Ecuador: A Restrospective

In English we use the word “visit” to denote the action of being  temporarily present at a location. In Spanish, the more common word is “conocer.” The best translation of “conocer” in this context is “to get to know,” as one would get to know a friend. I got to know a huge variety of people and places throughout northern Ecuador. Each of the four majors region of Ecuador (Amazonia, Sierra, Costa, Galapagos) has a distinct culture and cuisine and can feel like a country entirely different from the other regions. And of course, each region has its own beautiful places, flora, and fauna.

Amazonia

Sierra 

Costa

Galapagos

And, nestled between the high mounatins and the coast  lie the western cloud forests of Ecuador, yet another magical area.

Though I managed to see quite a few places in Ecuador, there is still so much to explore. I have yet to visit the southern parts of Ecuador such as Cuenca and Loja, and birds such as the cock-of-the-rock and mountain-toucan still elude me. You can be sure I’ll be returning to Ecuador, possibly as soon as March 2015. However, right now I am back in the USA, so unfortunately this is end of this blog, at least for the time being. Thanks for reading!

If you want more adventures stateside (and problably in Quebec as well), follow my next blog, An Iowan around North America. This next week I’ll be in southern Texas, a wildlife hotspot with quite a few bird in common with Ecuador! (Note: at time of writing, that blog is empty.) It’ll be largely nature-themed, though culinary escapades and some sightseeing are likely to take place as well.

Last Stop: A Community in the Clouds

I’m but hours away from leaving Ecuador, but I’m squeezing in one last post before I go. (There will be one final post after this one.) For our last hoorah, my whole study abroad group returned to a familiar location: Comunidad Yunguilla.

Chico, our host family’s dog, was eagerly awaiting us.

A view of the valley below Yunguilla.

We were last in Yunguilla three months ago, after visiting the beautiful Santa Lucia. Last time around  in Yunguilla, we spent most of our time doing community service work (which we did a bit of this time, too).

Trail clearing

Hammering a log to loosen the bark… after hauling it up a hill.

This time, we spent most of our time giving presentations on our projects (see my last three posts for info on my project). The venue was the restaurant/hostel Casa Tahuallullo, which happens to have aroids with giant leaves outside.

Also known as “the beard plant” by absolutely no one.

When we weren’t hard at work presenting or doing manual labor, there is a giant swing with an incredible view of the valley below.

I also got a bit of birding in, as I am apt to do.

Blue-winged mountain tanager

Blue-and-black tanager, a reasonably uncommon but beautiful species

One particularly interesting bird from an ecological standpoint is the black flowerpiercer, so named for its feeding habits. Flowerpiecers use their sharp beaks to rob flowers of nectar without pollinating.

Some pena-pena flowers pierced by a flowerpiercer.

My flight back to the states leaves in approximately 4.5 hours, but as I mentioned earlier, I still have one more post planned. Stay tuned!