggage wears me down so much. I like traveling but I prefer to stay in one place. Anyway, I woke up super early like 5am since I went to bed early last night. But it was okay because I had to arrive at the bus station at 8:30. I took a Occidental bus for Cajas National Park, which was one hour and half away. The bus cost $2. The park was a lot bigger than I was expecting. Also, it was freezing! I was going to walk for 4 hours but I decided not to because the last bus was going to leave at 4pm and I couldn't miss it (Also, I was scared of hiking for 4 hours). So instead of 4 hours, I did the shortest course, which was about one hour and half. I didn't hike a lot but it was an improvement to me because I hate hiking. I'm scared of the mountain because of its height and animals. Also, hiking makes me exhausted and I hate the cold weather. But I did it today! Even though it was a short hiking and I sat down to eat snacks 10 minutes after I started walking, better than nothing. Next I want to dare myself to zip lining! I'm scared but I will do it in Mancora! After hiking, I had soup and hot chocolate at the restaurant. This restaurant saved my life because I was freezing and craving for hot drinks. Later I took a bus but the bus diver told me there was no seat for me so he let me take a "special seat" next to him. Actually, I liked it because I could talk with him and another guide. It was nice talking with them. After arriving at the bus terminal, I walked around the terminal and bought souvenirs for my family. Then I went to Pumapungo that has an archeological site. What interested me most was the walls. There were three walls. One was Incan, one was Western and another was Spanish. It was so interesting to know how they built a wall. I just stood up in front of the walls and was looking at them. After that, I asked a taxi driver to take me to Mercado 3 de Noviembre but he said it was closed so he took me to Mercado 12 de Abril. This wasn't the place I wanted to go because they had only fruits and vegetables. I told him that I wanted to buy souvenirs but there was a misunderstanding. It's okay though because this is a part of traveling. Also, I found a strange vegetable. I asked a seller how to eat. She said it needs to be cooked after removing seeds. I wanted to eat but I didn't know how to cook it so I didn't buy. And after leaving the market, I asked a local person where I can buy souvenirs. He told me that Plaza Rotary was the place and it really was! Many shops had Ecuadorian souvenirs. What I noticed there was most of their souvenirs were similar to Peruvians. I bought the ones that I had never seen in Peru for my family. I think my family would like Ecuadorian souvenirs because they are more "cute". In Peru, I got no souvenirs for my family because I know those are not their tastes unfortunately. My favorite souvenir for them so far is these hats! I will share them with my mom and sister! After that, I wanted to go to the vegetable bar but it was closed so I just asked a taxi driver to take me to the bus terminal. I feel like I'm at the terminal more than any other place haha my bus leaves at 9pm. I'm using CHIFA. I know I shouldn't use it because I heard there were some steeling on the bus but I didn't know the bus company until I bought a ticket. Lesson: ask questions before buying! I'll try to be extra careful on the bus! I hope to arrive in Mancora safely! Y tengo ganas de surfear!

Another Adventure in Ecuador Day 2

My second day in Ecuador went well. The bus to Ingaprica left around 9:00am. I used Trans-Cañar. I think this is the only one thay directly goes to Ingaprica. Amazingly one way cost only $3.5. I still can't get used to the extremely low prices of everything. The entrance fee was $6 for foreigners including a free tour guide. The tour guide was nice and he spoke English. And Ingaprica was awesome! I just kept taking pictures. It wasn't as big as Machu Picchu but still I enjoyed it. The returning bus left at 1:00 pm and arrived in the downtown in Cuenca around 3pm. I had lunch at the bus terminal. I had Churrasco and papaya juice. I had The best papaya juice there. And what is more, the meal was HUGE! It was like a meal for whole the day. I couldn't eat most of the food so I looked around. Then most of the people were finishing all of the food. I was just surprised. After eating, I still had time so I went to Mall de Rio. I saw somebody saying that this was a must place to go but I didn't like it at all... There was nothing to buy and the mall was smaller than I thought. So I left there less than in one hour. Later I went to a market, Mercado 10 de Agosto, which is close to my hostel. They mainly sell food but some shops had clothes, accessories, shoes, and other stuff. While walking around, I saw a dessert that I'd never seen. It looked whip cream but it wasn't. It's called espumilla, which means small foams. I can't describe how it tasted. It was just so sweet. While eating it, I met a girl who works at the hostel. I thought I was lucky because I didn't know how to get to the hostel from there so I just followed her. And I took a nap and relaxed rest of the night.