Why Ecuador?

As I start these posts, a bit of explanation about our travel choices for this year…. Why Ecuador? Well, I could say, why not? But actually, we did have a process by which Phillip and I chose Ecuador for our first long trip. It started when we realized that we could not travel and maintain a garden at the ranch at the same time. When we went our niece Johnna’s graduation in Illinois in May 2009, the 5-pound zucchini squash we had upon our return made it clear. So, since the garden and travel are both priorities, we settled on a plan to save our big trips for every third year. During our travel year, we would not plant a garden.

During December, 2009, while we were on a Transatlantic cruise with Phillip’s parents, we attended a presentation on the Galapagos Islands. The Galapagos intrigued us, so I bought the Lonely Planet book on it. The book described both the country of Ecuador and the Galapagos, as the islands are part of Ecuador. Although we still want to visit the Galapagos in a future travel year, we realized the Ecuadorian country-side was perfect for our foray into international travel.

You know I love lists, so here is a list of reasons why we chose Ecuador:

• It is the size of the State of Nevada, but contains great diversity in climate, critters, and natural beauty because of the changes in elevation, from the Pacific Coast to its Andes mountain range.
• They use the American dollar as their currency, so we don’t have to figure exchange rates.
• They speak Spanish and hablamos un poco de espanol (we speak a little Spanish). The books say that the Ecuadorians speak slowly and clearly.
• The prices of rooms, food, and travel are very low in comparison to the United States. Phillip is interested in looking at the price of property and houses there.
• Since the equator passes thru Ecuador, the seasons don’t change. You “change seasons” by going from the coast to the mountains. This means they grow all fruits, vegetables, roses, etc. year-round. Did you know that Ecuador exports more roses than any other country? And check your foil tuna package… half of mine say “from Ecuador” (the other half say “from Thailand,” but that’s a future post).
• The government is relatively stable, quite stable actually in relation to some other South American countries. The Ecuadorian president, Rafael Correa, has a PhD in Economics from the University of Illinois, and is nothing like other South American leaders such as Hugo Chavez.
• Although crime exists in Ecuador, it is generally petty thefts and robberies when people don’t take sensible precautions. Travel websites provide great tips on precautions to take (bicycle cable lock to secure your backpack to your chair when you sit at a table to eat, using only registered taxis, etc.)
• And did I mention the critters? Worth noting again, because Ecuador has so many species of hummingbirds, condors, howler monkeys, the list goes on and on…

So, that’s my list to answer the question, “Why Ecuador?”