Magical Baños

We found ourselves chatting at one point or another with at least one person from nearly every table in the cafe.  The room was sun drenched and the atmosphere was extremely friendly, almost weirdly friendly.  The decor was “bohemian backpacker” meets “intellectual hippie”.  Subconsciously I was waiting for all of the customers to stand up…

A Whirlwind Trip to Otavalo

  Otavalo is a market town high up in the Andean mountains north of Quito, surrounded by volcanoes and inhabited mostly by indigenous tradespeople.  The Otavaleños are Quichua-speaking weavers, woodworkers, leather workers and artists, and their market has existed since before the Spanish arrived in this country.  Its popularity with both Ecuadorians and visitors from…