Otavalo, a town in Northern Ecuador (it's Winter there and Summer here--only two seasons), is home to what is perhaps Ecuador's largest, and definitely its most famous, open air market. It's also home to the indegenous Otavaleño people, whose ancestors have inhabited the area dating back to 13000 BC. Otavaleño's are known throughout Ecuador for their strong character, maintanence of tradition, and ever-evolving business savvy. Every Saturday morning, thousands of Otavaleños (and a whole lot of tourists) crowd the streets of Otavalo in order to showcase (and sell) handmade wool products, jewelry, clothing, yarn, panama hats (which are incorrectly named as they actually originate from Ecuador's town of Monticristi), food, livestock, produce, and the list goes on and on. The market engulfs the entire city, filling up every square inch of every single street. It was an amazing sight to say the least.
A bus ride from Quito to Otavalo takes about two hours on a good day. On a great day, it would take you a coupld of hours more. I arrived in O on Friday afternoon, and needed to find a place to stay. Luckily, I stumbled across a hotel slightly outside of the city, nestled in the rolling hills of Northern Ecuador, complete with a fireplace. The evening found me exploring the city in order to orient myself with the streets. Plus, I desperately wanted take in the amazing landscape and fresh mountain air that you just can't find in a big city. Oh, and I found this killer pie shop, which added to my conclusion that I'm actually traveling in order to eat all over the world. Food brings people together, right?
The market can start as early as 5am, at least when it comes to the animals. I woke up early, but eventually decided that I had seen enough cows in my life (having been from Nebraska and having worked on a farm) and I needed to sleep in. Eventually, my 6'5" frame lumbered downtown, and I immediately started seeing what kind of deals I could make. That damn competitive spirit. I don't know if I'm a consumer (which I would be pretty ashamed of... sort of...), if I just really enjoy bartering/getting a deal, or both. The fact that I never really get or barter for anything for myself helps me think that maybe I just have a bartering problem. But I digress... I love interacting with people, especially from small towns (in other countries). Despite the fact that there were hundreds of tourists on hand for the market, it still felt incredibly communal. Eventually, the busy scene tired me and I headed back up to my mountain abode.
I think that the other reason I decided to go to Otavalo so soon after having arrived in Ecuador was that I wanted to slow things down before I sped up again. Being able to have the opportunity to choose whether or not you wanted to enter the fast(er) placed life is something that I've already come to really cherish about living--for lack of a better word to describe what I'm doing--on the outside, or completely away from, the centers. My short time in Otavalo, along with my month in Guanajuato, have really hammered this concept into my head. Of course, it has its downsides too, but who wants to read about that? (If you do, just let me know and I can whip something up real quick... ha) Anyway, my time in Otavalo really just allowed me to relax and withdraw, even if just for a quick second. I went wandering out in the hills and ran into these:
Of course, I knew that they existed, but when I went out I had no intention of finding them. It just happened.
Anyway, its time for bed. After all, I'm going to need sleep if I'm going to get back in the fast lane.
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