Some market photos from Riobamba:

Buying and selling Guinne Pigs:

Cooked pigs:

Chicks:

Puppies:

I also have photos of kittens, sheep, fish, chickens... all alive, all for sale but I{d just bore you and my brother already said I{m putting up a lot of animal photos.

The hostel trying to keep on top of the ash problem:

Im glad I didn´t have to spend too long in Rio, early the next morning, I got a train south. You use to be able to sit on open top carrages but there was recently an accident with a tourist and you´re not allowed anymore. But it was still a great trip, stopping randomly to let local people on and off between their farms:

And a it wouldn´t have been complete without a de-railment!! Nothing serious, they say it happens all the time. They reversed, pulled the de-railed wheels back onto the track and then went about fixing the track that cause the problem:

At the end of the line, I caught a bus to the pretty city of Cuenca. Yesterday, I spent a rainy day in and out of museums and shops. I visited a Panama Hat shop and got a little tour. Their made in Ecuador but called Panama hats becuase they are allexported to Europe and the Us from the Panama Canal:

Also visited an orchid garden:

Today I hopped on a bus and saw my first Inca ruins. They are called Ingapirca and are two hours north of Cuenca. They are not very impressive, but I liked the fact I seemed to be the only person there.

Maybe the rain kept people away. I had to use the 10 second delay to get a pic of me:

Arty shot:

xxx R

So I spent a couple of days in Banios, beside a very active and angry volcano. I wasn´t spitting lava but lots of ash. Luckily the wind was blowing out of town, leaving us with just impressive views, I took this photo from the main street in the twon, with no zoom. Crazy stuff!: The town itself was a little too touristy but nice to walk around at night as a result:

The main reason I went there was for a mountain bike ride I had hear a lot about. It´s pretty much 61km of down hill, from the Andes to the Amazon Jungle. It was great to stop along the way anytime I wanted to and not be confined to a bus. I passed lots of waterfalls and great white water rivers:

Mark, I asked the cockril and he said that it was bolsa wood, but the owner was gone to lunch so I couldn´t get you any, sorry. Next time!: I also passed two bridges where you could sort-of bungee-swing between (without the bungee).

Going....

...going...

...gone...

I had the company of this butterfly, riding on my hand for about 2km: The road eventually opened out onto a fantastic view of the Amazon in the distance:

However there was definitately more uphill than the guide book suggested and I was exhausted by the end. But I just stuck the bike on the roof of a bus and headed back to Banios. It took 7 hours by bike and only 1 h, 20mins back by bus!

I´ve moved on and am now in a town called Riobamba. Unfortunately, all the ash from the volcano has been blown hear. The streets, the cars, my eyes, mouth, clothes.. everything is covered in a fine layer of black ash. I´m glad I´m not staying here for long. I´m getting a train out in the morning. I have some great market photos, but they´ll have to wait as Ive a dinner date (with a girl!)I have to keep now.

xxx R

The guide book said:
Bumping along the spectular dirt roads of the Quilotoa Loop and hiking between the area´s Andean villages is one of Ecuadors most exhilarating adventures. Transportation is tricky but the rewards are abundant: highland markets, the breathtaking crater lake of Laguna Quilotoa, splendid hikes and traditional highland villages.

I say that Guatamala got a big Ronan O Gara boot and is kicked off my top spot by Ecuador. This country is beautiful, the people are beautiful, the food is... ok. I spent the last few days high up in the Andes. I met an Australian couple, Carol and Anthony, on the bus there and we spent the time together. We stayed in a cozy place called Mama Hilda´s:
This is my cozy room and my cozy bed. Its not just any bed... That bed is the 40th bed I slept in since I started my trip!!

Breakfast at Mama Hilda´s:

The view from my room:

Carol and Anthony relaxing after a days hike:

The village, Chugchilan, that we we staying in is tiny. Its very rural but has a wonderful feel of community about it.
The shop. knitting Al Paca gloves:

The girls going to school, each bringing a stick for the fire:

The street stall, spuds and... something??? :

The first day, We rented horses and went up even higher into the clouds (spot the Al Paca saddle):


The second day we got a bus to the next village and hiked back across country. The bus left at 5 in the morning and was heading to market. The whole length of the bus aisle was stacked shoulder high with produce, mainly sacks of pototoes, but there was a puppy in the box beside me!. We got off before the market and so had to climb over everything in the meter high space that was left. Adventure!

The hike was a great experience, a really good chance to meet local people and walk through the farm lands. We didn´t have a guide, just asked the farmers along the way, only they didn´t speak Spanish but the local Quichua! I would loved to have taking lots of photos of the locals, especially the women in their traditional dress, but they don´t like photos, and those that do demand money!
The Laguna Quilotoa:

Along the way:













More locals:

That night we had a treat back at Mama Hilda´s. Some little girls came and danced for us. They had us join in at one point . We got so out of breath trying to keep up with them. The sploggie spots in the photos are dropplets of cloud: Unfortunitly, I had an accidident. It´s a bit disasterous actually. My spork broke! It feed me so well up till now. I´m sad to see it go: I´ve moved on again and am now in Banios. I plan to go mountain biking tommorow and maybe checkout a volcano if its not erupting too much. Report I got from internet on it...

On 1 January, ash emissions were continuous and incandescent blocks rolled down the flanks. Roaring noises and "cannon shots" were heard, and the ground and windows vibrated in areas to the NNE and NNW. On 3 January, the seismic network recorded a high number of explosions. Some explosions caused acoustic waves similar to "cannon shots" that vibrated windows in areas to the W and NW. These explosions ejected incandescent blocks from the summit crater that rolled 500 m down the flanks. On 4 January, "cannon shots" were again noted as far as 13 km away; this caused large windows to vibrate in areas to the W and glass to break in Puñapí. Explosions vibrated the ground in one town and generated ash plumes that rose to an altitude less that 6 km (19,700 ft) a.s.l. During 5-8 January, roaring noises and "cannon shots" continued; windows and floors vibrated as far as the Tungurahua Observatory (OVT) in Guadalupe, about
13 km NW, on 6 January. According to news articles, nearly 1,000 people were evacuated on 6 January to spend the night in evacuation shelters. They were allowed to return to their villages in the daytime to tend to homes, crops, and animals.

Simon got to upload some photos of his trip too (low res. will be faster to load). Simon s photos link




My map updated xxx r