Coastin´

So after a lengthy 10 hour bus ride we arrived in Puerto Lopez a dust bowl of a beach town which could have easily been erected 2 hours before our arrival for the sake of appearances and just as easily dismantled upon our depature. From there we packed 10 of us teachers and students and all our bags into the back of a rickety truck and rode to our Coastal abode for the week, the Alandaluz Eco-Resort. The site is apparently a leader in eco friendly tourism and promotes sustainable practices, although it wasn´t clear to what extent this was true. Our rooms were rustic bamboo cabins complete with with mosquito nets and gaping holes between the roof and walls, and, despite being slightly cramped quite comfortable. Apparently hot water is not part of the eco friendly life style, because it was a luxury that we would do without for the duration of our coastal visit. Those who place a high value on showering without the fear of other´s watching may have been slightly taken aback by the strategicly placed concrete opening of our half outdoor/half indoor shower, but our freezing showers were so short and infrequent that we were not phased.

The days were pretty relaxed, learning Spanish five hours a day and spending the rest on the beach playing guitar, reading, tossing around the football, running, and doing homework. Our first night we had a bonfire and I entertained our group and about 30 drunken Ecuadorian college students on my travel lute. I couldn´t tell if they were cheering for more or for me to shut my Gringo mouth, but I think we all had a good time in the end.

On Wednesday night, the group went to a nearby surfing village called Montinita, which looked a lot like a movie set. It was a very cool town, with a really mellow hippy vibe, and after using the internet for the first time in a week we went to some outdoor music club. The place was pretty dead on Wednesday but we made our own fun. Andy and I went back the next night with some friends from the school and gorged ourselves on some delicious pizza, beer, and brownie sundays. Finding a cab home was a bit of an adventure, as we encountered a row of cabs in the main square with all driver´s completely asleep. After nervously waking one up, he agreed to take us home, and we departed on a road that looked like it hadn´t been serviced since the Ibarra adminstration (Jose Maria Velasco Ibarra - President 1968-1971) . Being chased part of the way by angry dogs did not help either.

More on the coast to come . . .