Ecuador Photos

Ecuador was a surprise. I thought that, for such a tiny country with so many visitors (particularly Americans), I would never get a moment alone. It would be touristy and overcrowded, the culture would be shot to shit, and every other business would be foreign run. It would be hell.

I rarely got a moment alone, there WERE a lot of other Americans, it was pretty touristy, the culture was lacking, and a lot of businesses were foreign owned.... but Ecuador still rocked my socks. That's really saying something. I was hell bent on disliking it, and almost every place I went, I met oodles of other travelers. This is not new ground, people. The thing is: Ecuador isn't really trying to be anything else. The foreigners you meet aren't overladen with "smug hardcore backpacker coolness" (minus one guy) and are actually very well traveled, the backpacker hotspots are mad, but rarely radiate out their lunacy. It's a lovely, lovely little compact slice of traveling heaven.

One of the best things about traveling in tropical environments are yummy little drinks like these. Sugar cane juice, unadulterated (minus a bit of lime juice), squeezed out fresh from the stalk itself, for less than 25 cents! Ohhh.. Baños, Ecuador.


It's odd how massively touristed towns like Canoa in Ecuador can still be without an ATM. Here were are, literally crossing oceans (or, a bay, anyway) to pull out money! This was the great little crew I rocked it with for a few days. Canoa, early morning breakfasts, and communal breakfasts wouldn't have been the same without these guys. On the boat ride to Bahía with Justin, Josie, Oscar, and Julie. Ecuador.

I'm not sure what to say about my birthday this year. I had a good time. All the ingredients were there, the foreign country, the parties, the funny Argentinians... and yet something was missing. Stupid civil uprisings- RUINING MY PLANS FOR QUITOFEST!! Nevertheless, I made the best of what I was given. Here's a picture of HolaOla! from where I was dancing on stage. How did I get up there? Montañita, Ecuador.

Even though working at Paseo de los Monos was one of the first things I did in Ecuador, I wanted to put the pictures last because it was the most important thing that happened to me in the country, and one of the last things that I found true pleasure in doing on my trip. Not that other things weren't great... but you have to really love something if you can smile while getting splattered with feces.

Here's a picture of either Lola or Lisa (I think it's Lola, although I can't see her face). She was one of only three Spider Monkeys in the park. The other was Lisa, who is a troublemaker, (or maybe it's both of them, and we just can't tell them apart), and the other was a male who had to stay locked up in the house until he desisted trying to kill all the other monkeys. This is why I love Spider Monkeys so much, and probably why my mate Will (from CIWY) decided to stay with the S.Monkeys even after getting offered the possibility of working with a Puma. I salute his decision. Everyone wanted, in Bolivia (2007), to work with the cats. If you really love animals, you wouldn't be picky about which ones you worked with. You'd make the commitment, and do the best you could in your position. Spider Monkeys are most loved because they give out the most love. I've never seen any other animal show the kind of affection these guys are capable of (even dogs!). Moreover, it had nothing to do with my sneaking bananas and pineapple to them through the windows of our cottage after-hours. I'm for seriously. Puyo, Ecuador.

Here's a photo of Oliver and Etza. Etza's really cute, but I'll write a note about Oliver here because if I got started on why Etza can't use her arms, well... then I'd be sad. Oliver was an interesting Frenchman who found his way to the park two days in a row. He particularly piqued my interest because of his unflagging enthusiasm for all things animal. I've met lots of people who love animals, but very, very few who like, REALLY love them. Moreover, almost everybody favors humans over animals (as if one life could be valued above another). Oliver went the other way-- HUMANS were the ones that should be put down. Animals had a moral code, animals didn't know cruelty for the sake of cruelty-- they only did cruel things for survival. It was humans who were capable of being mean for no reason. He had a point. He asked for my email address so I could send him this photo, but he never wrote. Shame... it's a bloody good shot. Puyo, Ecuador.

Here's a picture of Paola. Hahaha. Oh, mischiefmaker. Her mother, like all the other mothers of the monkeys in the park, was killed so that she could be taken and sold as a pet. The people who bought her for a ridiculous sum could handle about a month of having a FUCKING MONKEY live in their house before they gave up and gave her away to the park. As stupid as this story sounds, it's a lot more humane that Etza's (up top), who was shoved into a small, darkened cage for her first few months. It's really sickening. Anyway, since Paola's mom was killed, she's attached herself to one person with a real zeal for as long as they'll stay in the park. Then another. Then another. I was that person for a week or so-- here she is eating dinner with us after refusing to leave my head at the end of the day. She slept in my bed that night and came with me for my nighttime piss. We go way back, this one. Puyo, Ecuador.