Riobamba

Last weekend, Tamara and I took a 5 hour bus ride to the city of Riobamba to hang out with some of our coworkers in their hometown.  We left a day early to be tourists and ride the train that is called the Nariz Del Diablo (the Devil’s nose).  It was definitely an overpriced tourist attraction, but I was glad we did it.  The train left from a very cute town called Alausi. My favorite part of the day was sitting in the plaza of this town and watching all the locals stroll by in their brightly colored traditional Andean outfits. Just by watching the way the walk, interact with each other, and work the land in these layered outfits was truly beautiful! Often times the women are wearing multiple skirts, shalls, hats, knee high socks (probably not cotton), adorned shirts, and layers of necklaces. And this is their every day wear, even when they are working in the fields. 

As for the train, it was a 30 minute ride down into a beautiful valley, with switchbacks to get us down to the bottom.  Once we arrived, there was a small museum, a small lunch of tamale de pollo, and a small store where there were people dancing and selling goods.  Not a bad way to spend the morning.

While in Riobamba, we also visited the Laguna de Colta that was about 30 minutes outside of town. It was also next to what is claimed to be Ecuador’s first Catholic church built in 1534 (if I remember correctly).  Old adobe buildings line the street next to it, while the volcano Chimborazo towers in the distance.  Not a bad sight to see. 

Of course visiting a new town with locals would not be complete without a night on the town. This was no exception, but this one was unique.  If there is one thing that Ecuadoreans love that I did NOT expect, it’s karaoke!! Seriously! There are karaoke bars everywhere, even here in Tena.  It involves sitting at a table with your friends, and whoever’s turn it is to sing gets handed a mic. You don’t have to get up in front of everyone if you don’t want to. And the majority of songs that people pick are the really quality sappy ballads. Good times! Tamara and I did work up the nerve to sing a Beatle’s song, and then I sang one in Spanish that everyone knew and sang along with me.  When in Rome, right?

Although all of the above was fun, I would have to say that the landscape in this area was what made the biggest impression on me. During the bus rides and the train ride I couldn’t believe how vastly different the landscape is between Tena and Riobamba. We started in jungle, went through mountains that reminded me of the Eastern Sierras and rolling patchwork farm lands, and ended in a city surrounded by 3 volcanoes at about 9,000 feet elevation!  The best part was that on Sunday, one of the volcanoes became active and was at an orange alert level as we were driving past it on our way home.  We didn’t see any lava, just plumes of smoke spilling out of the top.  Needless to say, I took as many pictures as I could. 

Another fun adventure to put in the books. Here's the link to the pictures :)