Getting Adjusted and Looking Around

I feel like the day I discovered Cotacachi was Day One - the first day of the rest of my life. It is magical, not only because of its gorgeous vistas, but its residents are for the most part Quechua, fiercely proud descendants of Ecuador's largest indigenous group and longest inhabitants. According to many locals, the reasons these particular people have remained tribal is that the Aztec invaders who greatly impacted the history of the region only "held" this particular part of Ecuador (the Imbabura Province) for a total of about 30 years, not even a full generation. Thus the people never lost their identity unlike most other tribal residents of Ecuador.

The first thing you should know about Cotacachi is its location. High! It sits at roughly 8000 feet above sea level and is located 2 hours by car north and east of Quito (which is even higher). Most low-elevation-lubbers like me who fly into Quito (~10.5K feet) have to get out of there fairly quickly or be prepared to do nothing for a few days while they adapt. (Rest assured this does not happen to everyone, but be prepared just in case.) Unfortunately, it took me about 3 weeks to fully adapt even to Cotacachi at 8K feet - but please don't let that stop you. It was the best wait I ever had to endure.

The first week there was spent with hubby Nick and new-found friends (see Nick and our friend Barry in the pictures here) at a business seminar which happened to include a little real estate tour. These seminars are hosted regularly by Gary and Merri Scott in Cotacachi (see garyascott.com for more info.) I've posted pics here of the some of the properties we saw that were for sale.


There was even a cheese factory for sale, quite pricey because all of the equipment had been imported from Switzerland including an expert who was on-site for several months teaching the locals the intricacies of making the cheese. Here you will see Carlos, a professional by anyone's standards, proudly giving us a little tour. And yes, the cows came with the purchase; here they are standing in line waiting to be milked.

The real estate we saw ran the gamut: a beautiful hacienda in Otovalo, small and large condos all around the province, raw land as well as land already surveyed and ready to build. Not all was reasonably priced by a long shot and not everything was all that appealing; but looking out in almost any direction, the views were fantastic.

It was late in the first week that I took a trip with several others up to view Lake Cuicocha (pronounced Kwee-ko-cha), one of the most spectacular sites in all of Ecuador at 12,000 feet. I got sick as a dog (I told you it took me awhile to adapt!) But just so you'll know, I was the ONLY person of about 30 on that bus who had problems, so you must certainly go! I learned later that your digestion slows way down at high altitudes so if you have ever had a hiatal hernia (my hand is raised!), you should plan on fasting for a day before you head up the mountain.

Cuicocha is a crater lake (see description /caption below taken from a travel site), and the island in the center is sacred to the Quechua - off limits to all but the shamans (and the wildlife of course).

The crater lake is three km wide and some 200m deep. The water is alkaline and supports very little life. The islands in the middle are lava domes, which rise over the water surface. They are well covered with vegetation and support some wildlife.

There is a nice restaurant at the top for tourists, highly recommended for anyone without altitude problems! And small boats take locals and tourists out on the water for a fee. One of my new friends jumped in on a dare (this was much later in my visit), and said it was not nearly as cold as he expected (but the local who was driving the boat was aghast!).


Something should be said here about the place where we stayed this first week (and more on it later). The Meson de las Flores is somewhat of a mecca for English speakers, and though not every staff member speaks English (I found myself asked to be a translator on many occasion during my time in Cotacachi), most of them do speak at least SOME English. And ALL of them have hearts of gold.

All the rooms surround an inner courtyard where meals are served, dances are danced (we even had a conga line one night!), crafts are displayed at mini- "ferias" (fairs), and camaraderie abounds. Something about being a foreigner in a foreign land I guess -- most people want to sit and talk and find out where you've been and where you're going. It helps of course, if you know what to tell them.

Some of my favorite people in the world, all staff at El Meson de las Flores:

From left, Jose the singing taxi driver (and mayor of the village of Quiroga - he has several CDs out, and he is a fantastic singer!), Consuela from the village of La Calera (the sweetest Quechua girl in the world!), Rosita Elena (a florist as well as general helper at El Meson) and Alberto, a sous chef of the highest order - you should see what he does with quinoa! Note: Jose is one of 6 or 7 drivers that this motel will send to the airport to pick you up if you stay there.

And below are Mauricio who is getting his Master's in Tourism and is the manager of El Meson, along with Rosita, a housekeeper with a heart of gold. And I certainly cannot forget Ma, part time resident pooch extraordinaire. (Missing are Eduardo, Alberto V., and Franklin.)