March 1st
found us back home in Salinas. For everyone’s information, the months of
January to April are our rainy months and also our sunniest and warmest months-
it is after all summer 2 degrees south of the equator. The rain, at times very
heavy, falls mostly during the night and early morning, with sunshine returning
in the afternoon. Though the media reported unusually heavy rainfall and flooding
all over Guayas province (where we live) we found the reports concerning
conditions in Salinas highly exaggerated. The bad flooding was mostly in
Guayaquil as told to us by people who had actually gone there.
This is also
the beginning of some of the most beautiful sunsets as seen from our back deck.
We enjoyed
lots of beach time with friends since the weather during the afternoon was
mostly perfect- sunny and 30C plus. Our condo provides free cabanas on the
beach- here are some views while seated in ours.
There is no
end to entertainment for children on the beach. Along with banana boats, water
skiing and see doos, we saw the following.
A huge slide
where you walk up and slide down the other side-wow- talk about tiring the
little darlings out.
More water
toys
And yet
more!
There were
also some adult sporting events in Salinas- this was a skinny bike race.
One weekend
we drove with our friends Eddie and Paola to the nearby fishing village of
Anconcito. This village is very small and quite poor. The water front
where all the fishing boats came in was very interesting though.
Looking
towards the harbor.
The boats, fishermen
and birds hoping to snatch some fish.
The one
thing that this village has though is a very good restaurant called Fruko- tiny
but great food.
Our lunch of
lobster tails, rice and salad.
Our group-
can’t have a meal without cold cerveza!
Another weekend
we were invited to a new Italian restaurant opening. We got there about 8:30PM
and were treated to free appetizers and vino- not a bad deal. We’ll definitely
have to come back to try out the menu.
Here is our
happy table of friends.
And the free
entertainment.
While we had
been in Cuenca, we had invited the two couples we had befriended there to visit
us in Salinas. Cody had already been here once before- see Blog February 2012-
but her husband Michael and Larry and Donna had never been. They decided to
come on a Monday and stay until Thursday. They all came together sharing a car
with our driver Angel who had taken us to so many places around Cuenca during
the last year. Again for everyone’s information, the trip usually lasts from 5 ½
to 6 hours and is through some of the
most beautiful country side- Cajas Mountain park, descending through jungle on
the other side and then through the bread basket of Ecuador- farms of cacao,
sugar cane, bananas, rice, mangoes and many many other fruits. The usual cost
for a car and driver is approximately $150.
They arrived
shortly after noon and we all went to a restaurant on the Malecon and treated
Angel to lunch before his long drive home.
Our group
after Angel left
The next day
was beautiful and sunny. We decided to spend the whole day on the beach even
having lunch there by buying from the many vendors selling various foods,
empanadas, bollos, mani etc. Lauri, our friend and neighbor, and Connie and
Murray also joined us.
Eating under
the cabana
Walking
along the sunny beach
Is that
Larry and Donna?
We also had
the best entertainment- the local air force base, our neighbor, had its
parachuting practice all day. We saw eight different dumps of parachuters
floating down from our location on the beach and later from our balcony.
Larry
relaxing after a hard day at the beach- do you think he likes my hammock?
On
Wednesday, we took a couple of taxis (half hour ride for $6 per cab) to a
wonderful place called Farallon Dillon. http://www.farallondillon.com/ This is a
hotel/restaurant/museum/antique & art store in a very scenic location along
the coast north of us. Lauri and another friend, Randy, joined us.
A view of
the coast and restaurant beside
Our entire
group
After a
great lunch we explored the many antiques in the restaurant and bar area and
had a tour of the museum. The museum also sold many articles ( art, furniture,
pottery) some old and some made by local artists.
A moose head
in Ecuador?
Larry &
Donna at the bar
Lauri &
I flirting with the pirate
Our visit
with these friends came to an end far too quickly obviously calling for a
repeat in the near future.
Our pizza
farewell dinner at one of our favorite restaurants.
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