cotopaxi

so i decided to leave quito on a bank holiday. the bus station was hectic. after about an hour of trying to figure out the logistics of tickets which termianal to go to, etc. i managed to stand in the right bundle for the bus... it was mayhem... sort of a riot to try and get on a bus, with angry police puching people, people climbing into windows and dogs being thrown through windows. i managed to get on - just! - and get a seat with my pack securely on my lap. latachunga my destination, i made small talk with the locals on the back seat.

the hostal (cafe tianna) is beautiful, but quiet. after a few drinks with the dutch owner and her ecuadorian husband the ipòd made its way onto the pa.

the following morning 2 german girls, myself and our guide drove us the hour and a half up winding dirt track needed to reach the base of cotopaxi. it´s beautiful. STUNNING. a 6000m, glacier topped, mountain... bigger than any in europe. the hike took about 2hour to get to a meeting building. from there we trundled to the snow, encouraging one of the girls who was so big headed at the start as to say it would be "easy". when we got there, it was a white out, expected but still a bit dissappointing as i am certain the view would have been amazing.

it was well worth doing and made me feel as though my adventure had started.

next stop riobamba or banos. x