I just got back from a long weekend trip to Otavalo.  It was a pretty amazing trip.  I was fortunate enough to have perfect weather for the four days that I was there.  I spent New Years Eve there.  It was REALLY interesting the way that they celebrate the new year.  Men dress up as widowers with black skirts and everything.  They stop cars and buses and ask for money.  Children dress up as if it were Halloween.  Everyone constructs monigotes, which are basically life size dolls of politicians or other characters.  Some are much bigger than life size.  At midnight, they burn the monigotes and hit them if it has been a bad year. Needless to say, it was pretty entertaining.  The next day, I strolled around one of Latin America's biggest markets, spent some time in the food market, and then went for a great hike.  I decided to go to El Lechero which is a tree that the indigenous population believes to have special healing powers.  The hike was great.  It was steep and out of town.  Dodging sheep, waving to cows, asking for directions at least ten times on the dirt road switchbacks was how the day was spent.  It was awesome!  The people were so kind.  When I finally arrived there, the view was spectacular.  The tree stands all by itself up on a hill with great views of Volcán Cotacachi, Volcán Imbabura, Lago San Pablo, and the surrounding Andes.  I had the place to myself for a while, which was phenomenal.  Some people cheated and drove up, but they cheated themselves out of the great experience of hiking up.  The next morning, I woke up early to get to the local livestock market by 6 am.  If you are in need of cows, hogs, chickens, rabbits, goats, guinea pig or another else, this is the market to go to.  It was really neat to see the people in their true element.  The rest of the day was spent wandering around the market and town.  It was Saturday, so the market had nearly tripled in size from the previous day.  That night, it was time to see a good old fashioned cock fight.  The locals were so incredibly nice.  I befriended a few locals, only to find out that one of my "buddies" was the judge of the fights.  He made sure I had prime seats and that I got the pictures that I wanted.  What a day!  In the morning, I went to the unreal Laguna Cuicocha.  It was an unbelievably clear day, so I was able to see the snow capped Volcán Cayampe and Volcán Cotopaxi in the distance, as well as Imbabura and Cotacachi.  From there, it was time to see what Cotacachi (the town) had to offer.  The town is known for its 100 plus stores of leather goods.  There were some awesome coats, but I'm not exactly in need of one in Guayaquil.  Overall, it was a great escape and a great way to start the new year.  Thanks to the experiences and El Lechero, I feel relaxed, rejuvenated, and healed of all the battle wounds from 2009.  

Corn, beans, grains, spices . . . etc

Mmmmmmm!

How 'bout them potatoes?

What kind of cut would you like?

Plaza de Pancho where the craft market is with Volcán Imbabura towering in the background.

Another shot of the market (on the small market day) with Volcán Cotacachi in the background.

On the hike up to El Lechero cows were my company.  Imagine farming all that land by hand . . .
unbelievable!

El Lechero and Imbabura (over 15,000 feet at the summit).  Can you feel the healing powers?

Relaxing with a view of Cotacachi.

I love this picture.

A view of Lago San Pablo.

A view of Otavalo on the way back down from El Lechero.

Animal market, early morning Saturday.

Anyone in need of a hog?

Or piglets?

Or chickens?



Coming soon to a restaurant near you.

Craft market in full swing.

They have all been weighed, now it is time to size them up to pair up the fights.

That's my "buddy" the referee (first person on the right in the blue jacket).

Look's like he is ready to go.

The fighting ring.  Each fight was 12 minutes or shorter.  It was a bit disturbing, but I wanted to experience it as it is part of the culture.  Birds were fitted with spikes on their feet to attack the other.

Sizing each other up.

There is money to be made, and of course money to be lost.

In the heat of battle.

Mmm. . . where to place a bet?

The spectacular Laguna Cuicocha.  The name comes from cuy (guinea pig).  Apparently, around this protected area, there are many wild guinea pigs.

The laguna with Cotacachi at a height of about 16,000 feet.

Imbabura on the left and Volcán Cayambe on the right.


A closer look at Cayambe.


Cotopaxi in the far distance.




Check out the rest of my Otavalo pictures at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jmathisecuador/Otavalo#