Galapagos & Cotundo Week 4 Fun!

 Galapagos

Fatima, Karina, and I with a statue of Charles Darwin who studied finches on these islands

View from the terrace of our hostel

Vanessa: This week I went to San Cristobal Island in the Galapagos for the 4 day weekend. From Quito I took a flight to Guayaquil and then from there to San Cristobal. It was very hot and humid, but the views were breathtaking. The three of us stayed in a hostel, about a 5 minute walk from shops and restaurants, as well as the beach. The first day there was a rest day for Fatima and I, so we relaxed and slept in our room. The second day we had a yummy breakfast that consisted of french toast and eggs with a view of sea lions at the beach. Fatima and I then picked up Karina from the airport and headed to Playa Mann beach. There were tons of sea lions swimming in the water with us at the beach and soaking in the sun on the sand. We got a little scared because of how close they got to us and even one touched Fatima's leg. We did a lot of souvenir shopping also. I bought a hat with blue-footed boobies, a necklace, and some keychains. We were not fans of the food (besides breakfast) and found ourselves missing our homestay meals. Everything was pricey and we ended up spending a lot more money than we imagined. Totally worth it though!  

Leon Dormido was our first stop to snorkel

We got to swim with so many sea turtles and sea lions up close

A group of manta rays swam right under us!

    The highlight of the trip was a 360 degree tour of the San Cristobal Island. It was an 8 hour boat tour around the whole island with 5 stops along the way. The ride was bumpy and fast, which made us feel sea sick, but we all agree that the tour was worth it. The first stop was Leon Dormido where we snorkeled around and through the rocks admiring sea turtles, Galapagos sharks, fish, manta rays, sea lions, star fish, and a hammerhead shark! I was nervous to see the sharks, but they minded their own business and swam under me. Next was a picture stop with Cerro Brujo, a pretty rock. Then there was relaxing on the Bahia Sardina beach, as well as a bit of snorkeling and swimming. I wanted to take shells back to the mainland, but knew they would not get past customs. Punta Pitt followed where the guide caught a fish within a minute, then let it go. 

Cerro Brujo

Blue-footed booby sitting on volcanic rocks with a view of clear blue water at Bahia Rosa Blanca

Iguana at Bahia Rosa Blanca

    Finally, Bahia Rosa Blanca beach where we snorkeled, saw an iguana, walked on volcanic rocks, and spotted a blue-footed booby. This was my favorite part because of how beautiful and clear the water was. The water was warm and I got a good tan. I could have spent hours swimming. The only downside was these huge flies that bit my legs (which hurt really bad), so I tried to stay in the water where they could not get me. 

Fatima, Karina, and I not being able to get enough of the view

    I had such a fun time that I want to go back and visit the other islands with my brother and sister one day! 

Mercado Iñaquito

Doris: We decided to visit the market for our observation. It was a 15 min walk from IES center. We entered the market from the dining area and there were a lot of people eating at the food court. First thing first, we had to get some refreshment. Almost everyone got our favorite fruit: MANGO with a splash of freshly squeezed lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Delicioso! There were all kinds of vendors selling produce, meat, seafood, and tools. My host mom later told me that she never purchased meat or seafood at the market because she thought that the hygiene was a concern so she would only buy meats from supermarket. Nonetheless, produce is always safe to purchase there. Competition was evident as many vendors would approached customers and tried to win over them. We saw many kids at the market as it’s summer time for them. 

Cotundo

First Day in Cotundo

Doris: After a 4-hour drive, we finally arrived at Huasquila Amazon Lodge. To be honest, I have been anticipating this excursion since the start of the program. Cannot believe that we are finally here! We were welcomed by the friendly staff and soon got ourselves settled in our cozy bungalows. After having lunch, we headed to the local highschool and there we learned about the history and culture of the community. We first went to the showroom where directors and administrators of the school showed their sincere welcome and we were offered a great introduction from the students and faculty. We learned that students who showed up that day were all interested in tourism and in fact choosing it as a career interest and the school offered curriculums in tourism specifically to help them build skills and knowledge. Throughout the introduction, there were dance, demonstrations of tools and artifacts, food and drink. We tasted a local fruit called chonta (to me it tasted like pumpkin) and a very refreshing drink using guayusa. In the end, we presented our donations of notebooks and stationary to the students and from their big smiles, we knew that they loved them.

    After the showcase, we checked out the classrooms and I was amazed by how the school has incorporated many historical and cultural elements on campus, where there were so many showrooms and museum that tells the story of how the school was built and the history of the community. From old pictures to reserving objects, the school tries its best to embrace its history so that the students can all learn their ancestral backgrounds and be an ambassador for their own culture. 

    Afterwards, we checked out the botanical garden that we planned to do the minga on the next day. We further bonded with the students at the park near by where there was a pond and also a cool swimming pool. We had ice cream and chatted over KPOP! Adriana is also a big KPOP fan and we immediately catched a connection. With out hesitation, I pulled out my phone and used the translator to ask her questions and I guessed correctly what her favorite kpop group was. (to reveal the secret: it is BTS!) She asked me to show her dance since she knew that I dance kpop at UCSD and I danced to Blackpink’s Kill This Love. I felt great to be able to express my interest and was so happy that she loved my dance. She later posted this on her social media :) She wrote on the post “ I met beautiful friendships and I love them a lot❤️”. I felt so warm by their amicability and I am grateful that with technology, me and Adriana can share so much more in the future and keep fostering this friendship!

Second Day in Cotundo

Doris: We woke up early today to embark on our journey to visit the Universidad Regional Amazónica IKIAM. As a girl who is passionate about learning higher ed access and resources, I was excited that we could finally visit a higher education institution during our excursion. Established in 2013, in only 8 years, the university has made its name known through research and publications. Its goal is to contribute to the transformation of social structures, environmental productivity in order to form future professionals with the capacity and knowledge to answer growing and urgent needs for societal development. Life science is a big focus and serves as a main career focus here. The two labs here are equipped with the highest technology that can analyze molecules and decompose various particles to take on different types of studies. The university invested 1.2 million dollars just on the equipments which showed how research and innovations are highly valued. And here, the professors’ research are always funded by the university which lowers the burden on faculty, and allow them to freely study on the subject matter. 

    As a public institute, tuition is almost always free, even for international students. And admission is fairly straightforward. Undergraduate students can participate in research as a freshman. It is tremendously different from US where there are always competitions… We all sighed over this and hope that as future educators we can make changes to this saddening situation. 

    After the university visit, it was finally time to get our hands on the minga! Our goal was to cut out the overgrown weed in the garden. We used our hands and machetes. It was humid so I was sweating after 10 mins of work haha. And two hours of work, we managed to clean out a huge space and now the soil are exposed to allow more plantation. 

    After lunch, we went on a hike to visit a waterfall where we could go under the waterfall and get a shower. On our way there, we had a special spa treatment using natural mineral clay! Who does not want a baby face? ^^. I wish I can bring a whole container of the natural clay home so I can have a facial every day. 

Third Day in Cotundo

Lariece: After waking up early, we got ready for the Amazoonico, an animal rescue center in Tena. To get there, we took a boat down the Rio Arajuno for most of it, and then tubed down the river for the rest before reaching the center. Right when we got there, we spotted wild squirrel monkeys jumping and climbing through the trees! The tour of the center was very interesting, as we learned about the different animals there and why the rescue center receives them. We saw macaws, toucans, a tigrillo, and squirrel and spider monkeys. We learned about many of their stories, including Yohan, an absolute menace of a monkey who has to stay in a double locked enclosure because he put three people in a hospital and likes to harm the turtles in the area. One thing that stood out to me was the story of one of the spider monkeys there, Sohala, who has very bad mental health because of her past treatment as an experimental subject for a university. Our guide, Daniel, told us she often cries and can only be comforted by the other spider monkey in her enclosure. Sohala was crying when we first arrived, but later on she decided to come up close to get a better look at us. 

Sohala giving us a good look

    After eating some tacos and burritos at a nearby island and hiking to see wild caiman at a nearby pond, we headed back to Cotundo to meet with an Indigenous community there. We learned about how houses were made, the different medicinal herbs used, and even gotta try a drink made out of the plant that is used in Tylenol, which was extremely bitter. They also gave us Guayusa, a caffeinated tea used for extra energy. They shared their traditional dances with us and allowed us to follow along as the women danced with wooden bowls, and the men danced with spears meant to reflect the history of hunting in their community. Before heading back to our lodge, we got to purchase their crafts that included beaded jewelry, hand-carved wooden bowls, spears, jewelry, and more. 

Crushing up Yucca plant at Indigenous community in Cotundo

    After dinner that same night, we got to make our own chocolate with our local guide Rafa. We peeled the cacao beans and took turns grinding it up before mixing it with sugar. After letting it melt together and waiting for it to cool down, we got to eat it with strawberries, bananas, and apples (loved it, 10/10). As a second treat, Rafa brought out and cooked Chontacuro worms that some of us got to try (personally, I also thought it was a 10/10). It tasted almost the exact same as bacon! After letting us all pet one of the live worms, Rafa popped one of his favorite snacks right into his mouth. Apparently when uncooked, it tastes similar to chicharrones or crispy pork chips. 

Fruit covered in the chocolate we made

Final Day in Cotundo

Lariece: We started off our last day by going on a hike to a nearby cave and waterfall! On the way, we learned about the purposes of different native plants, such as the bitter but pain-relieving one we had drinken the night before, a plant used for soap, one used for thread, and again the Guayusa plant. After a small hike, we arrived at the cave. The cave was so narrow many of us hiked in a line through it. There, we had bats flying around us, and saw spider scorpions and crickets. Unfortunately, my rain boots couldn’t save me from the water we were walking through as I stepped in the wrong place and ended up submerging my leg in water. But after only about twenty minutes in the cave, we were out. Then we hiked to the nearby waterfall where some of us took a dip, and afterwards headed to the Guayusa factory to learn more about the cultivation of the plant. Then we headed back to our lodge for the last time before returning to Quito. 

Beginning our hike inside the cave

Me watching our bus driver Freddie get pummeled by the waterfall

Thanks for reading!

Doris, Lariece and Vanessa with a natural mineral clay face mask found in the forest🧖‍♀️