Feb. 9, 2020 Sun- Its hard to believe we are half way through our trip already. It will be going even faster now as we will be moving to Mexico and three different cities in the second half of the trip. Bill and I attended a small local church this morning. Standing room only, but we were there in time to get a decent seat. Funny they had air conditioning but had the windows open with the ceiling fans running. The air must be for warmer temps. say about the 85 it was in there? Across the street from the church is a coffee shop/restaurant called Common Grounds and we had passed this several times. I was in the mood for a cappuccino so we hopped on over. Nice place with great service and atmosphere.
Time to hit the beach. It was still a little cloudy out and a good time to go and swim. The sun is very intense here as it was in Cuenca and you don’t really feel the burn until it’s too late. I was sitting on a wall for a few minutes and when we got home Bill noticed a little spot on my one leg that had been hanging out that got a little too much sun. Nothing severe but goes to show me the point. I need to be extra careful. I have been really cautious with my face keeping a hat on at all times. A little snack in the apt and watched the movie Predator. After all of the these years I still like this movie. We headed out for some dinner, and ended up dining where we had some ceviche the other day. We had a nice Corvina fish with salad, rice, and fried plantains. Excellent. On our walk after dinner we decided to go a different direction up the Malecon. We were walking a block from the apt. when we saw a nice flower in someone’s garden. The man was wearing a UNC Charlotte t-shirt and the conversation began. We were invited into the garden, and then eventually in the house for cake, ice cream, gelatin, and juice. Wow. What hospitality. Two hours later Robert offered to take us to the other side of the peninsula to see the sea lions and sun set on Mon. WHAT A COUNRTY. Robert has a Puerto Rican mother and his father was from New York. He just found out 15 years ago that he had a U.S. passport as a child. Robert was so proud to say he his American too. Myra is Ecuadoran. Together they had three lovely daughter who are all married. Robert’s brothers both live in the U.S. Robert and Myra celebrated 50 years of marriage three years ago, and Robert retired two years ago from Guayaquil and moved here. Robert was in Chicago years ago for a conference and said he never thought a man could ever be “that cold”. LOL
what is left of dinner 
sunset
Feb 10, 2020 MON- No swimming today. The sun was very warm and so was I. we took a city bus to the south end of the malecon and walked back. We saw the marina, Chipipi beach,ans San Lorenzo Beach. Stopped at the market for a few things to tie us over until Sat. Came back to apt. had lunch and crashed. Walking in the heat and humidity really sucks the life out of me. We ran into Mykal who is the surfer dude and he showed us where to rent bikes. Nice little chat. He invited us to his “tent” on the beach at 11:00 on tues where he will be giving lessons.
morning shenanigans 
now there’s a fish scale 
marina 
batido yum
The late afternoon and evening was utterly amazing. Our new Foster Family, Roberto and Mya took us on a car ride to the tip of the peninsula and to the highest view point in Salinas. The property is owned by the Air Force but admittance is allowed. Here you will find The westernmost point of Ecuador has three main attractions:La Fae Beach, with a boarded walkway where you can watch a seal colony;El Morro (or little hill), with a lighthouse and incredibly spectacular views over Salinas; and La Chocolatera – a point named for the way the tempestuous waves break on the rocks, creating foam and the impression of a big bowl of chocolate. There is a special place where a crack in the rocks create geyser. It is so cool. It makes a woosh sound also. Pretty cool. Just like Old Faithful. The whole tip is beautiful, truly amazing and special. After touring the tip and watching the sunset, we were taken “home” to Aviles home and made dinner. Including hot chocolate and more cake and ice cream. This couple is sooooo hospitable. Words cannot express my feelings.
Western Most part of Ecuador 
Feb. 11, 2020 Tues- Yet another amazing day. Our “family” took us for a six hour tour in their vehicle. We saw many beaches, went to a Museum, had lunch, saw churches and visited a fishing village. This couple have hearts of gold and have much wisdom for life. Robert is one smart cookie. After a much needed rest from 4:00-5:30 we “hit” the beach to soak our feet. A little Chilly for full in swimming.
The Los Amantes de Sumpa Museum is located in the Province of Santa Elena , It has a clay oven with which ancestral cooking classes are given, a traditional house with the wooden bat, the duffel bag and other elements of the typical coastal house. This last word identifies the native name of the Santa Elena Peninsula and the oldest archaeological site on the Ecuadorian coast, where the remains of a preceramic settlement with evidence of housing, a garbage dump and a cemetery were discovered.
The first references of this place were provided by the American archaeologist Edward Lanning in 1964, who called the Las Vegas complex an area in which he identified traces of a culture prior to the appearance of ceramics. The interest in investigating these testimonies prompted Olaf Holm (+) to carry out a research project led by the anthropologist Karen Stothert, who began studies in 1971, identifying a site on an elongated hill of approximately 150 m in length. The site was excavated several times, the last in 1977.
The best known archaeological evidence of this site constitutes the burial formed by two young individuals (male and female) deposited in a flexed position and with their arms intertwined. On the skeletons several stones were found located in different places of the bodies, as if it were the evidence of an act of stoning or some funeral rite. The truth is that this finding caused great admiration in the population of the area that began to recognize them as “Sumpa lovers.” Although this testimony proves to be the most significant of the excavation of the OGSE 80 site, the importance of it exceeds this discovery because the Las Vegas site is until now the only evidence of a Paleo-Indian settlement on the coast of Ecuador (approximately 7000 years BC).
The site museum is named Los Amantes de Sumpa , due to the burial of two skeletons that are embraced and that are part of the cemetery of the inhabitants of the Las Vegas Culture , listed as one of the oldest in the American continent, towards the 6,000 BC The Museum “The Lovers of Sumpa” was built with the help of several institutions. The Municipality of Santa Elena donating the land, because right in that place the remains of this Culture were found. The Foundation “Pro Pueblo”, the National Cement, the physical construction of the pavilions and the Central Bank of Ecuador the assembly of the Graphic and Ethnographic Museum. The Foundation “Los Amantes de Sumpa” 2At present, the museum “Los Lontes de Sumpa” is being administered by the state, Ministry of Culture and Heritage , entity responsible for managing the activities and ensuring the preservation of the museum through the execution of tourism public investment projects. 3
The museum hosts vestiges of Las Vegas culture. Here are the remains of an embraced man and woman, whose story is considered a symbol of love. It is a sample in situ (of the place). They were buried carefully together. The man with his right hand on the woman’s waist and with the right leg on her pelvis. The woman, meanwhile, is in a flexed position, with one arm over her head. Unusual aspect of this “burial” are 6 large stones that were placed on top of the corpses of the couple. There are also other vestiges that represent the way in which they buried the first inhabitants of this coastal territory, in addition to exposing pieces of Manteño-Huancavilca culture.
So fascinating.
special couple buried together 
all natural materials 
relics 
looking south 
going to be a hotel 
Russian salad with shrimp 
one person on the beach at Ballentia 
huge fruit
Feb. 12, 2020 Wed- Well our next road trip with Roberto and Maya didn’t happen today. Roberto ate something at lunch yesterday that made him ill, and he was tired from the long trip also. So, we stopped over to see how he was doing and ended up being there nearly two hours. Robert has written three books in his retirement. They are a complete pictorial and history of the main central blocks of Guayaquil. He has presented his books to the city for publishing. He intends to write another. The books contain his photographs exclusively. Each street, building, and plaque, has been cataloged in his writings. Each book has taken him three years to put together. After looking at the books, listening to some Opera and being served juice and cookies, we departed to let Roberto rest. We walked back to the Farmer’s Market as Bill didn’t get to see much of it from the previous day, and I was hoping to find an orchid plant to give to Maya for all of her hospitality, as her collection of plants does not include one. I was disappointed to not find ANY plants for sale. At the market there was giant shrimp the size of my hand for $9.00 a lbs.!!! I couldn’t hardly believe it. Our walk took us back up to the Malecon and some lunch. Bill had another fried fish and I opted for fish ceviche. What a bowl full. They serve the ceviche here in cereal bowls! Nap time and then a quick swim before heading back to Roberto’s for a light dinner of pantecones and corn souffle. Of course the leche de queso for dessert. Another day with too much food and no enough exercise. Blah!
giant shrimp 
these prices are per llbs. 
even the kitty gets a little 
fish ceviche
Feb. 1, 2020 Thurs- We had a wonderful sight seeing with Roberto and Myra. They drove us up the coast to Montanita, thru San Pablo, Monteverde, Valdivia.
We drove thru fishing villages, along miles of restaurants on the beach, villages that made woven handy crafts, to the surfers paradise of Montanita. In a small village along the way we stopped in a museum that Roberto had not been in yet. There were all kinds of ruins and artifacts. This is similar to the Sumpa we had visited on tues. Except this was dated to nearly 6,000 years before Christ.
In 1821 the comuneros began to discover archaeological remains when building their houses. Some time later, between 1956 and 1957, the archaeologist Víctor Emilio Estrada, together with a work team made up of community members and foreign professionals, documented the existence of the Valdivia culture, unknown until then, after studying more than 25,000 ceramic fragments found in the zone. 3
The museum was built by DITURIS (National Tourism Directorate) now the Ministry of Tourism in 1978, being opened to the public in 1985, below what is now this site is hidden what was the first site of culture Valdivia excavated scientifically. The inventory of the pieces and objects of the museum was carried out by the comunero Juan Orrala, craftsman and guide of the museum at that time, together with Spanish delegates sent by the national government to inventory all the pieces that the site protects, this process It was carried out between 2013-2014, which states that more fragments than complete pieces were found, with a total of 950 inventory items registered with the Ministry of Culture and Heritagein the city of Quito . 1 The women was the most important part of this culture and was highly revered.
Montañita is a village on Ecuador’s Santa Elena Peninsula, known for its beaches with strong surf breaks and bohemian vibe. Lively bars, nightclubs and thatch-roofed restaurants line the streets. Montañita Beach stretches north to La Punta, a rocky bluff with views over the ocean. Farther north along the coast are Olón village and the nearby cloud forest of the Chongón-Colonche mountains. This is also hippieville. A lot of drinking and smoking pot in the evenings, but the cops don’t seem to bother them much as they bring in a lot of revenue. There are more than enough stores selling trinkets and clothing and restaurants to go around. Blocks and blocks of them. When arriving around 11:00 there didn’t seem to be much going on. But when we left at 2:50 the town seemed to be waking up some. A lot of Rastafarians walking about. The beach was perfect white sand and super wide. On the week-ends the place is said to be crawling with people. NO doubt. The four of us ate lunch upstairs as to get a breeze. It was nearly stifling for me. You can tell you have sweated a lot when you don’t use the bathroom for more than six hours tho you have taken in much fluids. We had a wonderful trip, yet again, thanks to Roberto and Myra. We did not swim only rested upon returning to the apt. Later we walked to the laundry only to find they had JUST closed, but got a little exercise after sitting much of the day.
two happy couples despite the heat 
cute little stands line the streets
Feb. 14, 2020 Fri- Laundry dropped off and carrot cakes purchased for Roberto and Myra. A nice swim and lunch. Laundry picked back up. Rest time before evening party. Roberto and Myra asked us to join them this evening to a small St. Valentine’s Day Fiesta at some friend’s home in a nearby town. Turns out the the home belongs to Roberto’s daughter’s former in-laws. Carlos and Anita moved there four years ago when Carlos retired. Anita is a chef and wanted to open a small typical restaurant and so they bought this facility/home. What a great place to throw a party. Complete with bar and bathrooms. We met Roberto and Myra at their house at 7:00 as we had some left over food to give them along with the cakes. Myra had a beautiful rose in a plastic sleeve for me, because Valentine’s Day here is also for friends. the ride to Ballentia was about 15 minutes. Being a chef of course Anita had all sorts of nuts, three kinds of chips, little hot sausages, all the wine you could ask for, and birthday cake. This group of friends, 50 in all but not all here tonight, gather once a month or so. There were three birthdays to celebrate this evening. Music on a huge console played via Carlo’s smart phone. Blew me away. So among the people attending were: a famous psychiatrist, two chefs, a dental assistant/nurse, a farmer from Dallas, a hardware store owner, an accountant, a major from the army who was at the former President’s side at all times during the war, and a machinist who has been many places around the world. What a gathering of intelligence. I think it was after 11:00 before we left and got a grand tour of the night life in both a nearby town and here on the Malecon. Hard to believe how the Malecon gets transformed at night. It’s like Cancun during spring break. Holy cow, the music, the dancing, people eating, walking the Malecon, and remember this is now all after midnight. Guess we have been missing the boat. What a wonderful way to spend our last evening in Salinas.
DR. 
Feb. 15, 2020 SAT- Today we headed back Guayaquil. Roberto and Myra insisted on taking us to the bus station about 20 minutes ride from Salinas. Myra and I had a weepy moment when parting. This couple is truly of a dying breed. They showed us so much more than we could have ever seen on our own. The love they exhibited is endearing. I will forever remember their kindness and hope to see them again some time. Roberto even boarded the bus to show us our seats. We could have done that ourselves for sure but he insisted. How sweet. The bus was an express and took only and hour and 45 minutes to get to Guayaquil. The cabs were right out front and before 2:30 we were checked into the hotel. This hotel is a small family owned business. All rooms are on ground level and face a court yard with a pool and Jacuzzi. Breakfast is included and we are just a few minutes from the airport. There is a nice covered sitting area in the court yard. Nice for morning coffee or reading. Lounge chairs, etc. A perfect place to spend two days.
The upcoming week will be busy. We spend two nights here in Guayaquil before flying to Mexico City, Mx for two nights. Then fly to La Paz, MX for two nights before getting a rental car to drive to the west side of the Baja De Sur California, MX. Magdalena Bay for whale watching. There we stay one night in hotel on main land before taking a shuttle boat to the island camp where we stay for the whales. This family owned camp has been in business for 40 years. You get up to six hours a day in the boat with your private guide to see the whales. The rest of the time you can fish, swim, kayak, etc. We will be in this location for five nights before returning to La Paz for 21 days. The last two weeks of our trip will be spent in Cabo San Lucas. So, now that I am out of breath, I think I will go swimming before 10:30 a.m. church. Chao!
The Lauers Travel 