New Year in Ecuador

We are now in Loja which is our last stop in Ecuador and spent New Year's Eve here last night. A bit tired after an eight-hour bus trip, we did our best to celebrate the occasion, but faded well before midnight and layed on our beds in a cheap hostal while the town erupted with the sound of fireworks.

We spent our Christmas in Quito and attended a party given by the Spanish Explorers Club, on Christmas Eve, at the Queen Victoria Pub. With a name like that I had expected the party to be attended by sad British packpackers with no family at Christmas time, but in fact most travellers have fled to the coast at this time of year as it rains most days in Quito. We met some interesting people who have taken up volunteering posts in Quito, and the man who runs the pub, Simon, had sold his shares in a marketing company in West London and now calls himself the "Barbara Windsor of Quito". On Christmas Day Jon and I spent a lovely morning at the Botanical Gardens and in the evening had a good meal at the Magic Bean.

The following day we travelled to Banos which took us 8 hours by bus. We found a very friendly and busy hostel with lovely views over the mountains. It was here that Jon felt driven to say "darling I am sorry to say this, but your feet smell dreadful". Of course I had to point out to him that travel-buddies are sometimes a little bit disgusting, but it made me think that you often see trainers outside the doors in hostals. Something you wouldn't know if you hadn't been there.

After a couple of days in Banos we took a bus to Cuenca. Amazing scenery and memorable scenes on the way. Indigenous people are seen dotted amongst the fields in traditional costume, tilling the fields with nothing more basic farming tools. In Cuenca we found a hostel which overlooked the lovely cathedral and monastery which kind of made up for the fact that the bed was as hard as a table. We spent a fascinating day walking around the town, full of indian people, old buildings and lovely sqares. In the afternoon it rained so Jon led us to a museum called Museo del Concepcion which turned out to be a many-roomed exhibition of the life, times and history of the convent and the dedicated achievements of the nuns who lived there. As we were, unsurprisingly, the only visitors, we didn't feel able to duck out before we had seen each and every room and were watched the whole time by serious, unsmiling, staff. We did, however, get chatting to an elegant-looking Ecuadorian lady who explained a herbal garden within the grounds which Jon found very interesting.

The 4-hour jouney by bus to Loja was a cultural feast for the eyes as New Year is huge for the Ecuadorian people. Their main celebration over the Chistmas period is the arrival of the 3 Kings at the Nativity and they parade the streets in costume and guy-like effergies are sold by the hundreds on stalls. These are burned in the streets throughout the day. Most seemed to have on masks of various types and I asked the bus conductor whether they represented political figures, but he said 'no'. Presumably the burning ritual represents some historical event much like our Guy Fawkes, but I have yet to find out what it is.

We leave Loja tonight on the bus and will cross the border into Peru. We are not looking forward to this as people report a nightmare ordeal at the customs post. We will take it as it comes.

My overall feelings about Ecuador: mountains lost in cloud, lush hillsides, busy narrow streets, tiny, weeny ladies in trilby hats, flared skirts and shawls carrying loads as big as them. All-in-all an exotic and exciting time. Looking forward to Peru.