![](\"http:\/\/cyber.law.harvard.edu\/blogs\/static\/dowbrigade\/window5.jpg\")
The volcano
\n was angry last night. On our last night in Banos, through a light but
\n persistent drizzle, the loud booming blasts echoed up and
\n down the valley as Mount Tungurahua, still in activity although not immediately
\n dangerous, let off gas and smoke in a sort of geophysical indigestion.<\/p>\n
A least a dozen times during the night the powerful explosions shook
\n the Andean air, louder than dynamite, keeping us awake in anticipation
\n of our dawn departure back to the coast of Ecuador. At 6 am we gave up
\n on sleep, rose from under the comfortable covers in the pool-size cabana
\n in the Hotel Sangay, downed our daily dose of pharmaceuticals (Lipitor
\n for cholesterol, Atenenol and Lisinopril for hypertension, a Mega
\n Vitamin with anti-oxidants called "Super Crusader" and a healthy dose
\n of codeine in anticipation of the all-day bus trip down to the Pacific
\n Ocean), and headed across the street to the Ba?s of the Virgin.<\/p>\n
Even at that hour the baths, located directly across from the Sangay
\n and under the veil of a hundred-and-fifty foot waterfall, were full of
\n locals and vacationers getting an early start on the day. They open every
\n morning at 5:30 and cost $2 for foreigners like the Dowbrigade, $1 for
\n Ecuadorians and 50 cents for kids and seniors. Without a comment on the
\n inherent discrimination we plopped down a couple of Sacagawegis and headed
\n for the hottest of the half dozen pools of mineral water.<\/p>\n
![](\"http:\/\/cyber.law.harvard.edu\/blogs\/static\/dowbrigade\/falls.jpg\")
The steam rising from the pool blended imperceptibly with the smoky
\n fog from the low-lying clouds that blanketed the town. We were
\n the only Gringo at that early hour, but over a hundred Ecuadorians were
\n easing into the pools, showering under the icy fresh water streams diverted
\n from the glacial runoff, or chatting on the cement benches around the
\n perimeter of the establishment. However, only a half-dozen were in the
\n pool we entered, the hottest of them all. It was obvious why; the
\n water was just at the borderline of tolerable. We felt our skin
\n turning red and imagined this was what it was like to be a lobster at
\n a New England clam bake.<\/p>\n
As we gazed out over the town and mentally bade it a fond adieu, as
\n always just until we could figure out a way to get back here, our glasses
\n started to steam up and we grabbed them from our face, with a bit more
\n force than intended. One lens popped out as we fumbled to catch them
\n before they disappeared into the murky green pool. Luckily we were
\n successful; otherwise we would probably still be there searching vainly
\n and waiting for them to drain the bath. We decided it was a good time
\n to pack up and hit the road.<\/p>\n
A quick cold coke to replace some of the bodily fluids the baths leeched
\n out, and back across the street to the hotel, more clearly visible now
\n in the early morning light and lifting fog. In the hotel parking lot,
\n which had been empty when we arrived last Tuesday, there were now several
\n dozen cars, trucks and vans, including one giant tour truck belonging
\n to a European climbing expedition, 30 feet long and packed with tents,
\n pitons, ropes and assorted other mountain gear, a Land Rover pulling
\n a trailer with three Moto-cross type bikes, mud encrusted and dangerous
\n looking, and a number of vans from tourist agencies in Quito, the capital,
\n three hours away.<\/p>\n
We rinsed off in the shower of our room. Norma Yvonne had the
\n bags packed, so all that remained was to lug them to the dining room
\n for the excellent breakfast; cheese and vegetable crepes, melon, watermelon,
\n apple and pineapple slices, fresh-baked bread with honey and guava jelly,
\n papaya and passion fruit juice, coffee or tea with water or milk.Then
\n down to reception to pay the bill – $160 for four nights, four breakfasts,
\n two lunches and a dinner, numerous phone calls. Use of the tennis courts,
\n whirlpool, sauna, turkish bath, home theater and computer center included.
\n About what we had expected, although we had forgotten the 22% tax and
\n service charge, bringing the total hit on our Visa to $195. One of the
\n few tourist towns in the world where we can afford to stay at the best
\n joint in town, we thought as always.<\/p>\n
![](\"http:\/\/cyber.law.harvard.edu\/blogs\/static\/dowbrigade\/buss.jpg\")
Taxi to the terminal, and an hour-long bus ride to the regional crossroads
\n of Ambato, arriving there at 9:15. After half an hour wait, an
\n ancient but serviceable Mercedes Benz touring bus, probably retired from
\n some more civilized route in the Alps and imported as junk into Ecuador,
\n pulled in and we got on. This would be our viewing platform for the harrowing
\n descent from the heights to the sea for the next 12 hours.<\/p>\n
Very soon after leaving Ambato we crossed the Continental Divide, which
\n is only a couple of hundred kilometers from the Pacific Ocean in this
\n part of South America. Everything east of the ridge of the Andes
\n flows down into the Amazonian jungle, and eventually, several thousand
\n kilometers later, into the Atlantic Ocean. We settled into our seats,
\n ready to be enthralled as always by the panoramic views, the glimpses
\n of life in the Andes, the quick succession of climatically and culturally
\n distinct zones as we lose altitude, and the amusing graffiti scrawled
\n and painted on walls and rock faces along the highway. Why, just
\n in the first 30 minutes we saw "Lucio (the President) – Traitor", "Legalize
\n It (no clue as to what "it" was), and "Yankees Out of Iraq" (probably
\n not the baseball team).<\/p>\n
We are back on the beach now, sweating up a storm and looking forward
\n to tennis with the Mayor tomorrow morning. But we know we will
\n be back in Baños soon, as we have been constantly returning since our
\n first visit 32 years ago. Anyone with a chance to visit this little piece
\n of heaven on earth would be a fool to pass it up.\n <\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The volcano was angry last night. On our last night in Banos, through a light but persistent drizzle, the loud booming blasts echoed up and down the valley as Mount Tungurahua, still in activity although not immediately dangerous, let off … Continue reading