Jaunted

Tags: Ecuador Travel / Jaunted Field Trips / Jaunted in Ecuador / → All Tags

Ecuador Field Trip: Going Volcano Chasing

Living the shadow of a volcano can't be easy, but the residents of Baños, Ecuador seem to take ever-present threat of eruption and potential devastation in stride.

And that's a good thing, because just 8 days before my boyfriend Jeff and I hopped a flight to South America, the Tungurahua volcano finally blew its top, sending a smoldering column of ash miles into the air and molten rivers of lava streaming toward civilization. According to news reports, 3000 townspeople and villagers were forced to flee their homes, and the entire area was given a "state of emergency" designation by the government.

What better time, we figured, to go visit the place?

more ›

Tags: Jaunted Field Trips / Jaunted in Ecuador / Ecuador Travel / Adventure Travel / → All Tags

Ecuador Field Trip: Escape to Mindo

Two of the Lost Girls are sharing their trips with us this week. Amanda just returned from Ecuador while Holly ventured to Antarctica.

One of Quito's greatest selling points? Within less than a day's travel from the city, you can reach the Amazon rainforest, the Andes mountains, the Pacific beaches, active volcanoes and of course, the country's namesake attraction: the equator.

My BF Jeff and I decided to skip out on the big painted stripe at Mitad del Mundo. (It's disappointing, we'd heard, since GPS now indicates that the actual equator is hundreds of feet away from the touristy hooplah.) Instead, we hopped a bus to a town called Mindo.

We'd attended an informal barbecue the day after our arrival and everyone--our hosts Andrew and Lau, their ex-pat friends, backpacker buddies and dozens of local Ecuadorian attendees--had recommended it as one of the best short trips from the city. If you can't make it all the way to the Amazon basin, Mindo will give you all the rainforest you can handle.

more ›

Tags: Jaunted Field Trips / Jaunted in Ecuador / Ecuador Travel / Bars / → All Tags

Ecuador Field Trip: Quito for Beginners

Long-haul travel is tough enough on your body without subjecting it a rock-hard, critter-infested guesthouse mattress. At least, not on your first night in town.

To ensure that my boyfriend Jeff and I would rest and repair in record time, we went the 300-thread count, mint-on-the-pillow route by booking at a weekend's stay at the Marriott Quito. While the room cost us less than $150 online, I later learned that spontaneous types can wander into the hotel and ask for a discounted rate on weekends. (We're talking up to 50 percent off during low season.)

We also liked that the place was a two-minute walk from The Mariscal, a touristy district the locals affectionately refer to as "Gringolandia."

more ›

Tags: Jaunted Field Trips / Jaunted in Ecuador / Ecuador Travel / HOWTO / → All Tags

Ecuador Field Trip: Trying to Get off the Ground

When I traveled around the world with two girlfriends last year, the three of us often relied on dumb luck and the kindness of strangers to get us from point A to B safely. And if we missed a bus or a flight was delayed? No harm, no foul--after all, we had 12 months to accomplish our globe-lapping mission, right?

But that ease-of-attitude drastically changes when you're planning an eight-day trip to Ecuador with a new boyfriend. My method for making sure everything went right was to carefully plan every detail so that nothing could possibly go wrong. Which, of course, was the fastest way to ensure that everything did.

As dominoes toppled, I struggled to maintain the new girlfriend illusion that I'm a fun, lighthearted traveler--and not a thoroughly seasoned, take-no-bullshit road warrior. In the end, all pretenses went to pot and bitchy won out. My top four travel snafus--and solutions for next time--after the jump.

more ›