We used the Vajero bus company to get us to Cuenca ($7.50 hourly) and found their vehicles to be clean and comfy. In fact travelling by bus has proved to be very easy with an extensive network to all the main towns and regular services to smaller places. With petrol costing less here than Peru travel is cheaper too and we’ve found it generally equates to a dollar per hour of travel.
Once again the travel itself was enjoyable and we found ourselves travelling through an area of green rolling hills with barely a flat piece of land to be seen. Just over an hour into the journey we stopped by the roadside for some running repairs on the bus. Unfortunately it proved to be more serious than that and the bus couldn’t be readily fixed. Not to worry the 10am bus was flagged down and we all transferred onto it. Luckily it wasn’t far to a reasonably sized town where quite a few people got off so we got to sit down. Despite this slight hitch we reached Cuenca only marginally later than we’d anticipated where we lugged our stuff to Residencial Sanchez. We’d pre-booked our room as it was the weekend and we’d read that Cuenca is a popular spot. Plus much of the accommodation is expensive and this place had looked okay on the internet. Hmm.
I don’t know where they took the photos but it certainly wasn’t in the same building we were staying in! Now at $20 a night we’d expected it to be basic and to be fair the room was clean enough but the bathroom was very rough around the edges. The saggy mattress, strange hard sponge filled pillows and odd family running the place didn’t help us to enjoy the experience. We really didn’t need people shouting at each other, the telly on full blast, kids running around the place and some daft old bat trying to get into our room! Suffice it to say not a place we recommend you should stay.
On a positive note the lady who gave us the room key (I can’t go to the elaborative description of checking us in!) also gave us some leaflets. Next thing we’re headed towards the main square in town where we jumped on the 4pm open-top bus tour. We’re not known for such touristy type adventures but with limited time in town and at only $5 for a 1 ½ hour tour it was good value. Once again the weather wasn’t the best and it actually started raining while we were perched on the top deck but not enough to drive us inside. Part of the route takes you up to a mirador over-looking the town and surrounding area – well in theory it does. There was a light drizzle falling over the UNESCO heritage city and the dark, grey cloud layer was hiding the mountains. Once the tour was over we tried taking in more of the city and it’s lovely buildings on foot but it was raining, going dark and we were cold. We found the best option was popping for a brew to warm up.
As suspected it looks like we’ve finally exhausted our run of good luck with the weather and much of our future plans involve walking and trekking. Go for it and get wet or change the plans? All will be revealed in the exciting instalments to come!!!
We decided the weather wasn’t so bad that we were forced to totally alter our plans so a day in Parque Nacional Cajas it was to be. Steve had a good start to the day with a City win but more importantly their first clean sheet of the season. These early kick-offs are great as we get to watch the game, still have all day to do stuff and it keeps us out of the pub! Anyway we wandered off to the bus station where we’d been told some of the Guayaquil bound buses go via Cajas. The lad behind the ticket counter was very surly and wouldn’t sell us a ticket. We decided to ask at the tourist information place, where lucky the lady had excellent English, and she assured us we could catch that bus but to pay $2 on the bus and simply inform the driver where we wanted to get off.
We sauntered off to the platform full of renewed confidence only to find the driver wouldn’t let us (or the other tourists in the same situation) get on the bus. In the end and just as the bus was backing out he decided we could board after all. There were plenty of empty seats and we’d indicated we were happy to stand so we don’t know what all the fuss and bother had been about. Anyway, about an hour and 30kms later we got down near the park rangers station ready to pay our $10 entrance fee but were delighted once again to discover it was free. There was lots of information, in Spanish, about the flora and fauna to be found in the park and a map of the area and trails. The bloke running the place showed us a copy of this same map and suggested out a 4-hour walk but there was no way he was parting with his beloved map. I could sense Steve trying to quickly memorise the details and off we set.
In fairness we didn’t need the over-sized, glossy map as the paths were very clearly marked with information boards at the beginning of the routes too. This time we weren’t alone in the park but we encountered very few people despite it being the weekend. It was very cloudy and most of the peaks were shrouded in mist but at least it wasn’t raining. We were at an altitude of around 4000m so it was decidedly chilly but luckily the clouds lifted slightly as we set off on the pink trail. There were jagged peaks, lakes galore, dwarf forests, streams and spongy peat areas to enjoy. We may not have had brilliant sunshine but the hue of colours in the plants and flowers enhanced the surroundings. We saw some ducks and a number of other birds fluttering around but none of the bears or pumas that live in the area. No surprise there then! However, we did happen upon a small herd of llama, including a very young baby, which we think probably live wild in the park.
It was only a couple of hours slow ramble around the trail but most enjoyable. We had to wait a while for a bus to take us back into town and the day out ended up costing us a grand total of $6.50. Once again we’d enjoyed doing things under our own steam and outdoor activities in Ecuador are proving to be exceedingly budget friendly. We could have booked a tour from town but that would have set us back $36 each – an expensive way to buy lunch!
It was just as well it hadn’t been a hot, sweaty day as we couldn’t encourage any hot water to drip out of the shower. Not that I was particularly eager to set foot in our none too clever shower cubicle. There are times during this travelling lark where you have to lower your standards and brave the facilities or save the pleasure of a shower for another day! We ended our brief but enjoyable stay in Cuenca with a lovely, leisurely meal in a beautiful old, colonial courtyard style building. Cuenca is a lovely quiet city; is it really the third largest in Ecuador? We’re glad we came but the weather meant we didn’t explore the city as much as it deserved. Plus it would have been great to spend more time in Cajas National Park and do some of the longer trails. Should you find yourself in Cuenca, for goodness sake spend $30 and get yourself ensconced in some better digs than us!
