Otovalo part 1

It was time for yet another vacation. I know you're surprised - we...take a vacation? Believe it or not, yes. Otovalo is a city about two hours north of Quito known for it's huge market on Saturdays. The market sells predominantly locally made/indigenous items such as wool clothing, wooden figures, jade and silver jewelry, local paintings, etc. It's pretty much a must-see for anyone spending time in Ecuador. Justin and I arrived there early Saturday morning ready to see and to purchase :) Our first stop was an inexpensive but cool looking hostel to drop off our backpacks. The hammocks were what drew us in and the $8/night including breakfast sealed the deal.The bedroom furnishings were rather sparse, and the bathrooms were communal, but when you're 25-26 yrs old, those are just trivial problems. After all, it's really not necessary to shower every day, and we're not there to spend time in the hotel room anyway. Off to the market we went! There were countless stalls crammed close together with the vendors calling out to you, their friend, to purchase their goods. If you showed any interest in an object, say a shrunken head or a llama fetus (alas, there were no llama fetuses to be found), instantly a very friendly lady would come over and help you decide what you wanted to buy. "Would you like this sweater in another color? We have gray, blue? What would you like?" (All in Spanish, of course). After that the bargaining began...You ask her how much said sweater costs. She tells you a sum you know is elevated - let's say $36. A special price, just for you, her friend. You give her a pained look and continue to contemplate the sweater as if you just can't quite bear to part with it but the price is too much to bear. She sees this and quickly moves to try and secure her customer. Since you are such a special friends, she is willing to make a deal. What price is her friend willing to pay? You ponder this and tentatively offer a much lower price. $20? Now it's her turn to look pained. Oh, this is too low. She made this sweater with her very own hands. She can't afford to give it away for so little. How about $32? You wince noticeably and back away just a bit from the sweater. I really can only pay $20, $25 at the most. I just don't have much money left. $30? She asks. This is the lowest I can go. You shake your head sadly. Thank you anyways, you say as you turn to leave. It only takes two steps before she caves. Okay, for you my friend, $25, yes? Deal.Every sale goes like this. If you give in right away you could end up paying more than double what they really want for the item. On the other hand, you can only barter so long. Buying multiple items increases your chance of getting a good deal, and sometimes you really do just have to walk away. Regardless, all that haggling works up a major appetite. By the time lunch came around I was just about to start gnawing on my arm. Or something like that. At any rate, with my stomach still remembering it's last encounter with foreign food, I demanded that we go to a pizzeria for lunch. Justin wasn't too difficult to convince as Otovalo isn't a treasure trove of restaurants. Here's the food (re: very happy Jennifer):Here's what it looked like about five minutes later (re: even happier Jennifer): After a very satisfying lunch, we ready for our next adventure - some cascadas in a nearby city called Peguche. These falls are considered sacred by locals, and on certain days of the year our guide book recommended that we not even go. Saturday was not one of those days, however, so off we went. I loved the path to the falls and took about 15 photos, here's just one.There were actually multiple smaller falls below the main one. We loved them all...Finally the main fall. There were many people there obviously for religious reasons. Some were standing solemnly in the spray from the falls. Others were playing instruments or singing or waving what looked like palms or some other plants around. Justin and I thought it special when we crossed the bridge and looked back and saw the rainbow. Rainbows hold a special significance for me as a Christian because they represent a promise from God. In a way, it became a bit of a religious experience for me too.We took a small path up around the falls. It involved a bit of climbing, scrambling, a few death-defying leaps - my perfect type of hike. When we had worked our way back around, Justin found a little tunnel through the rocks to a place inbetween waterfalls. I, of course, decided to check this out more closely.

Still alive, if slightly wetter than before, we headed happily back down the path toward home...er, Otovalo. Another good day :)