Guayaquil (2nights)
The flight from Madrid was delayed, so I only arrived at the hostel at around 1am on 17-Feb. I was pretty exhausted and didn’t do much on that one day I had in Guayaquil. There are a couple of Malecons (river-/ sea front walks) in the town, which the locals like to do, especially at the weekends. So I did the same. It was very very hot & humid during my time in this town & it also rained a lot.
I was on the look out for some snack/ dinner later that day & ended up in a local bar. They had only meat & sweet dishes (pretty much the standard in Central- & South America), but the owner was so nice and made me a salad with cheese & a fresh juice. I paid unbelievable 2US$ all together - OMG.
18th to 21st of Feb 2019 (3nights), Puerto Lopez
Went to the bus terminal on 18th of Feb in the morning & tried to find the bus company the girl at the hostel mentioned to me for going to Puerto Lopez. Unfortunately this bus company doesn’t go to there. (It’s very confusing here, as there are so many bus companies & some of them also have their own terminals.) Some guy started talking to me & mentioned Jipijapa. I was very confused as this is actually a town in Ecuador & I didn’t want to go there. I followed him through the terminal although I had a weird feeling. Turns out he was from a bus company called Jipijapa, going to Puerto Lopez within the next minutes - perfect 馃槉. Sometimes you just have to trust. 5.50US$ fare for the about 4hrs bus ride.
Puerto Lopez is wonderful. It’s a beach town, not too big with a gorgeous very long beach & many shops & restaurants. They even have TukTuks - OMG, how cool is that!! I really missed them since I was in Thailand. Here they are called motortaxis & they are very cheap. From anywhere within the town they charge you 0.25US$ (more about the fascinating price system in Central- & Southamerica in a different post) from & to the bus terminal, which is a bit out of town, you pay 1US$.
It was very sunny & dry in Puerto L贸pez - thanks god, as I feared permanent rain at this time of the year in Ecuador. I had a very nice time on the beach during my stay here.
On the 2nd day I did a tour to Isla de la Plata (silver island). It is also called the Gal谩pagos of the poor man, as it’s so much more affordable (35US$ for a day trip incl snorkeling & snacks) & you can also see the blue-footed boobies (yes, that’s the real name) here.
I was lucky enough to do the tour with a family from the states, as we therefore had an English speaking guide. Usually no one seems to speak English in Ecuador, not even at the accommodations or the tour agencies. As I don’t really speak Spanish communications are relatively difficult, but the people here are extremely nice & try to figure out what I want, so somehow it always works out for me.
On my last/ 2nd full day in Puerto L贸pez I wanted to go to Los Frailes beach, which is not far from the town. It’s supposed to be very beautiful & it’s called one of the best beaches in Ecuador. Unfortunately I was very unlucky as access to the beach was denied due to maintenance. Sh... I wish I had more time in Puerto Lopez/ Ecuador, but unfortunately I have to rush things a bit to get the chance to go everywhere where I want to go within the next months, so I only had 2 full days in Puerto Lopez.
Next stop Quito - the capital city of Ecuador.
Blue footed booby
Blue footed booby observing tourists from under the cliff
At the park in Guayaquil
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