Hello guys! It has been an adventure the last couple of days with lots of travel. On Wednesday May 14th, we started off by exploring the city of Cayambe and going into the markets. Before we got off the bus, our translator taught us some bargaining tactics to make sure we got good deals. We got off the bus and went into the market. It was way bigger than I thought and felt never ending. A lot of the shop owners will immediately start selling stuff to you if you even think of looking in their direction. Since they noticed we were American, they tried all they could to make us buy their goods. After walking around the market for a while, I decided to buy some goods, and I used my expert Spanish bargaining skills to get each item below the original asking price. After a group of us felt like we were done shopping, our tour guide showed us this coffee shop where we sat down and got drinks. I got a strawberry smoothie, and it was very good. While we were having our drinks, we decided to play some uno.

Later that day we went up to Cascada de Peguche and took a hike to a waterfall. The waterfall was 90-100 feet tall. You could feel the mist coming off from the walk on the trail. When you got closer, you got more and more soaked. There was a bridge crossing in front of the waterfall where we took some pictures. The bridge was so slippery, and I almost slipped once or twice. It was such an immersive experience to hike into nature and get to experience this huge waterfall. On the way back we checked out the park that they had. It had all kinds of swings and playground equipment that you would not see on normal playgrounds. I really enjoyed experimenting with the different pieces of equipment and seeing how it worked. They also had a zipline which stretched across some trees. I was skeptical because it just had a swing seat and no harness or anything. I thought it was interesting that it was set up that way. It was such a cool experience to go on this hiking trail and see the amazing views!

The next day on Thursday May 15th, we traveled a lot. We were making our way toward the Amazon rainforest. We took a lot of stops along the way experiencing the beauties of Ecuador. One stop we made was in the mountains at the highest elevation we will reach during the trip. We made a stop and took a hike in the mountains at an elevation of 13,300 feet above sea level. It was such an amazing experience to see all the views during the hike. We even tried running on the mountain to see how the elevation affected us. I did not feel it as much when I jogged, but those who ran were all breathing heavy after. After the mountain hike we made a stop at the hot springs. We got to go in and try all the hot springs. They had many different pools each with different temperatures. At the hot springs, I experienced the hottest tub I have ever felt, and also the coldest. It was really relaxing to just hang out in the hot springs and enjoy the views of the mountains. We ended our busy travel day by successfully making it to the Amazon rainforest!