Getting In
I left Mancora, Peru at 11pm and around 1:30am I was woken up by the bus driver for the border crossing at Huaqillas. I realized that I had forgot to look if there were any requirements to enter to Ecuador (Peru had a health form and Colombia had a migrations document; and both countries required showing a proof of leave). I didn’t have any of these things figured out so I was a bit nervous, but turns out it was the easiest border crossing of all. Not sure what they would have done had I needed some other documentation, left me behind at the border at 1:30 in the morning…Luckily the border crossing was a piece of cake, even easier than being at the airport.
It was just one building for both the Peruvian exit and Ecuadorian entrance. I got in one line to leave Peru, got my exit stamp, walked to the other line to enter Ecuador, and the only question they asked was how long I would be in the country, and then all was good. My bus only had about 15 people on it since it was the middle of the night and there was no one else at the border so crossing took less than 30 minutes. I passed back out until we reached Cuenca around 7 in the morning. Just like my arrival in Peru from Colombia, I immediately felt a totally different energy in Ecuador. It’s crazy how quickly the senses pick up on being in a new country based on smell and sight.
The City
Cuenca is a charming colonial town with European style architecture located in a highland valley at about 8,200 feet. The city has a few rivers running through it and is surrounded by mountains on all sides. It’s a short bus ride from Cajas National Park. Cuenca wasn’t quite as beautiful as Arequipa in Peru but it had a very similar feel with the architecture and the tranquil vibes. This city is sometimes referred to as “The Athens of Ecuador”. Cuenca is the 3rd largest city in Ecuador with a population around 430,000. The city felt super safe and the streets were very clean. I really enjoyed just walking around aimlessly with a destination in mind, but not being in a rush to get there.
They use dollars in Ecuador which made it super easy for me since I didn’t have to do any conversions in my head. Interesting thing is instead of getting back $1 bills typically you get back saqajawea coins. I even had one with Marin van Buren on it; I’m sure he’s very well known here. Also they have their own 50 cent Ecuadorian coin. Generally speaking things in Ecuador were a little more expensive than Colombia but cheaper than a Peru; although like anything it’s all relative to how you spend money. I later found out when I was in Quito the full story behind the use of dollars and why coins are more popular than bills.
Ecuador used to have its own currency, but then in the early 2000s under some poor leadership, the country experienced hyper inflation that was so drastic that grocery stores would have to change their prices every hour. People panicked and rushed to banks to withdraw their money which caused the banks to shut down. It was a sad time where people lost nearly everything they had. In 2001 the government decided to switch to the US dollar. The government gave everyone 6 months to switch out their currency, but some farmers and more rural people who never trusted the government or banks and would just put money under their pillow, didn’t exchange their currency and lost it all. I feel so bad for all these Ecuadorians and it really makes you take me appreciate having a stable banking system and currency.
The reason that they use coins for $1 rather than bills is that coins have a longer average life span. The $1 bill only has a lifespan of 5-7 years. And since Ecuador obviously can’t just print more US dollars, it’s more beneficial for them to use $1 coins.
The Lodging
I wanted to start out Ecuador with some solo time just like when I arrived in Peru. I think it’s good for me to start out a new country having a solo spot to allow for extra time to decompress and reflect on my experiences in the previous country. Also I had been partying hard and socializing a lot 3 straight nights in Mancora and I wanted time to myself. For just over $25/night I had a spacious studio apartment right nearby Parque Calderon, which is the main plaza and a great place to sit on a bench and people watch. the apartment had a perfect view of the Catedral de la Inmaculada Conception, a small kitchen, comfy bed, huge sofa, TV, and desk. It felt like such luxury living! I was so pumped to have so much space and empty everything out of my bag.
I originally booked 3 nights here but on the 2nd day I decided to add a 4th night. I was enjoying the space so much and I really wanted to take things slow to start out my trip in Ecuador. It was really cool to lie in bed at night time and watch Netflix and look out the window at the lit up church with it’s soft blue lighting.
The Food
I continued the eating habit I started in Peru where I would seek out restaurants with menú del día specials. I love this approach because you get to try local food and eat for cheap. On my first day I went to the market for lunch and it’s always a bit of a guess on the first few meal orders when going to a new country while I get used to the typical cuisine of the country; especially when going to the market. For $3 I got a chicken soup, fried fish with rice and a salad, and a small fruit juice. Ahhh nice; reminds of Peru already.
The next day I got a $2.50 menú del día with encebollado, chuleta (pork chop) with rice and lentils, and a juice. Encebollado is a typical Ecuadorian dish that is served all across the country. It is soup made with fish or other type of seafood, coconut milk, onions, peppers, and garlic. People use it as a hangover cure which you would never expect a fish soup to be used for. Another interesting thing about this soup is they bring out a small bowl of popcorn with it that you slowly add to the soup…or just eat on its own on the side. Ecuadorians love their soups and this was just one of many that I tried.
One morning I tried tigrillo which is a traditional Ecuadorian breakfast made with scramble eggs, plantains, cheese and onions. It was decent but not my favorite. Maybe it was just because the portion they gave me was too large but I couldn’t finish it.
Aside from those meals I mostly ate at home since I had a kitchen and lots of space. I picked up a bunch of veggies and some ground meat at the market and made myself a big pasta that lasted a few meals.
I also had the realization that fruit juices aren’t going to always be this good and this cheap. The fruit is much better in the north of South America than the south. I had been drinking a lot of fruit juices during my travels but wanted to start doing it daily (this habit really only lasted in Cuenca). Every day I would go to the market and grab a different type of blended fruit juice for just $1. I also tried a popular pink flower drink in Plaza de las Flores that was quite refreshing during a day of walking around town.
The Experience
Exploring Town
On my first day I had a long time to kill before my 3pm Air Bnb check in so I went to a cafe for coffee and breakfast, got my Ecuadorian SIM card, dropped my bag off at the Salina Hostel (for a small fee), walked along Rio Tomebamba to Parque El Paraíso and chilled for a few hours, grabbed lunch at Mercado 9 de Octubre, walked through Plaza de Flores and Plaza de San Francisco, and then finally checked in. Cuenca has a really pleasant vibe to it and is nice to just wander around.
Later that afternoon I walked to Mirador de Turi which has a panoramic view of the entire city. It took about 25 minutes to get to the start of the hill and then it was a set of stairs leading to the viewpoint. I almost got to the top and the door was blocked so I couldn’t make it any higher, which was a bit disappointing since the view of the city was blocked. Two backpackers (Russian girl named Tati and Swiss guy) got up to the roadblock I was at and were also confused about what to do. Luckily some locals came so I followed them around the blocked door by walking along the side of the hill (it was a bit sketchy) which led to an opening into a construction site with employees actively working. We all walked through construction site to the top where there was a road again. The 3 of us laughed about how that type of thing would never fly in our countries.
The views of the city and the mountainous backdrop from Mirador El Turi were fabulous and I was surprised at how large and sprawled out Cuenca is. There is a little adventure park at the top of the hill that you can pay money to go on a few rides but me and the other 2 backpackers decided to spend our money getting a beer instead and went to a little restaurant/bar that had big glass windows to enjoy the view. Day turned into night as we chatted over beers and it was cool to see the city light up during that transition. We split a taxi ride back into town and after dropping them off at their hostel, I grabbed dinner and went to bed early after a long first day in Ecuador.
Markets
It’s always fun to go to the market in South America even if I have nothing specific in mine to purchase. There was a couple different markets around town and the 2 main ones I went to were Mercado 9 de Octubre and Mercado 10 de Agosto. They weren’t nearly as hectic as the market in Peru. The first floor was stands selling fruits/veggies/meats/nuts/other goods and the second floor was restaurants and juice stands. As mentioned previously I had lunch at the market one day, bought some veggies to cook, and got a daily fruit juice so I made quite a few appearances in the market during my 4 day stay.
Museum Pumapongo
This is the most well known museum in town and the entrance is free so how could I not go? It was just a 15 minute walk from my Air Bnb. I’m not a huge museum person but I actually really enjoyed this one and ended up spending a few hours here. The exhibits at Pumapongo highlight the cultural history of the different tribes that have inhabited Ecuador dating back thousands of years. You can see a large variety of artifacts throughout the history of the country including pottery, textiles, tools, traditional masks, instruments, and shrunken heads. There is also a whole room dedicated to providing information about shamanic practices and the importance they have had on the tribes.
There is a small set of ruins behind the museum and a beautiful garden with rolling hills in the background. It was a pleasant area to walk around on a sunny day and led me to an unexpected bird sanctuary. I didn’t realize this was going to be a part of my day as well. There were blue and yellow macaws, buzzard eagles, parrots, parakeets, hawks and more. There was one bird just hanging out outside the cage that I thought was a statue at first.
Overall it made for a better than expected afternoon at the museum and gardens. Plus all the exhibits were in Spanish so I picked up a few new words for my vocabulary.
Parque Nacional Cajas Route 2 into Route 1 (6 miles, 1725 ft elevation gain)
I woke up early and walked to the bus station to head to Parque Nacional Cajas for my first hike since the Salkantay Trek so it had been a few weeks. It was a quick 45 minute bus ride for just a few dollars and the entrance to the park is free (you just need to sign in at the ranger station). This park remains off the beaten path and only allows and 92 visitors per day. But I don’t even think that number gets close to being reached. It is known for its rugged terrain with glacial valleys, moors, forests, and about 165 lagoons. Hiking is already my favorite activity and I love how cheap it is.
Vendors just come right on the bus in Ecuador (more so than other countries) and try to sell you shit from food to charging adaptors. Some people will just drop it in your lap then come back around for money or take their product back. The guy was pretty adamant I bought his chocolate which I was reluctant at first but I ended up giving him a dollar for 4 little truffles. It actually turned out to be a good purchase for the hike.
I was lucky because it was a sunny day with minimal clouds, which seems to be rare in this park based on my readings. I started the trail around 9 and immediately was back in my happy place to be hiking again; it had been far too long. The park has some set routes and I decided to do route 2 into route 1 because I had all day to explore. It was a totally different type of Andes hiking from Peru, both the look and feel. But it still had the high altitude challenge as I started just over 13,000 feet high and made my way just below 14K. I wasn’t in my Peruvian Andes hiking shape from a few weeks ago and was struggling to breathe a few times, especially during the super steep sections.
The landscape throughout the hike was a swampy marshland with many lakes. It’s what I imagine hiking in Scotland to be like, but at a way higher altitude. The trail started out with a steady incline but then it was super steep with giant mud steps. After that was an even steeper incline where you almost couldn’t stop and had to keep your momentum. I had to take a few short pauses when the ground was more flat to catch my breath due to the altitude and steepness. After about 15-20 minutes of this I made it to the top of Cerro San Luis with an elevation just under 14K. The views of all the lakes and mountains in the background were absolutely incredible. I took a snack break and soaked in my first taste of the Ecuadorian Andes. My soul was at peace and this is when I started feeling truly comfortable with my new life in Ecuador. I knew I was in the right place at the right time. I didn’t seen a single other person all morning. It was pure bliss and tranquility.
It was a steep downhill on the other side of the mountain to match the way up. I nearly slipped a few times because of the incline but I took it slow and shuffled my way down. Once I was at the bottom of the other side of the mountain, the trail linked up with Route 1 which was much more mellow. I went through Bosque de San Luis, a forested area with trees that had very windy trunks. I finally saw a few other people on this route since it was an easier trail but it was still few and far between. This park remains off the beaten path and I hope it stays that way. It was so nice to hike in such untouched land.
The next section of the trail went along a few different lakes and was pretty flat with small ups and downs. I sat down in front of one of the lakes and had a sandwich for lunch. Then I continued through some marshy areas where I accidentally got off trail a few times. It wasn’t always obvious where to go. The final section was a moderate uphill to a viewpoint above yet another lake before I ended up back at the ranger station and completed my loop.
Overall amazing first hike in Ecuador that was minimally trafficked and incredibly beautiful. The bus stop to head back to Cuenca was in front of the park so it was easy to catch a ride. During the 5 minute wait I ended up talking to a French couple and making friends with them. We shared a taxi back from the Cuenca bus station to the market for some fruit drinks then exchanged numbers to hang out later.
Amaru Bioparque
The weather on my 4th and final day in town was supposed to be very rainy. But it turned out to just be cloudy so I decided to take a 20 minute taxi to the Amaru Bioparque just outside of town. This animal park felt more authentic than being at a zoo. It was up on the hillside and you “hike” between the exhibits up and down dirt trails through the trees. The trail goes in one direction so you end up seeing every exhibit unless you turned around for some reason.
There were some exotic animals that you don’t see in American zoos and most are actually indigenous to this area that were rescued so you don’t feel quite as bad that they are in cages. The list of animals I saw includes Andean bears, wolf, puma (although it didn’t show itself, owl, Huron, eagle, condor, llama, variety of birds, crocodiles, caiman, turtles (including giant tortoises), snakes (boas, anaconda, equis, vipers, all sorts of other varieties; more than I even knew existed; the Ecuadorian rainforest is full of all sorts of scary snakes) monkeys, frogs, tapir, jaguar, cuchuchos, lions, and peacocks.
For some of the bird exhibits you actually got to walk inside their caged area and get up close and personal with them, which I thought was really cool. I finally got to see the jaguar that never showed up in the jungle of Peru. It’s a beautiful animal and very large in real life. I really want to see one in the wild, but would also be really scared so I’m not sure that I actually do.
While not as cool as seeing these animals in their natural habitat, the Amaru Bioparque was a fun daytime activity for my extra day in Cuenca. I think my nieces and nephews would absolutely love this place.
Nightlife
On my final night I met up with the French couple to have a few drinks, which turned into a whole night out. We had some good conversations over beers at this outdoor patio bar. Then all the sudden things ramped up and instead of going out to dinner we ordered shots and cocktails. Around 10 we walked over to this club the French guy had heard about it and after paying the cover we were the only people there. Oops must be too early. We hung around and had a few beers while the place slowly started to fill in. Finally around midnight it was much more popular as we danced to the house music. The French couple left around 1:30 and I stayed for a bit longer before calling it a night and stumbling home.
Different Approach to Travel
I needed more solo time my first week in Ecuador (and throughout the country in general). It was the time of the trip where I started to feel a bit exhausted from traveling. I learned to change my travel style in Ecuador and to just take things more slowly, spend more time solo, and soak in the experiences from a different lens. Even if I didn’t do something every day, I was still living my daily life in a different country. In Cuenca, I had a few afternoons where I didn’t even leave my Air Bnb and would just read in bed or watch Netflix in Spanish. It was super nice to just relax and not do anything. It was a great way to recharge my energy after a few months of traveling.
Four days is awhile to spend in Cuenca but I wanted to take it slow to start Ecuador. I had my nice Air Bnb so I took more time to just relax. Plus my Spanish school in Montanita didn’t start until the following Monday so I had time to chill.
Even though I had my own space and spent a lot of time solo, I still ended up meeting those 2 backpackers on the way up to Mirador El Turi and going out on the town for a night with the French couple. So I was still able to get in some good socialization while having rest time and personal space at my Air Bnb.