a la playa

Life continues to be going great in Quito! I've come down with a little cold last night and today, but I think it's just a virus that's going around our family, so I should be better in no time! And it's a great excuse to miss some of my classes today :)

I got back Sunday night from another fabulous weekend trip. We headed out at midnight on Thursday night to go to Tonsupa, a beach in Esmeraldas (northwest of Quito). The trip started off as typically-gringo as it could -- we were running back and forth between 2 different buses, not sure which one we were supposed to be on. Turns out we bought the wrong tickets, had to get on a bus going to the city of Esmeraldas, then switch there (at 5:45am) to a bus that was going to Tonsupa. We got into Tonsupa around 6:30am, settled into the apartment where we were staying, and once it was actually a reasonable hour, we headed out to the beach. Unfortunately, it was rainy for the most of the day, but we were still able to enjoy the beach from the comfort of some chairs and a tent set up on the shore.

 

 

For dinner, we went out to a restaurant by the shore for some good seafood. I had camarones encocados (coconut shrimp) -- not the fried coconut shrimp you might imagine, but shrimp in a coconut sauce with rice and plantains. After we chilled at the apartment for a while, some of us headed back out to some of the tiki bars on the beach.

 

We also enjoyed a BEAUTIFUL sunset

Saturday, we woke up to a beautiful day! The sun was out, and the beach was a lot more crowded than the day before. We relaxed out on the beach and even buried our friend Juan in the sand!

We grabbed some lunch on the beach. I had my first Ecuadorian ceviche, and I must say, nothing compares. Ceviche is what the coast of Ecuador is known for -- it's basically raw seafood marinated in lime juice and cilantro. They also add popcorn and banana chips to it for some crunch. Absolutely delicious.

 

We relaxed/slept some more on the beach before heading back to our apartment. We went out to dinner again, this time to celebrate the 21st and 22nd birthdays of our friends Adam and Cole. This time, I had camarones apanados (fried shrimp). I just love shrimp.

 

We spent the night celebrating birthdays at the apartment, and then back at the tiki bars on the beach. Sunday, we woke up, and it was rainy again. After getting some breakfast, cleaning up the apartment, and eating lunch, some of us headed back on a 3:45 bus to Quito. It was another fun-filled, entertaining weekend!

This week is already turning out to be a much-needed week of relaxation for me. I need to recover from my cold. This weekend, I don't have any big plans, and I'm excited about a weekend spent in Quito!