Eleonor Collins

The great thing about Ecuador is that it's a relatvely small country compared to other countries in South America and has lots to offer adventuring tourists. I'm talking about the mighty Oriente, the Amazon! Dad & I just recently returned from our awesome 5 day adventure to the Cuyabeno Reserve in The Oriente of Ecuador through Samona Expeditions. We went fairly deep into the jungle. Just to give you an indication we took a bus from Quito to Lago Agrio (7 hrs), then a van to the Cuyabeno River (2 hrs) and then we took a motorised canoe on the beautiful river to reach our naturally beautiful Samona Lodge(2 hrs). Even though it took a while to reach our lodge the canoe ride over the river warmed us up for the adventures that awaited us in the jungle. Dad and I took a motorised canoe up the Cuyabeno River (the boat about 25m length) manned by two men, Dario (18yrs, the Captain of the boat who was in control of the engine) and Frederico (about 30s up the front of the boat)....

!Buenós dias¡ Today dad and I finished our 5 day trip through the beautiful Galapagos Islands! We went on a boat cruise that took us from Santa Cruz island to Bacha Beach, North Seymour Island, Santa Fe, Española Island, Floreana Island and then back to Santa Cruz Island. It was a fantastic trip even though I feel like I´m still on the boat from all the swaying over the last 5 days. The flight over to the islands went smoothly and I remember my first reaction when we first saw the islands as we flew over. Is this the Galapagos Islands?! It looks like a desert! I had expected the place to be overwelmed by luscious fouliage and trees! We entered Baltra airport which used to be used for US military base. However most of the islands we visited were quite barren as this time of the year the trees lose their leaves even though the rain was well and truely present almost everyday we were there. Some of the best highlights on this trip would first and foremost be witnesssing nature and the b...

Hóla once again. It´s been a while since my last entry and I´ve been quite busy touring Ecuador and a very small part of Colombia. Dad and I visited a small town north of Ecuador called Tulcán for it´s large and well known cemetery there. I hear you saying....Cemetery?! Yep, cemetery. The gardens are the main feature there as the cemetery is lined with giant hedges that are sculptured into geometric shapes, pre-Colombian symbols and various animals. It was such an awesome sight to see! The figures were very cute, especially the animals. The graves were equally beautiful as the burial places are above-ground tombs stacked atop of one another so that they resembled a mini apartment complex rather than a final resting place. The entrance of the tombs are heavily adorned with shrines and beautiful fresh flowers. The day after visiting Tulcán we crossed the border into Colombia to visit the famous church Virgin de las Lajas. A magnificent church built against a cliff face! Absolutely aw...

Hi Everyone! In the last few days in Ecuador, Dad and I have been visiting some of the local cities near Quito, Ecuador. Our family have been showing us around to many beautiful places. Yesterday Dad and I went to Baños which was about 3 hrs drive from Quito. My uncle Marco, his wife (Lucia) and his son (Mauricio's) family invited us out for the day. It was difficult to wake up in the morning because the previous day we went to my cousin's son's Baptism celebration which was in the evening and went through till early hours of the morning. We did manage to wriggle out of bed though. On the way we passed a volcano that errupted 3 months ago, Tunguragua. The whole city had to be evacuated at the time. We stopped to have a look at the destruction that it caused which was incredible. Many tourists were there picking up some of the rocks that were left there. We also passed a town (forgive me for not remembering the name) where they mainly manufacture jeans clothing. There...