Rug Shopping Adventure

Dear Family and Friends,

A couple of weeks back we were having lunch with our friends, Myrna and Dave, when they mentioned that they would like to go rug shopping in Guano.  Chuck offered to take them and so the adventure began.

Since Myrna and Dave are relatively new to Ecuador we decided to show them Banos and stop in Guano on the way home for rug shopping.

On the way up we had spectacular scenery.  This photo was taken near Canar.

A nice picture of Myrna and Dave.

Here is Saint Peter overlooking the town of Alausi.  We stopped there to buy train tickets for the Devil's Nose train ride on our way back through.

We continued our trip to Banos.  Here is the gang enjoying refreshments at the micro brew pub, Stray Dog, in Banos.

The next morning we headed down to Puyo...the gateway to the Amazon.  Before heading down we took them up to view Banos from above.

We also explored a lovely spa hostel Luna Runtun that is located high above Banos.

I always enjoy the trip down to Puyo much more than I enjoy hot Puyo.  The scenery driving down is awesome.

There are lots of activities for the adventurous ones.  Here is Myrna taking a picture of a cable car that goes across the deep gorge.

There are so many things to see that every time Chuck and I go down we always find new sights.  Here is a mermaid in the middle of a lake.  It reminded us of the mermaid in Copenhagen.

We went to see yet another waterfall.

But when we found out that it was a 20 minute hike down we opted for a nice glass of juice instead.

Here is another picture of Myrna and Dave near Puyo.

The next day we headed from Banos to Guano for rug shopping.  Guano is located very near Riobamaba.  This is the church at the main plaza.

On previous visits we had not taken the time to look inside the church.  I am so glad we did this time because it is so pretty inside.  

We saw a rug in the process of being made.

 And shopped for the perfect one.

Guano Dog!!

We spent the night at the beautiful Hacienda Abraspungo right outside of Guano.

The next morning we drove to Alausi for our train ride down the Devil's Nose.  The train has changed since our last trip.  No first class available, but that was alright because the seats were comfortable and spacious.

Looking down on the switch back tracks we will experience before we get to the bottom.

We viewed the Devil's Nose and saw the track winding back and forth.  It may not show in this picture very well.

When at the bottom there is a museum, snacks, tourist shopping, folklore dancing, horseback rides and llamas to greet you.  After about an hour to explore the train returns to Alausi.

No trip to the train station is ever complete without making a picture of ourselves as a local.  I made one of Myrna and she made one of me.  Cute picture.

We headed back to Cuenca on Saturday.  We were very tired but full of great new memories.

Love,
Nancy