Living Abroad

I shared a post about our day trip to the Cajas National Mountains, which are high up in the Andes Mountains.

We loved the visit to the mountains so much that we decided to go ahead and rent a cabin there and do some exploring.

The first thing we did was to grab an English speaking guide and hike one of the highest mountains there.

As you can see, just a 30 minute drive outside of Cuenca where we live and the weather is very cold. That is a part I really enjoy about living here because there are no seasons really.

We have spring every day and when we want a bit of fall-ish or winter-ish weather, we just go to the mountains or should I say higher up in the Andes.

We had to pose for this picture because though the mountain was steep and we constantly were on a slant, the view was so breath taking we paused many times to just take in the moment.

Behind us on the mountain are two waterfalls and the whole mountain is also very soggy and wet.

But we are also up above the tree line and so that limits what grows on the mountain.

Did I tell you my legs were so shaky after we got down off that mountain? But it was so worth it.

Of course, we had to go right to eating and because of the amount of energy expended not only at high altitudes, but with the hike, we treated our self to fried trout again and their exquisite desserts at the restaurant.

We got a fire going in the cabin and just sat back and watched the sun go down behind the mountains that night.

The next day we had a trip planned to an abandoned town, which was built in the early 1900s.

When History Stands Still

The town is part of the Cajas National Park property and it was a half way point during the early 1900s between Guayaquil and Cuenca for those traveling on donkey.

It really was kind of spooky in a way because it was all the sudden abandoned and things were just left in place.

There weren’t many buildings, but just enough to be a resting place to give weary travelers a place to spend the night.

There was the caretaker’s house, which had several rooms. This was one where weaving went on.

The chests or trunks were the way they traveled then.

And the scales hung on the wall so that food, grain and other things could be weighed for bartering.

Even in this part of the woods, liquor was illegal at one time. But like the U.S., they had their smugglers too.

They would use the container made of cow hide to fill with illegal liquor and put it under the donkey’s saddle to hide it and transport it to other places.

This owner and caretaker made hand made saddles and his tack and gear were all left in place where he worked on them.

You can see the original adobe walls and bed.

Too, the way a baby in those days was swaddled is shown here.

I enjoyed this room because this is the place the rich travelers would eat.

They segregated between the rich and poor class back then too.

I loved this chair because it was wrapped with ocelot, which comes from the Amazon rain forest.

As you can see the rich back then enjoyed ample space to eat, dine in and rest up from their weary trek.

This is the room where 8 or 9 people would sleep for the night.

They would lay mats, blankets, and animal hides on the floor along with a fire to keep warm for the night.

In the display case, you can see some of the original clothes that were preserved from this time.

But that is not all we did while visiting there.

There is the coolest abandoned gold mine that we went to also. I will show you those pictures next.

Hugs and love ya,

You can check out my other posts in my Living Abroad category as we have enjoyed living here in South America for a little longer than a year now.

We have made some great friends here in Ecuador too. He is Ecuadorean and his wife is German, but she is the daughter of some missionaries who came here to Ecuador way back. But they also lived some in the states in Florida.

So when they mentioned about taking us to the majestic Cajas mountains, we jumped at the opportunity.

I mean we could take a tour guide, but having our own set of wheels and taking our time going through everything is so much better.

This is Part 1 because we spent the good part of the day at the restaurant and walking the grounds before we actually entered the Cajas because our friends wanted us to eat a traditional Ecuadorean meal.

So we headed for the restaurant or mountain resort called Dos Chorreras that is at the edge of the mountains.

This place is really unique in that they used as much of the natural surroundings as they could to build it.

But first we had to try some of the local food and drink. This drink has canela (cinnamon) in it with a shot of liquor and is like a pre-meal drink.

It is an acquired taste.

Then since we had an Ecuadorean with us, he ordered a traditional food or something that he has been eaten since a boy.

It’s a lima bean with shell and fresh cheese (top right). Just served like a snack before our meal.

This was actually delicious and in the normal Ecuadorean fashion, they serve aji sauce at the table.

Aji sauce is made from tree tomatoes, something I had never eaten before coming here, but it’s all to die for delicious.

We probably eat aji sauce just about every day.

Then came a real tradition and that is potato soup.

They take their soups here serious and I have not had one soup that I didn’t pass out over because of how delicious it was.

This potato soup  is actually real thick and they served it with avocado and a slice of hard boiled egg. Hard boiled eggs or slice of it on everything is common too.

Then the fresh trout we saw outdoors is what they serve as a traditional meal.

By the way I have been craving catfish here, but it’s not available. Catfish is considered a dirty fish and they don’t eat it here. Out in the country, they have other kinds of fish. But tilapia and trout are pretty common.

Then of course the 5 star restaurant is not complete unless you choose from the many home made desserts.

After that huge meal, we had to stir around and look at the awesome building.

As you can see they built around the cliffs and rocks. They just made walls and kept the natural part natural.

This is a gathering room for like wedding receptions and you can see the outdoors really is in.

They also had a store there that sold many local foods and  sauces.

Then we had to look at a few  of the rooms that they rented out, which is why I am hoping we can go back real soon.

I’d like to stay in the cabin, which is right across from where we ate at. It has a gentle stream flowing by, which comes down from the mountain.

You see the huge boulder in the floor. They didn’t cut it out, they built the floor around it.

Drop dead gorgeous room for staying in luxury when you want it.

Then I loved this bathroom and love the tubs. Our house does not have tubs and I have missed some relaxing soaks.

The whole place is just beautiful. From the rooms to the fireplaces.

Then we decided we would take a stroll up to the mountains.

But first, the locals told us to eat the local home made candy because it gives us energy at these real high heights.

Just how high were we? About 12,000 to 14,600.

Yes, so high it’s above tree line and we saw a few tree like things growing. I didn’t know the name of this tree/shrub but it had paper like bark.

As you can see, it is a break taking place and something you would see out of movies.

We even tried to get up on the second floor of the resort to catch some of the majestic views.

But it’s hard to explain the sheer vastness of the mountains.

It almost looks like a post card and hard to see the very tops of the mountains when the clouds are in the way.

I managed to grab a few pictures of the local handicrafts in the store.

And I took a group picture of everybody standing on the deck so you can get a glimpse of this most beautiful place.

Of course as we were leaving, the llamas came down from the mountains and were on the street.

I shot this picture in the jeep as I turned around backward, so it’s a bit blurry. But have you ever seen anything so cute as that cute baby llama?

Of course he has to scratch an itch as we rounded the corner, but I still got another picture of him.

I hoped you liked the glimpse of our day trip to the Cajas Mountains. It truly is one of the most breath taking sites we have seen since being here.

Hugs and love ya,

Check out my others posts about living here in South America.