Baños Day 3

Our final full day involved a treacherous trip up a mountain to see the “Manos de Dios,” which was a cheesey tourist trap with a number of roadside attractions aimed at pleasing kids and terrifying parents. The kids convinced us to try four-wheelers (sorry again, mom) before heading back down the mountain.

After lunch, we went on a truly breathtaking horseback riding adventure. The kids, Michelle and Mingo had calm horses, but mine was itching to run and Kyla’s was loco and a bit of a sociopath. Despite these details, the horseback riding was a great and the least terrifying adventure of our time in Baños.

In the morning, we packed up, said goodbye to our host and hopped in a van for the ride back to Quito. Two of the three kids puked on the curvy ride, but after the ziplines, we felt capable of dealing with anything.

We loved, loved, loved seeing Mingelle and family—the weekend was full of laughter (everyone), screams (mostly me) and adventure.Read more