Month: June 2015

Ups and downs in Ecuador’s central highlands

Posted on by

Our stay in the “Sierra” – that is what Ecuadorians call this region of the central highlands – was definitely full of ups and downs, and not only scenery-wise! Our first destination here was Salasaka. The Lonely Planet on Ecuador describes Salasaka as “a rather ugly town which you will notice to have arrived at when all men around you seem to be wearing the same black ponchos”. This is actually a very adequate and authentic description. Therefore, Salasaka is not on most backpackers “top-places-to-visit” list. However, it had made it on ours because we had signed up to volunteer at Salasaka’s Katitawa school. The head coordinator of the volunteer program had given us detailed descriptions on how to get to the school’s volunteer house – and these descriptions already promised some adventurous times as we were told to not only change buses multiple times but also eventually jump on the back of a pick-up truck which should take us along for the last bit of our journey. Surprisingly enough, that all worked out smoothly and so we could sooner than expected move into the volunteer house that looked rather like a construction site*.
During our time as volunteers we helped out in the garden, in the kindergarten, in classes during the day for the school kids and in classes at night for grown-ups who wanted to improve their English or learn some German. All the kids and locals were very friendly and open to us, so we got a good glimpse of the local way of living. Also, lucky for us, our fellow volunteers were all not only lovely people, but also pretty amazing and passionate cooks who ensured that we were well fed every evening.
Despite Salasaka’s not exactly overwhelming charm and beauty, its surroundings have a lot to offer for weekend excursions. For instance, Baños, which is just a 40min bus ride away, is one of Ecuador’s Meccas for outdoor adrenaline sports lovers and all fans of great nightlife. You can go rafting, canyoning or puentening (the local sport of jumping off a bridge and swinging under it), afterwards party all night and then start all over. The central highlands are also great for hiking and mountaineering. Lots of people hike up one of Ecuador’s most active volcanoes, the Cotopaxi (5890m). As we had already done our share of high mountain climbing for a while, we did not do that but instead went to see the turquoise Quilotoa lagoon where there are lots of opportunities for more modest hiking and you may see Volcano Cotopaxi in the distance, if the weather is on your side.

In spite of all these perks and definitively some highs, we ended up cutting our stay in Salasaka short because it turned out that we where not able to make friends or at least cope with our “other” fellow roommates named bed bugs, fleas and spiders who were getting way too “touchy”. Nevertheless, it was an experience that we surely won’t ever forget.

When in the Central highlands
What to do: Go rafting or canyoning in Baños for some proper adrenaline rushes!
Where to stay: Hostal Cañalimeña in Baños. Clean and bedbugs free beds plus friendly staff, what else can you wish for?
What to eat and drink: Have a delicious breakfast prepared with lots of love and served with great coffee at Dulces detalles in Baños.
What to do after a stay in the volunteer house: Have all your belongings chemically washed and disinfected at the lavandaria Magic, located in Pelileo, the neighbouring town just 20 bus minutes from Salasaka.

* That is, of course, only according to our opinion

Pozuzo – ein Besuch im Tiroler Dorf im Herzen Perus

Posted on by

Mit besonderer Widmung meiner lieben Oma.
Diesmal habe ich ein Ziel gewählt, das wirklich abseits aller Touristenpfaden liegt. So abseits, dass sogar Nicky und Patrick gestreikt haben, dorthin mitzukommen. Nicht einmal die meisten Einheimischen kennen diesen versteckten Ort. Wie ich dann darauf gekommen bin? Meine Oma verfolgt die Geschichte dieses Auswandererdorfs aus 1859 mit großem Interesse und da ich in Lima praktisch “vor Ort” (hier in Südamerika sind knapp 500km mitten in den Regenwald ja eigentlich noch “ums Eck” wie wir bereits aus Arequipa und unserem Besuch im Colca Canyon wissen – siehe Blogeintrag) bin, musste ich dort natürlich auf jeden Fall einmal hinfahren um es mir persönlich anzusehen.
Ich wünschte ich hätte die Gesichter der Leute gefilmt, als ich mich nach dem Weg nach Pozuzo erkundigt habe: Entweder spiegelte sich darauf komplette Unkenntnis, blankes Entsetzen in so eine entlegene Gegend zu fahren oder einfach nur Ungläubigkeit. Jedenfalls haben wir Tränen gelacht dank dieser dezent abschrekenden aber doch sehr amüsanten Reaktionen. Auch schon allein um die Bustickets zu kaufen, war es notwendig in eine Gegend zu fahren, deren Betreten bereits untertags für Touristen nicht empfohlen wird und daher nachts erst recht gemieden werden sollte. Dennoch, mein Bus fuhr um 19 Uhr ab, aber ein bisschen Nervenkitzel hat noch nie jemandem geschadet.
Ebenso abenteuerlich war dann auch die eigentliche Fahrt dorthin, führte sie doch durch Nacht und Nebel über kurvige Straßen vom auf Meeresspiegel gelegenen Lima bis auf zwischenzeitlich über 4.000m. Ich muss auch zugeben, bereits das Zwischenziel OxaPAMPA ist schon recht ironisch, liegt Pozuzo doch tief versteckt im Regenwald. Von Oxampampa aus (10 Stunden Busfahrt von Lima) ist es erforderlich einen Minibus zu nehmen, der über halb weggespülte Straßen weitere 3 Stunden nach Pozuzo holpert. Im Dorf verriet man mir dann, dass diese Straße nach einem Erdrutsch schon einmal für zwei Monate komplett gesperrt war, und deshalb neu in den Berg gesprengt wurde. Zum Glück war zum Zeitpunkt meines Besuchs die Regenzeit fast vorbei und so musste der Fahrer die Straße nur ein paar Mal händisch von Steinen befreien um zu passieren.
Endlich angekommen, wurde ich nach Tiroler Brauch, sehr herzlich begrüßt und freundlich in Pozuzo aufgenommen. Einen bleibenden Eindruck hat unter anderem Franz Heinrich bei mir hinterlassen. Der Name klingt doch nach einem Urtiroler, richtig? Und auch als er so vor mir stand in der Touristeninformation in seiner Lederhose, erinnerte er mich sehr an mein geliebtes Heimatland. In völligem Kontrast dazu stand allerdings sein südamerikanisches Aussehen und vor allem die Tatsache, dass er nur Spanisch mit starkem Dialekt sprach. Insgesamt also ein etwas bizarres Bild. Auch sonst ist der Ort eine bunte Mischung aus österreichisch-deutscher und südamerikanischer Kultur. So befindet sich etwa das Restaurant Tiroler Adler, in dem man Gulasch und Wiener Schnitzel bekommt und die südamerikanische Version eines Apfelstrudels in Form eines Bananenstrudels, direkt neben typisch peruanischen Lokalen. Ebenso läuft man Statuen und Gedenktafeln mit deutscher Inschrift über den Weg und im nächsten Moment kämpft man damit, spanischen Wegbeschreibungen zu einem Aussichtspunkt zu folgen. Souvenierläden verkaufen Andenken mit deutschen Sprüchen – von welchen die meisten allerdings grammatikalisch und sprachlich völlig falsch sind.
Und so ergibt sich für mich ein lebendiges Bild von Pozuzo, das sich einerseits auf seine Tiroler (und deutschen) Wurzeln besinnt, allerdings auch den beständigen Einflüssen südamerikanischer Kultur nicht verschlossen bleibt und sich so im Bewusstsein beider Kulturen ständig weiterentwickelt.

In Pozuzo
Essen & Trinken: Tiroler Adler – typisches Tiroler Essen mit südamerikanischen Einflüssen
Wohnen: La Chela Hostel – preisgünstige Zimmer mit Basiseinrichtung. Allerdings steht eine breite Auswahl an Unterkünften zur Verfügung, häufig auch von Tiroler Auswanderern geführt.
Unternehmungen: Von einem Spaziergang zu einem netten Ausgangspunkt unweit des Dorfes bis hin zu weiteren Wanderungen zu spektakulären Wasserfällen mitten im Regenwald ist alles möglich.

written and experienced by Lisa

Party and surf is always up in Mancora

Posted on by

While Patrick was still studying hard in Lima to pass his Spanish course with flying colors, Lisa and Nicky took it a bit easier, spending a few relaxed beach days in Mancora. This former fishing village has gained quite some fame and reputation in the surfing and backpacking communities for being Peru’s year round hot spot to catch good waves as well as unforgettable parties.
Party time here starts at sunset when everyone gathers at the beach to enjoy the spectacle of colors while already sipping on a round of happy hour pisco sours (that’s a cocktail of Peruvian origin that is similar to a caipirinha). In many of the beach bars, happy hour never ends and keeps locals and visitors dancing till the surfers come out to catch the first waves at the break of dawn.
The main local means of transport in Mancora are tuk-tuks, little motorbike-drawn, three-wheeled cabins. As it is quite hot in Mancora, everyone goes everywhere by tuk-tuk. Thus, in order to comply with local customs, we went back and forth all day between the beach and our hotel, always by tuk-tuk of course. With one of them, driven by our favorite driver, we also went to explore Mancora’s outskirts. Thus, we visited El Ñuro Beach to swim with green sea turtles and recovered from the high-life in Mancora on the secluded but beautiful beach of Los Órganos. One evening our driver also took us over humpy, bumpy and quite adventurous backroads to Zorritos where we took a dip in some natural hot springs full of bubbling hot water and mud which is said to have curative properties. It was a good thing we went late, because by then it had cooled down a bit so we could actually enjoy the hot water. Also, there was no one else there any more, which made it a great place to enjoy the stary sky while sitting around a little bonfire before going back to town, rejuvenated and fit after the mud bath and thus, ready for another long party night.
Despite not sleeping much in order to take full advantage of our three days and nights here, we felt there was still plenty to do by the time we left. So, I guess we probably have to come back some time!

When in Mancora
Where to sleep: Rios Hotel Mancora – far enough from the beach to get a good night’s sleep but still close enough to get there within a two minutes tuk-tuk ride. Another plus is the roof terrace which is a great place for a chilled breakfast!
Where to eat & drink: La Sirena d’Juan Restaurant – THE place to have tuna which will probably be the best you ever tasted. They catch tuna here, so the fish you will get will be as fresh as it can be while being cooked to perfection.
What to do: Go swim with the turtles in El Ñuro Beach – it will make you happy, promise!

Galapagos – following Darwin’s footsteps

Posted on by

The Galapagos were originally not on our travel itinerary because we thought they were only accessible for elderly people with way deeper pockets than us. However, as it turned out, they also welcome modest backpackers like us!
Our adventure started in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second largest and probably ugliest city, which nevertheless still receives some tourists, as it is the best place to book a last minute tour to the islands. Luck was on our side and so it only took us a day to find a reasonable last minute deal – and off we flew to paradise.
The Galapagos Archipelago encompasses more than 50 islands of volcanic origin of which just a few are open for tourists to visit. The still ongoing volcanic activities together with the secluded geographic location some 800 kilometers off the coast of the Ecuadorian mainland have made these islands a showcast of evolution as well as a living museum of some of the most extraordinary creatures inhabiting this world.
We started our island hopping tour on Santa Cruz, the main island, where already on the first day a highlight was waiting for us: we went to look for giant tortoises – and found some! To be fair, it wasn’t so difficult to track them down because they leave huge tracks and cannot really move too fast. Also, they are simply too gigantic to be easily missed. But still, we felt super lucky, as you might be able to see in our picture collection.
The next day we took a ferry to the biggest of the islands, Isla Isabela. This one just recently hit the news quite hot, as Volcano Wolf erupted spectacularly. Sadly, we were not allowed to get close enough to get a glimpse of it, but we still had an awesome time spotting flamingos and penguins as well as snorkeling with white-tipped reef sharks, giant rays, loads and loads of colorful fish, many very friendly sea turtles and of course the famous swimming iguanas. We also tried to hike up one of the islands smaller volcanoes, but on the way there Nicky tripped and messed up her ankle which quickly swell up to a size that expressed quite clearly that she would not be able to make it to the crater that day. In fact, she didn’t walk anywhere at all anymore that day, so Patrick had to carry her back until an ambulance horse came round for help. It turned out that the leg could still be used for snorkeling, so our exploration program could continue. Therefore, over the next days, we hopped on “our” boat Esmeraldas III to visit Isla Bartolome, Isla Plaza and Isla Santa Fe.
Each of these islands had its own special highlight and each of them was so very different from the others that we really got to understand quite well why the Galapagos where Darwin’s “mystery of mysteries”: fauna and flora are simply incredible here! We saw cactuses grow next to mangroves and iguanas paddle side by side with penguins. We swam with sea lions that wanted to play with us, had to watch our step closely everywhere we went to not trip over one of the iguanas that were lazily chilling out and walked on picture-perfect beaches.
After 11 days, perfectly sun tanned and full of incredible and probably unforgettable memories, we boarded our plane back to the continent. However, the farewell will probably not be one for too long, there are simply too many more islands to explore! So we will be back for sure, but next time definitely with a scuba diving license!

When on the Galapagos
Where to sleep: Hotel Ninfa – we stayed here as it was included in our package and we totally enjoyed it! Awesome staff, great breakfast buffet, a pool and proper hotel style rooms, amazing for backpackers after 4 month of hostels! If you rather want to save the hotel money for excursions, there are also lots of budget options!
Where to eat & drink: Isla Isabela is famous for the local cocktail Coco Loco, make sure you have some! We also had a delicious “encocado de pescado” (that’s fish cooked in a rich coconut sauce) at the kiosco de Renato.
What to do: Make sure you see a couple of different islands, no matter if you choose island hopping or a cruise. We booked our trip with Ninfa Tours and were completely satisfied.

The fairy tales of Lima

Posted on by

Once upon a time three eager backpackers by the names of Lisa, Nicky and Patrick, arrived in Lima, Peru’s capital. This is a pretty big city, split up in various neighborhoods that are so different from each other that crossing between them feels very much like going to a different city, or sometimes even another country or continent – and it generally also takes about that long. This is because one basically has the choice between overcrowded buses or taxis and no matter which one chooses, getting stuck in traffic is inevitable.
Our hostel was located in Miraflores, that is Lima’s “Gringo town”, where all Americans and other foreigners working in Lima seem to be staying. Thus, everything here is super westernized and quite fancy: slick shopping malls, a scenic ocean view promenade, chick hotels and restaurants and of course plenty of Starbucks cafés. There is also a waterpark, called Circuito Mágico del Agua, which is lots of fun to visit. In fact, it almost feels like being in Disneyland there, with all its fountains, colorful light installations and magical shows. We even saw a princess, just like in a fairytale come true. We found that this park is quite a good impersonalization of Lima’s character: There are new things to discover around every corner, and despite seeming quite surreal or even fake at times, it’s still very likeable, beautiful and definitively unique. We also spent some Soles (that’s the Peruvian currency) in one of the many Vegas-style casinos which can be found all along the main avenue of Miraflores.
But of course we went to see some different parts of Lima as well. Thus, one day we spent exploring the city’s historic core where we had a great time walking around between impressive Spanish colonial architecture and other UNESCO protected world heritage sites. During our tour we also had ourselves convinced by a street vendor to take a tour to San Crístobal hill. Despite that we had to circle the city’s main square, the Plaza the Armas, for about 30 minutes (that’s roughly six times around), to pick up more passengers in our little bus, we did not regret the decision as it was an interesting ride through various neighbourhoods that eventually took us up to the San Cristobal viewpoint 500 meters above sea level. From there we could, for the first time really see how huge this metropolis actually is.
Another interesting area we visited is Barranco. Like Miraflores, it is also quite touristy and fancy, but it’s totally worth a visit. Mostly because it is full of restaurants serving the local delicates: anticuchos – that’s beefhearts but they taste way better than that may sound. This dish is best enjoyed in one of the restaurants overlooking the ocean. The ocean, however, is most beautiful from a distance, unless you are a keen surfer and not afraid of brownish water. Nevertheless, instead of taking a dip, it is possible to enjoy some fresh seafood or fish in one of the tiny plastic chair “restaurants” at the beach front neighborhood of Chorrillos. Here, one can observe Pelicans while munching on dishes like Ceviche (raw, lemon-marinated fish).
Somewhere, supposedly not too far from town, we heard there are nicer beaches too. However, we never made it there to confirm such rumors. This might partially be blamed on the already mentioned pretty bad public transport system of Lima but also on our complacency with quite relaxed days for a change. Nevertheless, after some time of blissful laziness, Patrick, took the chance to hit the school bench for a week to improve his Spanish skills while Lisa and Nicky went on to explore some other corners of Peru. Before long, however, we all met up again, this time Ecuador-bound, to travel on happily ever after.

The End.

When in Lima
Where to sleep: Alpamama – a perfectly located and clean hostel in Lima’s probably safest area, Miraflores. It’s close to the ocean front, supermarkets and plenty of restaurants. And all of that at fair prices.
Where to eat & drink: Visit El Tio Mario in Barranco to try some of the famous anticuchos.
What to do: Visit the Circuito Mágico del Agua for a magical evening.