They call it lindo Mindo

The Lumbisí carrier bike, used for carting around food/drink stands. Sorry I am in the way! However this style, with the two front wheels is quite common here in Quito, but I paticularly like the rich blues and greens on this one.

Another monday morning, I am posting this with my trusty caffe Americano by my side. Mindo, the town I spent Saturday night in, was a very enjoyable time. Our hostel was beautiful, clean and had a jacuzzi in a cave like thing to boot. Mindo reminds me quite a bit of Costa Rica, it was a tropical rain forest climate, and had tourist activities like zip lines, 4-wheeling, and tubing. We did none of those things, but instead chose a wonderful trail that took you to about 7 waterfalls, some big enough to swim in the frigid river.

As soon as we arrived (it was only about an hour and a half from Quito) we realized they, like so many other towns in Ecuador, were in the throes of another festival. Smaller than Lumbisí's four-day extravaganza, Mindo's was modest but enjoyable nonetheless. Quite a few locals celebrating, mixed in with the random tourists from all over the world. I enjoyed the small-town feel, and my group and I just hopped from little bar to little restaurant, enjoying the local food and drink while getting into heated discussions on politics and very rich archaeological conversations. Our favorite place might have been the Kissama Kafe, a small joint honoring the Kissama national park in, of all places, Angola, Africa. The pizza there was amazing :)

Later today, with a stronger internet connection I will download a photo album of not only adventures in Mindo, but a birthday celebration last Friday in which I ate massive amounts of sushi. Mmm...