Adventures with my Best Friend and Awesome Textiles

The longer I'm here, the faster time seems to fly! As I try to cram all of my gifts into my suitcases, say goodbye to my friends, and mentally prepare to come home, I'll do my best to fill y'all in as well.

Last Saturday (9/23/17) was jam-packed with craziness! As with most Saturdays, I left San Antonio and headed to the Plaza de Ponchos. After about an hour, AndrĂ© called and asked me to meet him, since he and his friends were coming to spend the day in Otavalo. I got to his car, only to be whisked away to Cuicocha (by way of Cotacachi) because 3 of his friends were visiting from the US and wanted to see Cuicocha. We once again walked the trail and were subjected to jokes about walking the whole way around, but thankfully, I didn't buy it. After walking on the trail a short bit, half of the group went on a boat ride, while the other half (including Andre and me) waited for them. 



Fanny said I need to take more selfies, so I tried. Ugh.

 One more visit to Cuicocha, and I might be able to make money as a guide or something. Hey, when you're a grad student, you never stop looking for a way to make a little money. ;)

No matter where I go, I can't seem to help myself from finding/studying handicrafts. They will make a custom bracelet with your name in under 3 minutes for...you guessed it, $1! (I swear, I constantly hear and see people selling items for either $1 or $0.50! No wonder Americans love to visit!) At least this solves the problem for those who can never find their names on gas station gifts.

We then went back to Otavalo, where they had about an hour to explore the Plaza before they had to return to Quito so they could eat and catch their flight back to the US. After they left, I continued my research/shopping. I was excited and shocked to discover Panamanian molas at a stand! 



I then came back to San Antonio to eat dinner, shower, and change so we could go to the election/coronation of the queen of Ibarra, since Karo was singing at the event (more in the next post because I have too many photos/videos). It was a crazy day, but a great one! One of my contacts commented that I seemed to be glowing because I seemed so happy when I passed him in the market. He was probably right. It was one of those amazing days where I switched back and forth between English and Spanish seamlessly. Always ready for more of those!

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