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Quick Trip to Connecticut
After our trip to DC we took q quick detour to Connecticut. Megan and Charlie's wedding afforded us the oppurtunity to catch up with lots of family - even those from the left coast - and to get our lobster on.
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Quick Trip to DC
We made a quick trip to DC in August and took the opportunity to catch up with good friends both from our last post in Mexico City and our time in Virginia. We enjoyed great BBQs, a vineyard, and brunch get togethers with all of Annika's tios y tias.
Next time we hope to make our stay longer.
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Hiking Pichincha
Pichincha is an active stratovolcano just west of Quito. It consists of two peaks, Guagua Pichincha, the active caldera with the last eruption in 1999, and Rucu Pichicha which is inactive.
Our hike to Rucu Pichincha began by taking the teleferico, equivalent to a gondola, to the starting point of the hike at ~12,700 feet. On this day the sky was relatively clear giving us some fantastic views of Quito. Although, at this point, the path was pretty clear, free of rocks, once we hit ~13,500 feet I needed to take some serious deep breaths during the more steep climbs. At about~14,000 feet the trail got more narrow with some more steep drop offs on the side.
We hit a point where the path required some simple rock climbing. I say simple, as it would be the case for most people, but given that I am afraid of heights, if at any point I slipped, I would have rolled down the side of this rocky mountain. To me, the hike became unenjoyable and I still wanted to return home and play with Annika. Julia, of course was perfectly fine but very understanding and when I mentioned turning around she was perfectly fine with it.
According to the map we were somewhat close to the crater of Rucu but given the steep climb at altitude, this could have taken us an hour or so to complete. We ran into 2 people suffering from altitude sickness. At our highest point, ~14,300 feet, we hit what seemed like the spine of the mountain, where if you faced east you looked down upon Quito, and if you faced west you looked down upon the cloud forest and eventually the ocean. Unfortunately the clouds obscurred our view west. Facing north or south you see volcano alley, with other volcanic peaks dotting the skyline.
Oh well...better luck next time if there is one.
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Dinner At Marcela's
We are blessed to have Marcela in our lives and taking such great care of Annika. We were honored to have been invited to her house for dinner and to meet her parents and aunt. As usual the food was delicious and Melany showed us her muscial talent playing several songs on her guitar which included our wdding's first dance "Tabaco y chanel" by Bacilos.
Leaving Marcela is going to be one of the most difficult part of our upcoming move.
Antisana Ecological Reserve
Waking up to a clear Sunday morning, we thought we would take advantage and head to the Antisana Ecological Reserve to see if we could get a clear view of Volcan Antisana. While Cotopaxi was clear, unfortunately Antisana was mostly covered by clouds, however, we got to see some impressive views of the reserve, Quito, Volcan Pichincha, and Volcan Sincholagua.
We hiked up a hill, bringing us at an altitude of roughly 13,500 feet in hopes of getting a glimpse of Cotopaxi, but, that particular side of the volcano was covered in clouds. We did stumble upon some wild horses along the way.
Leaving the reserve we saw a group of Andean Condors in what appeared to be them practicing to glide as one by one they took turns flying in a circle.
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Swim with a View
Quito Mornings
It's going to be difficult leaving this view...
Sierra Negra
Sierra Negra is an active volcano located on the south side of Isla Isabela. It has the second largest caldera in the world. The south side of the volcano is lush in vegetation and has over 100 family farms. The northern side, however, is quite the opposite -- dry with cacti growing out of lava rocks.
Volcan Chico, from my interpratation of what the guide was telling us, is the name for the northern part of Volcan Sierra Negra. This is the area where lava flows from recent eruptions reached the sea.
Our 11 mile hike began at ~8:00 a.m. on the sourthern side of Volcan Sierra Negra. It was cool, foggy, and with periods of light rain. We hiked up to the caldera and walked along the eastern ridge heading north. Upon reaching the northern side of the caldera, the conditions quickly cleared up and the temperature was much warmer. We headed down towards Volcan Chico and the terrain quickly changed to a drier landscape filled with lava rock and cacti. As we headed down the caldera we walked on lava rock ranging in age from 5000 years old to that of the most recent eruption in 2005. We saw several lava tubes, fumaroles that release hot humid air, incredible lava formations, mini volcanoes, and what many describe as a Mars-like landscape with colors ranging from red, orange, yellow, and black. As we returned to our starting point, the afternoon soon burned off the morning fog allowing us to view the caldera in its entirety.
This was truly and amazing hike.
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Isla Isabela
With our time in Ecuador quickly coming to a close, we decided to take our long anticipated trip to Las Galapagos. Because we wanted the peanut to experience the Galapagos and to fully take advantage of the experience, we decided it would be a good idea to bring Marcela, Annika's nanny. As a bonus, it was Marcela's first time on a plane and first time visiting the Galapagos. To save time and avoid the ferry, we took an avioneta, with no more then 10 passengers including the pilot, from Baltra to the Island of Isabela. We are grateful that she could visit this part of her country with us even though she had a peanut that requires A LOT of walking.
Annika and Marcela enjoyed hanging at the beach side hotel while Julia and I took the opportunity to take some not-so-baby-friendly tours. Posts regarding the tours will come later later.
We felt welcomed by the staff at the Iguana Crossing hotel (where the Iguanas actually cross to go to and from the beach). The water was perfectly warm and Annika really enjoyed walking into the waves. Quite a different beach experience from Texas.
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Annika On The Move
Cotopaxi Is Alive
For the last couple of weeks Cotopaxi has been showing signs of activity with increase sulfur emissions and long period earthquakes -- none of which could be felt in Quito. The increase in long period earthquakes is likely due to internal fluid (magma) movements.
Will she erupt? Probably not but you never know. In the picture below you could see steam clouds coming off the mountain.
Volcan Cayambe. This one is nice and quiet.
Been trying to capture a picture to show just how close Volcan Cotopaxi is to Quito. I think this one finally captures it.
Random Saturday
When living in another country, sometimes you have to find things that remind you of home. Bacon egg and cheese on a cinnamon bagel, almond croissants, and having some fantastic friends are just some of the things we found here in Quito that remind us of home.
Countdown to our next post begins and we will surely miss this place and our great friends.
Que Linda Manita
That Was Hilarious Dad!
* Note the third bottom tooth coming out
Driving her red Cadillac
Visiting the Rio Grande Valley
It was getting pretty close to a year since Abuelo and Abuela have seen Annika. With Julia's blessing, Annika and I flew to McAllen to visit the folks for a couple of days. Vivian and Richard were kind enough to rent a place at South Padre Island so Annika could hopefully enjoy the beach. Unfortunately Annika did not approve of how sand felt on her feet. Regardless, a good time was had and after a couple of days with the Cubans, she warmed up to them with smiles.
We will be returning to the RGV in September to further expose Annika to screaming Cubans and to give her another try at the beach. Hoping for better results.
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