Baths of Sacred Water

Our Riobamba taxi driver pulled into the bus terminal this morning well ahead of the apparent 10:00 a.m. departure to Banos. He said, "Jump out! That's your bus to Banos leaving now." So all of a sudden we were on our way into a new world.







The streets of Riobamba.




The functioning stove in the hotel dining room.




Our hotel bathroom in Riobamba looking straight out to the volcano.

Banos

The world around us now is transformed. There are no sirens. No 4:00 a.m. traffic. No bustle. No mayhem. Just the sound of falling water and roosters crowing punctuated by the odd dog barking. Christmas is a quiet season.




The hills around Banos.




Our bedroom is a miracle. This is the scene from the window and patio just outside the door. You can hear the water rushing down. It's breathtaking. I've always wanted a garden water feature. Imagine having one like this! Baños de Agua Santa, “Baths of Sacred Water" gets its name from the dozens of waterfalls, hot springs and rivers. Adrenaline seekers flock here for canyoning, rafting, climbing and mountain biking.






Late this afternoon, we hiked up a few hundred meters for a bird's eye view of the town.

I hope I can capture the feel of the place for you. We're close to the Amazon jungle and as soon as we arrived we ripped into town to one of the many eco adventure tour companies. We were excited. Exploring deep into the Amazon would become a reality. Well not so fast. The Eco Tour rep outlined the three night, four day trip for us.

"First you'll take a nine hour overnight bus ride to the starting point," he said. "What kind of bus?" I asked. "This is Ecuador," he said. I looked at Bob and we were both thinking the same thing. How would we ever survive the bus ride, let alone the jungle?

The tour operator continued. "Then you go by car to the canoe for a ride down a river to your campsite in time for dinner and a night walk in the jungle." I was starting to feel very old.

The four day adventure moved along like this with visits to native communities, all the while walking amidst snakes and lizards and other amazing creatures. "We supply the rubber boots," he said.

Bob and I walked out feeling deflated -- as if life had passed us by. "Honestly," I said to him, "I don't think I could have ever done this tour even in my 20s." So instead, we're going to hike up into the mountains, take a vehicle up to see the local active volcano, cycle down 20 kms. to the next town and visit the thermal hotsprings.
We can hire a guide to take us into the jungle -- but not deep into the jungle.

Off to bed. Buenos noches.