Skip to main content

Beach Shmeach

After an almost two year experiement in living, Dave and I have come to the conclusion that we are not beach people.  

Sand?  Not a fan.  

Being in a sea of people who, let's be honest, are a lot more confident in what they are wearing then they should be?  I can live without it, my eyes will forever thank me. (Seriously?  Speedos?  Why are people letting their friends leave the house in those?)  

Yes, the ocean is beautiful.  And big.  And just a little frightening with all those crashing waves that pull you under water and provide that "I've just been tossed into a washing machine during the speed cycle" feeling.

Besides that, I tend to burn.  And then freckle.  Not good.

I can't help it...I wasn't born to be enchanted by the swaying palm trees and shimmering sunsets.  I mean, I'm from Idaho.  Give me the mountains anyday.

And this is why Dave and I headed to Vilcabamba, Ecuador for Semana Santa, instead of following the rest of Ecuador to the coast.  There were no blasted sand flies, no sand collections in unexpected, and uncomfortable, places, and no salt water up the nose.  There was only mountain ranges, hiking excursions, a horseback ride, and a lot of reading. 

 Vilcabamba in a word?  Paradise. 
The mountains were beautiful, the weather perfect, the trails extensive (though a little muddy in some areas), and adventures plentiful.  Our days went something like this....breakfast, exploring of some kind, back to town for a delicious and cheap lunch, reading, napping, card playing, dinner, reading, card playing, you get the idea.  Of course, laughing was also a major part of the day.
We stayed at this beautiful hostel called Le Rendez-Vous.  There were only eight rooms, with the most comfortable beds I have EVER slept on, each with a hammock outside.  The rooms also surrounded a beautiful courtyard; our room had an avocado tree in front of it that had the biggest avocados I have ever seen.  They also delivered a delicious breakfast to our room each morning, and encouraged lazing about.  Notice, on the sign above, that they had "hot water at will."  Sometimes, our will was not especially strong.  

All in all, despite the occasional cold shower, it was pretty wonderful.  Not a sand strip in sight.
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Años Viejos, Pyromaniacs, and Fireworks...Oh My

I have to admit, it has been quite awhile since I have actually been awake to ring in the new year and say goodbye to the old.  Dave and I have always been a bit more concerned about the eight hours of sleep necessary to enjoy life rather than seeing the ball drop.  But this year...is different.   It is 12:58 and the neighbor's hired band just started, there are rapid fire explosives (aka fireworks) going off in three minute intervals, and the car alarms throughout our block seem to be answering the loving call of said fireworks.  There will be no eight hours to start off the year for the Richert's this time. Nothing about our experiences in Ecuador could be classified as typical, and New Year's Eve is proving to be no exception.  The evening started out quite and low key, dinner at home with a movie.  There were the occasional firework, but that isn't anything atypical.  I was even contemplating continuing the tradition of snuggling into bed by 10:30.   Before I called...
Read more

Yes or No?

A couple weeks ago, slipped in the far reaches of my mailbox, I found a note that took me back to the good ol' days of elementary school.   You know what I'm talking about. Remember how you would just be sitting at your desk, one leg pumping back and forth, pencil eraser nudging your bottom lip, as you tried to puzzle out those mind-boggling multiplication tables?  And then, out of the corner of your eye, you would see Andy passing a note to Melissa, who would then pass it on to Mark, who would then palm it off to you right before Mrs. Nelson turned around from the blackboard.  Your name would be written all in cursive and curly-q's on the clumsily folded paper.  Carefully, stealthily, you unfold the paper to find: Well, InterAmerican sent me a 'check yes or no' note, and it raised the same sensation of anxiety that those old love notes of yesterday used to inspire.  Instead of the traditional, "do you like me?" question, it was the "will you continue...
Read more

Christmas in Colombia (The post is better late than never...)

As promised, here is the Amazing Richert Christmas Adventure 2008, with special guest star, Sherry Silvers. Bogota, Columbia.   As you can see...this city and I were obviously made for each other.  Bookstores, libraries, and coffee shops were on every block.  Yes, the majority of the books were in Spanish which causes some slight difficulties, but I don't like to focus on those kind of details.  I'm more of a cup half full kind of gal.   Also, the city is bike crazy.  There are hundreds of miles of bike lanes; we saw bike lanes throughout the city and even along the highway.  They just created a bike/walking lane in the middle of the highway, incredible!  They even close off some of the major streets every Sunday and holiday so people can ride their bikes through the main arteries of town without dealing with the potentially dangerous obstacle of cars.  The city had me at hello. Dave found a wonderful place for us to stay that was right in the heart of the historic district of ...
Read more