Top of the world!

We closed out our six-week Ecuador adventure on a high note: a three-day biking tour through the Andes with the Biking Dutchman. Day one began with a drive up Cotopaxi, an active volcano whose peak stands more than 19,000 feet above sea level.

Our driver dropped us off at a point 4500 meters (nearly 15,000 feet) above sea level. From there we hopped on our bikes to take on what turned out to be the steepest descent of the trip along a dirt road strewn with rocks and volcanic ash.

My mountain biking skills are, shall we say, rusty. To be honest, other than riding around on dirt roads, I haven’t really gone mountain biking in a couple decades. Starting the trip with the most challenging descent was less than ideal for me. Within minutes I fell over my handlebars! I had only a some scratches on my knee and a tiny tear in my leggings to show for it, so I hopped back on.

After the fall, I nursed my inner coward. I was dead last on all downhill segments of the ride (though I will shamelessly say I was often at the front of the pack on the limited uphill and flat rides). Despite falling a few more times, the entire experience was spectacular and I loved (nearly) every minute of the three-day tour.

Further down Cotopaxi, we biked through lush landscapes, and ate lunch next to an Inca ruin (which was interesting, but not particularly photogenic).

That evening, we stayed at a cozy inn owned and run by an indigenous family in a town called Quilatoa, just next to a caldera on the Quilatoa volcano. Early the next morning, we hiked around part of the caldera. I am not sure I have ever seen a more lovely spot.

Just before the hike all of us indulged on a shopping spree in a store owned by this kind couple.

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And after the hike we hopped on our bikes again, rolling down dirt roads that weaved through local indigenous communities, and passed by sheep, llamas, alpacas, chickens, horses, and cows. On the way to our second hostel we stopped for ice cream, and Peter entertained everyone (including the store owners) by joining the sign-wavers trying to attract business.

Our second cozy hostel sat at the foot of another massive volcano: Chimborazo.

Day three was the best of all. We began with a short hike on the Chimborazo volcano to a point 5000 meters (16,400 feet) above sea level. Exhilarating!

Then beginning a few hundred meters down the mountain, we rode our bikes through sleet on a downhill dirt road that was, fortunately, not as steep as the one atop Cotopaxi. After lunch we concluded the day with a long ride on a paved road that passed through indigenous communities and lush landscape juxtaposed with barren cliffs.

Unexpectedly, we passed by a local rodeo.

And thus concluded the fabulous tour! I was sad to leave our new friends.

The bike tour was the main event this week. But before it began we had some good days in Quito.

We bid farewell to Quito by riding the TelefériQo Cruz Loma, a gondola lift that carries visitors from the edge of Quito up the Pinchincha Volcano. From the top of the lift we hiked, played on the swings, and very briefly met some new Chilean friends.

And so we closed out our Ecuador travels, at least for 2019. The three or four weeks we originally planned to spend in the country morphed into 44 days. Ecuador is a compact country, with a spectacular range of communities and geographical regions. Its mountainous terrain makes it time-consuming to travel between regions. We left with a long wish list of places remaining to visit.

And now we are in Lima, Peru, studying at the Peruwayna Spanish school and living with (separate) host families.

On a more somber note, our arrival in Peru coincided with a constitutional crisis here. President Martín Vizcarra requested a no confidence vote to occur yesterday. This would have been his second no confidence vote and as such apparently would provide constitutional grounds to dissolve the Congress, which is dominated by the opposition party. The vote stalled but Vizcarra nevertheless declared he had grounds to and was dissolving Congress. Though ostensibly dissolved, Congress deemed the action unconstitutional, voted to suspend Vizcarra on the grounds of his “permanent moral incapacity,” and swore in Vice President Mercedes Araoz as Vizcarra’s replacement. Staying tuned…

And, at the same time, I am feeling pangs of guilt at traveling the world and engaging in so much play while our own country enacts still more cruel policies and descends further into constitutional crisis. My solace is that my improved Spanish will allow me to serve more effectively as an attorney for immigrants in need upon my return. I find myself coming back to one of the many explanations for the breaking of a glass at the conclusion of a Jewish wedding: even at the height of personal joy, it is important to remember the pain and suffering of others, and that the world is in need of healing.