Adventure and Cultural Travel with a Sustainable Twist
Guayaquil may be the largest city in Ecuador, but most travellers don’t actually spend much time in it. Quito may be the capital, bursting with cultural and historical significance, and Cuenca may be the beautiful jewel of the southern Ecuadorean Andes – but the largest and most populous city in Continue Reading
Our Cañari guide leaned forward and spoke earnestly. “Did you know,” he asked, “that what we know as Carnaval today was originally an indigenous festival to give thanks to Pachamama [Mother Earth]? The Spanish imported their traditions to make us forget our own.” Here at Kushiwaira, at least, Cañari culture is still very much Continue Reading
After a brief visit to Guamote, we made our way to Ecuador’s southern city of Cuenca. Similar to Quito, Cuenca is a colonial city dating from the 16th century and its historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has a completely different vibe from Quito, however. Quito is Continue Reading
There are plenty of good reasons to visit Liana Lodge in the Ecuadorean Amazon. For one, it’s a great example of responsible and sustainable tourism, as it’s run by a Swiss foundation whose objectives include preserving and protecting the rainforest, and implementing sustainable rainforest management in the local Ahuano community. Continue Reading
If you’ve ever seen a Piñata cake, you’ll know they’re possibly the coolest cakes around. But this is not a “how to bake a piñata cake” kind of post. I could just as well have titled this post “how not to bake a piñata cake”, or “fudge frosting mistakes”. But Continue Reading
There are a ton of museums in Quito, Ecuador. With time in short supply, we inevitably have to prioritise and accept that we can’t see everything. Museo del Carmen Alto and Casa del Alabado are two of the lesser-known museums in Quito, and in my opinion only one of them Continue Reading
Many travellers I met in Ecuador and Colombia gave northern Ecuador a miss. And I get it – you’re on a budget, time is tight, you gotta prioritise. Or maybe you’re just thinking about visiting Otavalo on a day-trip from Quito. Actually, there is plenty to keep you occupied – Continue Reading
My last week in Intag was a very eventful one: my boyfriend Ian arrived in Ecuador, we spent a couple of days at Ned and Patricia’s, and the next couple of days with my host family – before finally leaving this place where I’ve been so happy for the last Continue Reading
Carnaval came early Carnaval (or Carnival) isn’t a holiday celebrated back home in Singapore, but it is a big thing in many other parts of the world, including Ecuador. It falls on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday (the start of Lent), and (in Ecuador at least) is celebrated Continue Reading
It’s a tired old cliché: time and tide wait for no man. But it’s undeniably true, and over the course of my last few weeks in Intag, time seemed to fly by faster and faster the more I tried to hang on to it, to slow it down – even Continue Reading