Tabacundo

Today I welcome my first guest writer Ben Berthet, the French-American future doctor and author of “similar differences”:

Today was a blast! We did a day trip from Quito to Ovatalo, a popular street market 2 hours north of the capital, but there were many exciting stops along the way.

First, we stopped at a local bakery where the locals eat freshly made biscuits. Described as soft, crispy, and crunchy, they are baked first at high temperature for 30 min then again at low temperature for 3-4 hours to dry them out further. They are noticeably different and softer than Italian biscottis which are much firmer and often require dipping into a hot drink to soften it. The local way to eat the Ecuadorian biscuit includes spreading “dulce de leche,” a sort of thicker, sweet paste across the flat side followed by unrolling a slice of cheese across it. Sold in plain paper bags containing 8 biscuits for one dollar, locals know this local delicacy is consistently delicious. Some even drive over an hour from Quito just for breakfast!

Second, we stopped at a local musician’s home where he and his son make single flutes or the rondado, the Ecuadorian version of the flute consisting of multiple bamboo pipes tied together in series. While we were watching the son make one from scratch in 5 minutes, his father apparently can make one in half the time! And following was a short, impressive demonstration from the father simultaneously using a guitar and rondado!

We soon stopped again at a textile mill where we had a demonstration of how sheep or alpaca wool were cleaned, pulled into strands, colored with fruit, seeds, flowers, or insects! For example, one tiny little insect that lives inside dying cacti was removed from its home inside the store and crushed, expressing a large amount of red blood to obtain a red color. A powder from a plant was added turning the red to orange. Baking soda was then added and instantly turned the orange into purple.

Our next stop entailed a little nature with a beautiful waterfall. Pictures and words can never do justice to scenes like that.

Lastly, we finally reached the Ovatalo Market. We placed our 8 lunch orders for the group and proceeded to shop for the next hour. Imagine one city block as an open space then filled compactly with vendors each contending for a sale. The merchandise highlighted local textiles, art, jewelry, and home goods. There were rows and rows of ponchos, shirts, hammocks, hats, dreamcatchers, earrings, socks, paintings, stone work, wood work, bags, and many more hand-made goods. And no street market is complete without some bargaining. We returned with our bags to the restaurant and proceeded to enjoy extremely delicious local flavors that I’ve never had before.

I have to add that the journey isn’t complete without the fellow travelers in the group who are all sharing the experience together. They add the joy, laughter, conversation, and thoughtful discussion that makes the day very full and fun! I’ve done several “day trips” like these to discover small, hidden gems that only locals know about. I can confidently say that every trip, with its random assortment of travelers from around the world of varying ages and languages, is a fantastic, enjoyable adventure. These adventures can never be done in my home country and they blend exciting tourist activities with an appreciation of the local people, culture, and traditions. Five stars :)Read more