To the Amazon

It was a long and windy road but the views were surreal. The vegetation seemed to rise up and engulf us, waterfall fell from incredible heights into majestic rivers that flowed down the canyon. At times the road was paved, at times not . At times it seemed like a road and at times there was barely room for one vehicle never mind oncoming traffic. Throughout it all the group was in a grand mood, singing, telling stories and getting to know one another better.

In the middle of no where we stop and pick up the most incredible pizza to go and eat it on the bus on the way in. We arrive at the edge of the Napo river and are met by a boat. We load our gear into the boat and are off on a 20 min ride up the river to the Mingo lodge which will serve as our base for the next week. It is an incredible place nestled in the rainforest that you can see only a tiny bit of the dining room from the water as you approach. Individual cabins await us and we are divided into small groups for sleeping companions. Bedding with linen, bathrooms in each room and electricity from 6-10pm each day. It far exceeds the expectations of anyone in the group and we are feeling quite humbled by the graciousness of our host and the program.

We meet various people who live and work for Free the Children and for the lodge and they orient us to where we are and what the plan is for the next few days. We even meet Yolanda, a parrot the has taken residence at the lodge as well. A fine dinner is prepared for us, and we all enjoy the feast and the company.

Following dinner we learn more about Free the Children organization and it's connection to the Me to We project that we are involved in. We check in with one another, share our hopes for the next day and our highlights from today and then head back to our rooms, flashlights in hand to see what creatures might meet us along the way and even perhaps in our rooms.

The air is loud and alive with the sounds of crickets, cicada, and other yet to be identified sounds. It's louder than any city. In the distance, the neighbouring community is having a celebration and we can hear their music and sounds as well. The generator goes off, we are plunged into darkness and settle in for the night .

Standing on the middle

Our day begins with a simple breakfast at the hotel and then a gathering with the Me to We staff for an orientation to the organization, our time together, rules, safety and expectations. Then we don sunscreen and hats and head out for our morning in old Quito . The streets are quaint, and are filled old and new architecture, a variety of smells and sounds to awaken us to this city. We are being toured by Jesusa, an indigenous woman who is a traditional healer and one who wants to share the beauty and wisdom of the traditional ways . A translator is provided as she speaks only Spanish. Her passion is contagious and she draws us in instantly seeing the world around us through her eyes. Along the ways we sample a traditional healing tea and sweets .

From there we are escorted by Jesusa through the Casa del Alabado museum which has a very fine collection of indigenous artifacts that tell the story of their cultural belief systems and spirituality. From there we move to the main market square where we are invited to join in a tradition dance ceremony before we bid her goodbye.

The next part of our walk takes us uphill to a basilica where pictures are taken and we meet our bus that takes us to the hilltop that overlooks the city. There we have a picnic lunch and a bit of free time to take pictures and take in the view of the enormous expanse of the city.

Back on the bus we go and head to the equator, about an hours bus ride away. This spot had to be moved about 20 meters to its present location after the Invention of GPS . The Mitad del Mundo center is there and we are escorted on a tour which again shares some of the indigenous history of the area and then we are shown a variety of cool science "tricks". These included watching water drain in opposite directions on either side of the equator, shadow casting and exacting time dials, balancing an egg and walking along the line to sense the pull to either side.

We make the hour long trek through rush hour traffic, narrow and steep streets to our hotel and then head out for supper at a Ecuadorian restaurant. Lots of people, sellers etc are everywhere. At the restaurant there is some great entertainment featuring a man, his guitar and a pan flute. Several buy his CD and even a pan flute is purchased ! We return to the hotel for some group building and more orientation to what comes next in the amazon. Our bus ride there tomorrow starts very early as it is 8 hours of driving and then a short boat ride to the lodge we are staying at. We want to be there before dark.

A full first day. But a great one. The adventure has just begun.

In Quito at last.

Our day starts with a leisurely breakfast at the hotel. A bus ride and long check in finds us inside security with 3 hours to wait for our flight. Food is consumed, card games played, group bonding and laughter then on to the plane to Miami . The flight is about 3 hours long and once in Miami we move quickly to our connecting flight and off to Quito we go for another 4 hours. By the time we arrive people are tired and ready to end a long day of travel. We are delayed getting to our bus because of one luggage issue but eventually we get on the bus and start the journey to our hotel for the night.

We meet our two me to we hosts: Lilly and Hillary. They are bubbly and helpful and have pizza waiting for us on the bus. They make some quick comments about the day tomorrow as we make the hour long journey to the city. We arrive at 12:30 to a very quaint hotel and quietly find our rooms which are all different. A few are starting to notice the altitude difference when they climb the stairs to their room. A few are feeling a bit dizzy. But on the most part we are excited to be here and ready for the adventure to begin.

Our morning brings a new sign of altitude adjustment : change in appetite. We are encouraged to eat even if we aren't hungry. A quick meeting this morning and we are off.

Sunscreen, water, hats and we are ready for the day.

Hanging out in Toronto

An early departure from families at the airport this morning has meant that the plane ride was rather quiet and uneventful. Most slept for a bit, watched inflight tv and read. Going over Thunder Bay we hit significant pockets of turbulence and on and off throughout the rest of the flight we encountered such including a bit of a rough landing. All fared well though and after collecting our luggage made our way to the shuttle bus and headed to the nearby hotel.

Half the group opted to stay at the hotel to swim, rest and chill. The other half headed onto the public transit system (TTC) at the beginning of rush hour and headed to Kensington market. A bus ride followed by a subway ride found us downtown at queens park and city hall. Street cars were slow in coming so we ended up walking the rest of the way to the market. The group had a good time wandering the streets, sampling food, buying stylish sunglasses and looking at street art. Our return trip was faster as it was 7 by the time we left the market and rush hour was waning. We hopped on a streetcar and headed back up to the subway only to have to be evacuated in the subway approach tunnel due to a medical crisis in the car ahead. Up on the subway platform our connections to subway and then bus back were good and we were back in time for supper at the hotel. After supper , most of the group had another swim and then headed to bed to catch up on sleep before the two flights enroute to Quito in the morning.

Tomorrow, Ecuador !! Everyone seems excited to be on our way.

An introduction

This is a blog site for parents and friends of those traveling to Ecuador with Reynolds High School Leadership classes with the Craig Kielburger organization ME to WE

We will have limited access to internet throughout the 2 week period but I will attempt to create a blog post each day with a summary of some of what we have done and seen with the odd picture attached.  These may get posted in batches as internet becomes available. 

Hopefully this will give you some flavour of what is happening to this fine group of students as we travel through the amazon, interact with the locals, engage in volunteer projects, meet fascinating people and see amazing natural habitats.

We look forward to sharing our journey with you .