After returning from the Waorani community, we still had two more days left at Iyarina before heading home.
On Wednesday morning, we woke up, ate breakfast, and got a chance to relax a little after the long travel day back from the Amazon. The break was very much needed. Later in the morning, we headed over to paint the clay pots we had made earlier in the trip. I started by painting lines and dots around the top of my bowl, and then one of the women helping us suggested using leaves to make prints in the paint. I decided to try it, and although my bowl did not exactly look the best while I was painting it, I was excited to see how it would turn out after firing.
After painting, we headed to lunch and then another chocolate tasting. This time we tried chocolate from Kallari, and it was incredible. At this point, I genuinely thought I had reached my limit with chocolate, but apparently not, because I still ended up buying more bars to bring home.
The rest of the afternoon was relaxing and after dinner that night, we decided to head into town to continue celebrating Cindy’s birthday. Everyone had so much fun, and it was nice spending one of our last nights in Ecuador all together laughing, dancing, and enjoying our time.
The next morning, we woke up early once again and headed to our final chocolate factory visit of the trip. Even though it was pouring rain, we walked through the cacao farm while they showed us the entire process, from harvesting the cacao pods to drying the beans and turning them into chocolate. We were even given cacao pods to take back with us, although I ended up eating mine during the tour because I could not wait. And yes, somehow I bought even more chocolate. Thankfully, these were officially the last bars I purchased.
After returning to Iyarina for lunch, we had some free time before dinner. During the break, we checked on our clay pots from the day before, and mine had broke during the firing process. That evening after dinner, Iyarina hosted a small celebration with live music. We danced with another group staying there as well as members of the family who run the lodge. It ended up being such a fun way to spend one of our final nights in Ecuador. Later, a few of us headed to the pool one last time before going back to pack our bags and get ready to leave the next morning.
Our final morning in Ecuador was supposed to be simple. We woke up, ate breakfast, packed our things, and planned to leave when the bus arrived at 10 a.m. However, the world had one last adventure planned for us. Because of landslides, the bus did not actually arrive until almost 3 p.m.
Instead of stressing about it, we spent the extra hours sitting around the fire pit, talking and soaking in our final moments at Iyarina and in Ecuador as a whole. When the bus finally arrived, we were all relieved, although we still had a five hour ride ahead of us before reaching the airport. Along the way, we stopped at a convenience store where I bought snacks and empanadas for the trip. Now, after all of the buses, boats, hikes, chocolate tastings, and long days, I am sitting in the airport writing my final blog post.
Looking back on these past two weeks, I honestly cannot believe how much we experienced in such a short amount of time. From hiking through rainforests and swimming in rivers to visiting the Waorani community, exploring markets, eating amazing food, and somehow consuming more chocolate than I ever thought possible, every day brought something completely new. More than anything, I am incredibly grateful for this experience and for all of the people who made it what it was. I learned so much about Ecuadorian culture, met amazing people, and made memories I know I will talk about for years. This trip pushed me outside of my comfort zone in the best possible way, and while I am definitely excited to sleep in my own bed again, part of me is not ready for it to be over.