Over the past 2 days, we did a LOT. We traveled from Quito to Otavalo, and along the way we had some really cool experiences. To wrap up our time in Quito, we visited Yumbos Chocolate for a chocolate tasting. The chocolates were very different, some tasted fruity, some were a little bitter, and one of them tasted like bug spray. At the end of the tasting, we were given a brownie and hot chocolate, which were both very good. After that, we explored a little more of Quito and grabbed some lunch before heading to Bios Chocolate for another tasting and a tour of the chocolate factory.
At Bios, we got to try many of their award-winning chocolates, and everything was delicious. Before the factory tour started, we were given cups with strawberries, pistachio cream, and chocolate so we could make our own Dubai chocolate. Then we got to see the entire chocolate-making process, starting with the cacao beans all the way to wrapping chocolates ourselves. After the tour, we hopped back on the bus for the 2 and a half hour ride to Otavalo.
When we got to Otavalo, we got some dinner and then headed to the hotel, which was up a very winding mountain, so it was a fun bus ride. The next morning, we had the opportunity to hear from the owner of a restaurant about his culture in Ecuador. After this, we went to the market where we bargained with locals to get the best deals on Ecuadorian goods. This was a very cool experience because we got to practice our Spanish and bargaining skills. After a couple of hours of bargaining, we got some lunch and then went back to the hotel to relax for a little bit before heading to dinner. Before dinner, we had a little show from someone at the hotel, where he was playing a couple of instruments along to music while we were dancing. It was a lot of fun. We ended the night going out to eat and getting some very rare steaks.