Misahualli: a photographic experience

EDIT: It came to my attention that Baños wasn't located on the map originally posted. I added a new map that includes all three cities. Baños is located in the Tungurahua (pronounced Toon-goo-rah-wa) province of Ecuador, between Puyo and Ambato. Tena is the capital of the Napo province and Misahualli is also in Napo.

Having Daria here for a visit was a blast! It was really nice to get outside of Quito and to travel along with her, and since it was Daria's first time in South America, it was a cool experience for me- a nice reminder of some subtle differences here that I otherwise forget about.  Showing off Ecuador to other people always helps me remember that my new home really is beautiful and full of exciting sights, foods, and activities.

It's easier to visualize our path looking at the map. Tena is considered an important tourist "gateway" city to the oriente, or the jungle- lots of tourists spend the night in Tena before going on weeklong jungle trips

This map isn't so great but it shows Tena, Misahualli AND Baños

 Daria was here for less than a week, but we saw an impressive amount. We went from Quito to Misahualli to Tena to Baños to Quito.

Waiting for our bus to leave at the bus terminal Quitumbe. Photo credit: Daria.

Our first stop was Misahualli (pronounced Mees-ah-wai-yee), a tiny beach "port" along a river.  The first step, catching a bus to Tena from Quito, was an adventure in itself!  The bus scheduled to leave for Tena couldn't pass the police inspection because of a cracked windshield, so although all of us passengers demanded refunds on our tickets, we were instead (of course) denied the refunds and told to wait outside the terminal to take the bus more or less "illegally" so that the police officer wouldn't be responsible in case anything happened. It was lovely to show Daria Ecuador's finest bureaucratic systems and the general safety of many of the forms of transportation.

We safely arrived in Tena despite our bus's failing brakes and the fact that the windshield wiper literally flew off- we had to reverse for about 100 meters to retrieve it in pouring rain, only to continue barrelling down the highway without the windshield wiper in a tropical storm while the ayudante- the bus driver's assistant- frantically wiped down the windshield for the rest of the way.  In Tena we ate the first of many meals of rice, beans and a fried egg, after being told by other vendors that there was no possible way to replace the meat in the set almuerzo lunches because it was just unheard of.  After our lunch break we got on another bus to Misahualli.  Daria experienced one of my favorite things about Latin America- vendedores ambulantes, or ambulant vendors, specifically those who board buses to sell food, pirated DVDs, nail clippers, etc. I'm so fascinated by these vendors that I even wrote my independent research project about the ones who sell ice cream while I was studying in Chile.

A bus arriving across the bridge into Misahualli. Photo credit: Daria

Hanging out along the river in Misahualli

Inner tubes

Boats lined up to take everyone on river trips

Baby monkey! Photo credit: Daria

Misahualli is a tiny town, really just centered around a plaza with a few roads that lead up to hostels and continue on to other towns.  From the plaza, you can walk about a block down to the river where everyone goes to sun out, play in the water and in inner tubes, and to take canoes to various tourist sites- museums, a zoo, indigenous communities, and more.  Living in the trees around the river are tons of monkeys! We even saw a baby monkey.

Some of the cabins in the area where we stayed

Trees seen along our walk

Because Daria and I like to live dangerously, we hadn't made lodging reservations in Misahualli or Tena despite the previously mentioned holiday in Ecuador that meant that most places would be full. We spent a bit of time looking around for lodging, and finally found a nice place with a cabaña, cabin, for two- perfect! We walked along the road and saw a few animals and some fruit trees.  I also probably talked Daria's ear off about cocoa trees. Daria has a good eye for animals, and she pointed out a crazy bird swimming frantically underwater! We, being tourists with great respect for nature, did what anyone else would logically do- we found small stones and lightly threw them at the bush where the bird had hidden itself to see if it would come out so we could see it again. It flew out, further confusing us- a bird that swims underwater and flies? If anyone knows of a tropical bird as such, let me know please!

Back in Misahualli for dinner, we ate more rice and Daria got to try palmito- heart of palm- in salad form. We also probably ate our weight in patacones- thick fried plantain chips.  We managed to sleep in the sweltering jungle humidity and with the musical symphony (more like cacophony) of jungle insects.  When we awoke we were covered in bug bites that would accompany us and multiply, torturing us for the rest of the trip.

Next post: a butterfly farm, the beginning of our endless slew of Ecuadorian teenage guides who made us giggle uncontrollably, and How We Almost Died In A Pickup Truck From Misahualli Back To Tena.