ECUADOR
Hola de Quito!
I finally got some pictures up. This apparently is not a very good blog website, but I’m determined to stick with it anyway. To view pics I think you need to just click on the little camera button on the right side of the advertisement-like box at the top. Some of these are around Quito, Cumbaya, Botanical Garden, La Mariscal aka Gringolandia, Centro Historico, and El Pahuma Orchid Reserve. Favorite plant of the week ; Giant Tree Fern! There should be a picture of one. You could make one heckuva meal with those fronds! Anyway, I hope you are all faring well in the depths of winter. It is strange to think that it is January! Last weekend we spent a weekend at Pahuma, Montane Cloud Forest and Reserve. I had a tumultuous time, but of what I experienced it was amazing. The cabin we stayed at towards the bottom of the mountain had humming bird feeders so we got to spend a little time bird watching from the porch, staring into lush and confusing epiphyte laden forest. While I was sitting a foot away from one of the feeders, a hummingbird came right up to feed in front of me. Blew me away. Experience number two of the trip, hikes around the reserve led us to some waterfalls, one of which was so massive and stirred up so much wind and mist, it was one of those halleleuah moments, however non-religious I am. The rest of my group hiked up the next day to stay at the spectacled bear’s den cabin where they saw toucans and puma tracks, and continued our plant family lectures. Unfortunately I became ill again and missed out. Combination of too much ciproflax. and flu I believe? Sick without sleep all night, hour busride with Javier back to Quito Saturday morning. Hospital, tests, all negative. Taking it easy now, bread and bananas is tolerable. This week will be more Conservation Bio lectures, catching up on what I missed and celebrating the U.S. as a more respected player in the international world, we hope! Happy days tomorrow, more to come. chao,
Jamie
posted Monday January 2009