Actividades del Centro de Español Vida Verde

2012-01-24T05:57:00.000-08:00

!Fuimos a Otavalo!

!Buenas dias!

This past week-end the Vida Verde excursion went to Otovalo, a largely indigenous town in the Imbabura Province of Ecuador. The town is surrounded by the Imbabura 4,630m, Cotacachi 4,995m, and Mojanda volcanoes and features the famous Saturday market exhibiting colorful Indigenous Andean arts and crafts.

During the market's peak, almost one third of the town becomes full of stalls selling textiles, blankets, jewelry, musical instruments, purses, spices, raw foods and hand-painted platters and trays. They even sell smurf hats, to which Ian from our group was particularly drawn. It was hard for him to pass by a stall without trying on one of the hats each time...

After we spent too much money on markets items we went to drink something in the Café Sol y Luna, ranked #2 of 38 things to do in Otavalo by Lonely Planet travellers. It is a small Belgian-owned café with a cozy dining patio and warm interior serving healthy food. We liked it so much we wanted to come back the next day but found the place closed on Sundays.

Before we allowed ourselves to relax in the hammocks of our Hostal Valle del Amanecer we walked on the 2 km long trail that leads along an abandoned railway line up to the Peguche waterfalls. At the end of the we went to eat dinner in Otavalo in the Mi Otavalito listening to music that was a bit too loud and eating steaks that weren't quite cooked enough...

The next morning started out rainy but after eating a hearty breakfast we were in good spirits to hike around the Laguna de Cuicocha, a still, dark lagoon cradled in a collapsed volcanic crater featuring two mounded islands that look like the backs of two guinea pigs ('Cuicocha' means 'guinea pig lake' in Quichuan language). It is a great hike and we had lots of fun but it was definitely wet this past Sunday!
Time to buy a new raincoat that is really waterproof I guess...

Stay tuned for more and feel free to comment!

Saludos a todos! Sandra

¡Vamos al cine!

2011-11-09T06:30:00.000-08:00

¡Buenos Días!

Yesterday we went with a group of 6 people to the small cine "ocho y medio" located in the district "La Floresta", Quito. It was an ecuadorian documentation film called "Con mi corazón en Yambo". The film tells the sad story about two boys who where kidnapped and assasinated in the time of León Febres Cordero´s government in the late 80s.
It is a great film and was really worth to see! If you have the chance to watch this film, maybe in the internet, take your chance! (by the way it helps you also practising your Spanish!).

Saludos a todos!!

Julia

Clases de cocina!

2011-08-25T07:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we learnt to cook the Ecuadorian way, it was a lot of fun, and we really enjoyed the delicious meal afterwards!!

Chontal!

2011-08-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went to Chontal, Rosas home town, a nice village which is about three hours away from Quito. It was amazing, our group was quite big ( about 12 people) and we had a lot of fun. The first day we went swimming in a river, which was located directly behind our hostal. We all needed a refreshing after the long bus journey so the river was welcome! In the evening we played a lot of ¨cuarenta¨ the typical card game in Ecuador, I am sure that I already got addicted:D
The next day we hiked to Rosas parents Finca, a really nice place. We learnend a lot about plants and we saw all kinds of interesting plants ( bananas, cacao, coffee, watermelon, peanuts and a lot more), just awesome!
We got back to Quitos traffic jungle on Sunday at about 6:30pm, to be fit for lessons on monday morning.

Thanks to Rosa for this great weekend!!

¡Vamos a Baños!

2011-08-15T07:41:00.000-07:00

If you search for the best combination of Extreme Sports, Relaxing and Fiesta you should definetly make a trip to Baños. Guidede by Juan Medina our program of three days in baños was a great success. Especially the Canyoning on Sunday was the Highlight of the tour. Climbing down waterfalls with an altitud of up to 45 meters was a real adrenalin rush for us. But also the hiking and mountainbiking to great waterfalls like the "Pailón del diablo", the "termas calientes" in the night, the panorama view of Baños, the Chiva tour and of course the fiestas at night were awesome and made our trip to an adventure=)

¡Vamos a bailar chicos!

2011-06-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

Would you like to dance like a Latino?
A lot of people come to Ecuador to experience a different culture and dancing is definitely part of it. Even though Salsa is not a traditional dance of Ecuador it is one of the most popular ones!
You never know ...maybe it is one of your sleeping talents, maybe you won't be successful the first time ...but it is definitely worth trying it.
We will organize individual classes for you or, if you prefer classes in a group, find other people for you to join.

But if you really want to learn it, you have to practice a lot. So lets go out ..for example in La Ronda. This is one street in Quitos old town with a lot of colonial styled bars and restaurants, typical food and drinks and mostly live music.
Our school likes to meet there during the evening and to introduce students in the Ecuadorian way of life. Try Canelazo, a hot alcoholic cinnamon drink, and afterwards you just want to dance ..it might be easier as well :)

Learn outside the class room

2011-06-21T13:03:00.000-07:00

Can you imagine going to a market without knowing the majority of the fruits? You have never seen them before, you don't know the names or what they taste like.

Visiting a typical Mercado is one of the most authentic attractions during a stay in Southamerica and part of the everyday life ...so it is in Ecuador. Therefore it is important to learn more about the variety of fruits in this country and which is the best place for it when not our school?

One opportunity is our Mercado de frutas in the school: Students learn about the saisonal fruits in the familiar atmosphere of our school. They read, listen and explain about it and simply enjoy the fantastic taste.

But there are other ways as well: We just like to call it Fiesta de las frutas. Learn about fruits and the needed vocabulary together with your teacher and enjoy the Ecuadorian way of fiesta with music and games.

Last but not least you have the opportunity to sign up for our package to explore the real mercado with your teacher and other students. There you will find more than just fruits: vegetables, meat, fish, cheese ...a lot of people chatting and eating, women trying to catch your attention.
Go shopping and experience the busy life in an Ecuadorian market.

Horseback riding near Cayambe

2010-04-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went horseback riding near Cayambe, where we hoped to see the snowwed top of the Cayambe volcano. After some showers on the way, it stopped raining when we arrived so it was the perfect moment to go!

Later on the sky even cleared up a little bit, so we had some stunning views on the way:

After an hour or two it was time for lunch, which we had in the middle of the beautiful nature around the volcano. In the meantime, the horses could rest a little bit:

On the way back we had some rain again, but that didn´t matter us much. We had a great trip!

Commemorating the Holy Week by enjoying the delicious Fanesca soup

2010-04-07T10:37:00.000-07:00

Last week we commemorated the Holy Week by eating Fanesca, the famous traditional fish-soup Ecuadorians prepare every year before Eastern:

The soup consists of cod, egg and an impressive 12 types of grains, which represent and honour the 12 apostles. It takes several hours to prepare the soup, while some of the grains are really hard when they are raw...

Everybody enjoyed the typical Ecuadorian lunch a lot and it was great to be all together again!

Exploring beautiful Mindo

2010-03-30T10:52:00.000-07:00

After some enjoyable daytrips to the handicrafts market of Otavalo and the thermal pools of Papallacta, it was time for another overnight excursion. Mindo was our destination, a little tranquil village situated in the gorgeous cloud forest. After a two hour bus ride and a short walk, we found a really nice hostel:

Mindo itself has a beautiful little park and is very conscious of its unique environment, about which the local kids learn some more at school in a creative way:

The day after we all wanted to do the canopying, which was a great way to combine some adventure with seeing more of the precious surroundings of the village. We were enthusiastically guided to the start of the zip lines by a sweet little dog:

We put on the equipment, so the five of us and our friendly guide were ready!

It was great to ´fly´ over the valleys, sometimes even as Superman:

Before heading back to Quito in the late afternoon, we made a beautiful hike exploring the splendid flora and some gorgeous waterfalls:

Another fabulous weekend came to an end. ¡Gracias a todos por unos días muy lindos!

Adventurous Baños

2010-03-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

After the great but very relaxed weekend in the jungle of Naranjito, it was time for some more action. Baños seemed the perfect destination, with an active volcanoe and lots of possible outdoor activities. We could go rafting, skydiving, hiking or even bungee-jumping. Nevertheless, the most attractive option for our first day was renting some quads:

We explored the beautiful surroundings of Baños, with its many stunning waterfalls, deep valleys and fantastic look-outs:

Later that day, it started to rain and one of the quads got some engine problems, which made the trip really adventurous. Fortunately we got it all solved quickly, after which the beers at night tasted even better:

On Sunday we had to catch the bus back to Quito in the afternoon, so after a delicious breakfast we decided to relax a bit in the thermal public pools:

Thanks everybody for the great weekend!

Relaxing at eco-lodge La Torre in the middle of the Ecuadorian jungle

2010-02-26T07:28:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago we had the opportunity to leave Quito for a long weekend in another part of Ecuador, while it was Carnaval that weekend. Lots of ´Quiteños´ decided to go to the coast, but we had an even better alternative: Ecolodge La Torre. This beautiful hostel forms part of the little village of Naranjito and lies deep in the jungle. Therefore, we had the opportunity to do quite a few hikes, through the beautiful Ecuadorian cloud forests:

Unfortunately it rained quite a lot in the afternoon, but the lodge was a great place to hang out. The meals were all delicious and the local kids really fun to play with, while at night the little bar on the first floor was very cosy:

The next day we went to see some beautiful waterfalls. Because of the heavy rainfall at night, it wasn´t possible to do some tubing. Nevertheless, swimming in the more tranquil part of the river was a great alternative activity:

On Monday after lunch it was already time to travel back to Quito. The first part was quite exciting, because we could sit on the back of one of the pick-up trucks. It was an even better way to see the gorgeous nature of the area, while enjoying a refreshing breeze. Carlos, Thorben and the local cooks: thanks a lot for your amazing hospitality, we had a fantastic weekend!

An enjoyable weekend at the countryside of Chontal

2010-01-14T07:01:00.000-08:00

Time is flying, because this update is about a trip we went on a month ago already. Excuse me for the delay...
Rosa, as the director our warm heart of the school, talked to me the week before about a miss-election in Chontal, a little town about two hours from Quito where she grew up. Her daughter Diana was going to participate in the election, mainly to convince some of the shy local girls to join as well and add up some spice to the annual festivities.
Just that weekend three students were staying at Rosa´s house, because she is part of one of our Ecuadorian families in which we offer a homestay for our students. She didn´t want to leave them alone at her house the entire weekend, while she loves to visit places with them too. It looked like a bit of a complicated situation, but then we thought about the idea of going all together. The students immediately got enthusiastic about our plan, so a few days later we headed north with the twelve of us.

After a short hike to the little river and a short snap of a local soccer match (see the pictures above), we had a delicious lunch at the restaurant of Rosa´s sister Susana. The fried fish was incredibly tasty, just like we couldn´t get enough of the rice and vegetables. In the afternoon we went up to the farm of Rosa´s parents. Although the weren´t living there anymore, it was still a paradise of ripe fruits, like bananas, cacao and sugar-cane:

They also used to make sugar, which was an interesting process:

At night it was great to be part of the festivities, with the miss-election as the main and definitely unforgettable event. After the presentation of the four candidates, the crowd was asked to make noise to the extent they liked each girl. Despite our fanatic support for Diana (´¡vamos Diana, vamos!´), as planned a local girl won the election:

The morning after we had the opportunity to join Rosa´s brother in law Lucio to milk his cows. A hilarious start of the day, while some of us (me included) had never milked a cow:

There was about an hour left before lunch and the ride back, which was used by some of us to cool off a little in the river. And try to get to the other side, which was quite a challenge with the strong current:

An enjoyable weekend came to an end... Thanks Rosa and family for your great hospitality!

An unforgettable day at the volcanic lake of Quilotoa

2009-12-03T15:54:00.000-08:00

Last month there weren´t classes on Monday because of the ´Dia de los difuntos´, a public holiday in which the Ecuadorians commemorate their relatives who passed away. By ´baptizing´ a little baby of bread in thick and warm fruit juice or ´colada morada´, the bad thoughts of the living (= the babies of bread) should be banned out by human blood (= the fruit juice). An interesting tradition, which we put in practice at our morning break the Friday before:

The public holiday was a good opportunity to organize another excursion, because we had quite a lot of students who wanted to see some more of Ecuador´s beautiful nature. We decided to go to the lake of Quilotoa, about 3,5 hours south of Quito. On the way to the lake we had some beautiful views of the Cotopaxi volcano, with almost 6000 meters the second highest active volcano of the country:

Around 10.30 am we arrived at the village of Quilotoa, from where it was only a 10 minute walk to the lookout. Still a bit sleepy and not yet used to the high altitude, it was quite an effort to get a first impression of the stunning lake:

Unfortunately Richard wasn´t comfortable with the 4000 meters we were on and had to stay at the village. With the others we decided to hike only partially around the lake, while the entire 5 hour loop was may be going to be a bit too much. Accompanied by the warming sun and a pleasant breeze, we enjoyed several great views of the lake and surroundings:

Back at the village there was plenty of time left to stroll around the village, have a drink or walk down to the lake itself. Together with Braden and Hannah, I decided to choose the last. A tough hike, especially getting back up, but completely worth it:

Heading back to Quito ended up to be quite a challenge as well, while we weren´t the only ones returning to the capital that afternoon (to say the least). We needed more than two hours to arrive at the bus terminal, where Lars, Andrea and their German friends fortunately still could catch the bus to the Ecuadorian jungle. In the meantime Richard had got a lot better, so it all ended well. Even though it was a long day with some unforeseeable inconveniences, still everybody really enjoyed this amazing piece of Ecuadorian nature.

Enjoying the Saturday market of Otavalo

2009-11-27T10:02:00.000-08:00

About 3 weeks ago we went to the village of Otavalo to experience the famous Saturday market. Every day of the week you should be able to find some stands with traditional clothes, Ecuadorian handicrafts and local fruits at the centre of this nice little town, but on Saturday the market should be endless and therefore really worth the two hours driving.
It was early in the morning when Hugo came to pick us up. He almost always transports us to the destination of the excursion, while he´s a reliable driver and above all a very nice person. We were a small group that day, but with very different nationalities. ´Ozzie´ Peter had been travelling through Costa Rica for quite a few weeks, while Richard decided to visit Ecuador to see if it would be possible to enjoy his retirement here instead of the States. Braden and Hannah, both from New Zealand, had been travelling for quite a while and Aaron was completing his Spanish course as part of his studies in the USA here.

By 9.30 a.m. we arrived at the animal market in Otavalo, where locals sell chickens, pigs, cows, dogs, cats, guinea pigs (cuy) and rabbits. This market takes place just on Saturday mornings for about 3 hours and is therefore always crowded:

After strolling around for half an hour, we headed to to the Otavalo Market, one of the most important and spectacular handicraft markets in Latin America. We spent various hours at the vivid centre of the town, because there was so much to see, try and buy:

Around 1 p.m we entered a restaurant for lunch. After having a delicious ´almuerzo´, we drove to the ´Cascada de Peguche´, a charming waterfall close to Quito. We spent about an hour walking around and climbing a bit up:

On the way back, we decided to visit the Condor Park of Otavalo, a rehabilitation center for condors, eagles and other types of birds. Most of them were rescued from illegal captivity or inadequate housing. At 4.30 p.m. there was a free flight show, during which we were able to see all these diferent big birds in action so close. It was quite an impressive show:

We had a great day, with lots of beautiful impressions and nice purchases. It was well worth it!

We´re back!

2009-11-13T09:09:00.000-08:00

Excuse us for not actualizing our blog lately, we have been busy improving the website during the last couple of weeks. We hope to launch the new version of it soon!

As the new student coordinator and thus administrator of this blog, I´ll first introduce myself shortly. I´m Rick, a 23-year old Dutch guy who just finished his studies about Business Communication and the Spanish language. About 2 years ago I mostly learned Spanish by living half a year in Santiago de Chile, which I liked so much that I decided to go back to South America whenever possible.
That moment came directly after finishing my final tesis, which I wrote about the image of Ecuador as a holiday destination. So even though I hadn´t been in Ecuador before, I was already interested in this diverse country. And now that I´m living here temporarily, I can approve that it´s a beautiful place to visit!

Hopefully you´ll enjoy reading my reports on the excursions we´ve made with the students. If you have any comments, suggestions or questions, don´t hesitate to contact me via info@vidaverde.com. ¡Muchas gracias!

Whale Watching in Puerto López

2009-08-17T10:23:00.001-07:00

For our whale-watching trip to Puerto López, we left Quito on Friday at 8.00 p.m. from the new bus terminal Quitumbe in the south of the city. We did not have a direct bus, so we had to go from Quito to Manta, and from there take another bus to Puerto López. It was long trip, but we were looking forward to have at least a direct bus on the way back.

Once we arrived, our rooms were not ready yet, so we went for a nice breakfast to one of the little restaurants along the "main street", directly at the beach. With full stomachs, we went back to the hostel, moved into our rooms, and after that went to the beach, where we spent the whole afternoon, and had a nice lunch in a seafood restaurant. In the evening, we decided to go to an Italian restaurant where we had some delicious pasta, and despite our actual plan of going out after dinner, we were so tired that we went straight to bed.

On the next morning, we had to be ready for the whale-watching tour at 9.15 a.m., so there was time for a breakfast first. Once the whole group were together (seven people from our school and an additional nine other tourists), we walked to the little port, passing a fish market, where we saw sharks, shrimps and a huge swordfish. As soon as everybody was on the boat, the trip started. The sea was very wavy, and some people got seasick. Fortunately, after one hour, we really saw the first whale! It was incredible seeing such a huge mammal from so close! Many whales followed, and as we continued our ride to the Isla de la Plata, we even saw a mother whale with her child! The "little" whale jumped several times out of the water, it was spectacular.

Once we arrived at the Isla de la Plata, the group divided into a two smaller groups, for exploring different hiking paths on the island. Our guide was Wilmar, a 25 years old Ecuadorian, who told us a lot about the flora and fauna of this national park. We asked him if on this island there were also Sea Lions, and he told us that, with some luck, one can spot a few on the other side of the island. Wilmar offered to take us there if would agree to walk very fast without taking breaks because we just had two hours before going back to the boat, so we did. We reached the other part of the island all of us a bit exhausted, but unfortunately, there were no sea lions to see. What a pity! It was a very nice walk anyway because we saw lots of bluefooted boobies and several other birds.

Back on the boat, we had sandwiches and fruits, and then we had the option for snorkeling. Even though the sun was not shining, a group of people embraced the opportunity and went into the water. On our way back to mainland, we saw again whales but did not have time anymore to stop again.

To finish our wonderful close encounter with nature, we enjoyed watching the sunset at the beach while drinking a delicious fresh cocktail, and at night, we had a nice dinner again. The bus ride back to Quito started at 8 a.m. the next morning, but it took us many, many hours due to lot of stopovers before reaching Quito at 9 p.m. Long trip, nevertheless compensated for having seen whales that close. I think everybody would do it again.

Farewell of our beloved Joanne

2009-07-24T11:25:00.000-07:00

At 74 years old, Joanne from New Zealand was one of our most active and adventuresome students. She was attending our school since March, and after 3 months, she decided, for much to the joy of everyone, to extend her staying for another month in Ecuador to continuing her studies. Unfortunately, that month came fast and we had a farewell for her, where she gave us a soft heartening farewell speech and sponsored chips with guacamole and a cake. For sure her family could not wait to have her back home any longer. Life is life and good times sometimes are over sooner that we would want.

During that time, it was also the last weekend for two other students, Jerry from Canada who was staying with us for 6 weeks, and Lindsay from the US who was here for 3 weeks. They as well delivered a little speech. We had a very nice, but on the same time sad celebration.

Joanne: It was very nice to meet you and we all had a great time with you, we wish you all the best and hope that you will come back to Quito soon!

The whole Vida Verde Team

Weekend at the beach

2009-07-20T10:40:00.000-07:00

Our adventurous transportation for the weekend

This weekend, we were actually planning to go to the "Fiestas del Chagra" (sort of a cowboy festival) in Machachi, which was cancelled due to an animal epidemic. So we had to find a "Plan B" quickly, and we decided to go to the beach, more precisely to Muisne, which is a small island in the Province of Esmeraldas. To get there, we had to take the night bus on Friday. After a 6 hours ride we arrived in Esmeraldas, and after a 5 minutes wait we could enter another bus from the company "Costeñita" which brought us to the part of Muisne which is located on the mainland. There were already small boats waiting which brought us for $0.20 per person to the island. Once we arrived at the island (after a 2-3 mins boat-trip), there were tricicletas (vehicle with three wheels, pushed or pulled by a motorcycle, look at the picture) waiting, the most common means of transportation, since cars can just enter through a little ferry and have to pay a fee to enter the island. This tricicletas brought us from the little town directly to the beach, where we met a friend of us who is volunteering there, Janine, and her Ecuadorian boyfriend, Gorcky. They accompanied us to our hostel which was called "Playa Paraíso" and soon we found out that the hostel itself wasn't really a paradise as it was not too clean not to mention very old (e.g. the door to one of our rooms wasn't closable, so the custodian had to fix it first, what just partly succeeded, and for locking the doors we just got rusty locks). But the hostel was located directly at the beach, which was definitely an advantage.
The weather didn't look too pleasant yet, but we were confident that the sun would show up soon, thing that unfortunately didn't happen the whole day. Despite that we didn't get discouraged and went to a little village’s festival where we ate some typical food. In the afternoon, Gorcky organized a boat tour for us to the mangrove forest and later to the Isla Bonita, which was lots of fun. At night, we had dinner in a delicious little seafood restaurant. Afterwards, we went to a beach bar with a nice bonfire at the beach where we were hanging out for a while. On Sunday, the weather was still not better, so after a visit in the town and a walk at the beach we got our luggage ready and went for lunch to the same restaurant from the evening before, and again it was delicious. Finally, we already had to head back to Quito where we arrived at 11 at night.

Boattour to the mangrove forest

Relaxing on the Isla Bonita

Otavalo

2009-07-13T12:37:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday, we went for a one-day trip to Otavalo on a private bus (a small van). Unfortunately, two of the students who were supposed to come with us, got sick on Friday night, so we were a very little group. The program we had planned was great: starting at the animal market and ending in the Condor Park. For being able to do everything we wanted, we had to leave at 6.30 a.m. By 8.30 a.m. we arrived at the animal market in Otavalo, which is very interesting to see. They sell chickens, pigs, cows, dogs, cats, guinea pigs (cuy) and rabbits. This market takes place just on Saturday mornings for about 3 hours and is therefore always crowded.

After strolling around for half an hour, we got in our little bus again and headed to the "Cascada de Peguche", a very beautiful waterfall close to Quito. There, we spent about an hour walking around and climbing a bit up and afterwards we went to the Otavalo Market, one of the most important and spectacular handicraft markets in Latin America. We needed about 2 1/2 hours until everyone had what he/she was looking for and after that we were so hungry that we entered a restaurant first for having a delicious "almuerzo."

In the afternoon, we went to the Condor Park of Otavalo, a rehabilitation center for condors, eagles and other types of birds. Many of the species which found a home in the park were rescued from illegal captivity or inadequate housing. It was very impressing to see these animals from so close, and at 4.30 p.m. they even had a free flight show. It was a great day, we saw so many things but without having been in a hurry.

Corpus Christi in Pujilí

2009-06-08T12:36:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, we went to Pujilí to see the Corpus Christi festival, which takes place once a year on a variable weekend in June. Pujilí is a dusty, little town situated at an altitude of 2900m, close to Latacunga. In Pujilí, there is pretty much nothing going on the whole year except for this festival, which is famous all over the country for its national and international folkloric parade.

After a two-hours bus ride on Saturday morning, we reached the village and were just in time to secure seats for all of us on the tribune, which nevertheless didn't look to secure. It actually just was constructed out of a few shelves, and we had to climb it with a ladder... So after waiting half an hour, the spectacle started with the local police, which showed an acrobatic performance on their motorcycles, followed by a band on horseback, folkloric dance groups, more bands and orchestras etc. The parade lasted for about 5 hours with groups from all over the country. But after sitting 2 1/2 hours on the hard tribune, eating sweets and taking pictures, we were ready to eat a real "almuerzo" and went to a local restaurant. After that, we strolled through the big market, played a game of table soccer (“futbolin”) and went to look at a church.

Later in the afternoon there was a "corrida" taking place, which all of us thought it was bullfighting, therefore nobody wanted to see it until a man told us that it was not a bullfight, but just people "playing" with the bull. What that meant? None of us had a clue, but we were curious and decided to go and take a look. And truly it wasn't bullfight (puh, we were relieved!) There was the arena, and in the arena, one bull and a few daredevil guys who tried to tease the bull (by swinging clothes or just by running by in front of the bull) until the bull went after them. It was hilarious!!! The guys were running as if stung by an adder, jumping over the barrier and continuing running up the stairs!!! Every 15-20 mins, the bull was replaced by another, fresh one. ;-) And always in the little break until the next bull came in, the guys drunk alcohol! So they got braver and braver, but also slower. One man overestimated himself and a cornada (horn wound) on his leg! That was not nice to see, but on the end, all of them know about the risk, and I am sure there are some men who do this every year. Finally, after watching the “corrida” for about an hour, we headed back to Quito.

Happy Hour

2009-05-26T10:34:00.001-07:00

Our Happy Hour Evenings are getting more and more popular, not just people from the school are going but also people who are staying in Casa Vida Verde are joining. Last Thursday, we were a group of 13! Like always, we started our "tour" at Azúca where they have the best mojitos and Plantain-Chips. We had a couple of drinks, lots of laugh, interesting talks and took dozens of pictures. Even Rosa, the school director, joined! After a while, we decided to move on, but half of the group wanted to go to dance salsa, the other half preferred to check out another bar. So we split up, and since I was in the salsa-group I can just speak for us, but we definitely had a great night.

Horsebackriding in the Pululahua-Crater

2009-05-18T11:39:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, a group of 5 people from the school went horseback riding in the Pululahua Volcano. Nevertheless, we were not the only ones; mixed with other tourists and 2 guides, we were 12 people in total. Pick up was at 9am in Quito and our exciting day started. We were heading all the way to the Mitad del Mundo and a bit further, until we arrived to the Pululahua, which is a geobotanical reserve. From there, it took us more than an hour until we reached the bottom of the crater. The Pululahua is one of the only two inhabited volcanic caldera in the world and one of the largest craters worldwide. Once we arrived at the Horse Ranch, the big question was "which horse for which rider", and the decision was not easy to make for Astrid (originally from Germany), the owner or the ranch. However, thirty minutes later, we all had our horses and were ready to take off :) And definitely, the pictures of the area we saw before in the internet didn't promise too much, but it was absolutely wonderful! The landscape was incredible, the horses very reliable and friendly, and the whole tour was just perfect. Our two tour guides, Astrid and Antonia, had a lot to tell about the history of the volcano. After one hour of riding, we had a delicious lunch in a hostería, and we even could watch Colíbris while eating. After this great meal we were ready for another 3 hours on our horses. For me, the tour could have been twice as long, although, on the next day, I paid the consequences: my butt and legs hurt like crazy and I am sure I was not the only one with this problem…Anyway, it was definitely worth it and I would do it again without even thinking it twice!!!

Easter weekend in Quito and the Cloud Forest

2009-04-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

Our Easter-Weekend started on Holy Friday when all of us went to the Old Town of Quito to watch the "Procesión de Jesús del Gran Poder," which is a famous Easter-Parade in Ecuador. Once we arrived and found a place for all of us directly on the route of the parade, the spectacle started. However, after one hour we were already getting tired of standing there and getting pushed around by other people, so we decided to go for lunch together instead, which is not an easy task if you are a party of 12... So, we splitted up our group and later we met again and went for some drinks to a nice cafe in "La Ronda". It was a perfect day with lots of sun and fun.

On Saturday, some of us went to Puerto Quito, to the Cloud Forest. We got picked up at 6 in the morning by the owner of the Hosteria we were going to stay, but the funny part is that he came in a little pick up truck, which seats only five to six people, however, we were nine in total including the driver (owner) and a tourist guide. So Peter, Paul and the guide had no choice but to sit on the cargo area with our entire luggage (and this for more than 4 hours). They didn't mind, and soon it looked like they had more fun in the back than we the five girls had in the front... :-)

Finally we arrived in the Hosteria, and just had time to enjoy our welcome-cocktail, eat lunch, and right away we were already on the way to our first trip into the Cloud Forest. It yet started quite adventurous, since we had to cross a river and the choices to do so were either to swim (and holding ourselves on a rope to not get drifted away by the strong current of the river) or to go by a little aerial tramway (a wood-made kind of box).

After all of us arrived safely on the other side, the hard climbing began. With the help of the guides, who held our hands for crossing, one later hour, all 0f us successfully arrived on our final destination, a very nice lagoon with a beautiful waterfall and which was a perfect refreshing spot. We all went swimming because we were hot and exhausted.

As soon as we started our way back, it started to rain like crazy, but fortunately we could use huge leaves as umbrellas, which at least kept our heads for a while kind of dry... But of course, by the time we arrived to where the car was, we all were completely soaked. Nevertheless, we all were in a very good mood. Right after having a delicious dinner, we started playing cards and had lot of fun, and our nice hosts spoiled us with delicious cocktails.

The following morning, we had two choices: tubing or horseback riding. The majority went tubing, and two of us decided to go horseback riding. On the end, all of the activities were amazing, and after lunch, we already had to go home. After a five hours drive, we arrived in Quito very tired, but very happy at the same time.

Thank you CARPE DIEM!

2009-03-03T07:46:00.000-08:00

The group from CARPE DIEM

On their 12 weeks educational program through South America the group from Carpe Diem International made a 2-weeks stopover in Quito. 6 students and one of their leaders Adam took Spanish classes in the morning. During their stay in Quito Heather (leader) and Adam lived at the Casa Vida Verde while their students were accomodated with Ecuadorian families to practise their Spanish. Two girls of the group were staying with Rosa's family and clearly enjoyed it there. Talkactive and outgoing have they quickly become friends with other students at her house and in school.
Besides Spanish classes did the group also take part in our Salsa lessons and cooking classes. Since most of the afternoon activities were organized by their leaders we spend time together at night playing Spanish Pictionary, having Pizza and going out practising our Salsa steps.

We all have fully enjoyed having you here and we wish you all the best for the rest of your travels. Travel save and hopefully we will see each other on your way back in Quito.

Take care and save travels, Vida Verde staff

Fiesta de Cebiche

2009-02-17T11:41:00.001-08:00

Teacher and Students gather in the yard to prepare Cebiche

Our cooking classes are getting famous. We have been cooking with the students every Wednesday and thought it is about time to get the teachers involved as well. Therefore we all - teachers and students - gathered in the yard to cook together. It was the day of Cebiche - a cold dish and a form of citrus-marinated seafood appetizer, popular in mainly Latin- and South American countries. We wanted to prepare different types of Cebiche. Since mostly seafood is used we also made one kind with chicken and several with only different types of vegetables. A few teachers and students were in charge of cooking shrimps and the chicken in the kitchen, others sat down outside to cut onions, tomatoes and prepare the juice. All ingredients were put in different bowls.

By now it was already past 1 o'clock and everyone was hungry. Some of us tried to still their hunger by eating some fried platanos that you can put in the Cebiche as well. Popcorn is also very famous to put in any kind of soup here in Ecuador. Finally everything was ready and we mixed the ingredients and had several bowls of delicious Cebiche. Unfortunately it started to rain and we all tried to seek refugee under the big umbrella in the yard.

Thanks to everyone who helped!

Ecuadorian way of cooking

2009-02-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

Dear Vida Verde Friends

Yesterday, we learned from Hipathia how to cook Shrimps with a coconut sauce. But of course we didn't buy the coconut juice in the supermarket, but just had a whole coconut, because like this the taste is way better. So the first problem was: how to open the coconut? Fortunately, Hipathia is an expert in that. So she showed us how to make a hole in it, take out the juice, and eventually to open it by simply throwing it powerful on the floor. Than we had to peel it, which needed the help of 5 students to have it ready in a useful timeframe. After that, Hipathia showed us how to get as much juice as possible out of it by using the blender.
Of course there were other ingredients to prepare and to cut such as green and red peppers, onions and also green plantains. Out of this green plantains, we made patacones, a typical Ecuadorian side-dish, by cutting it into slices, mashing it a little bit and than frying it. So in the end, they are crunchy and look a little bit like thick chips.
Finally, we mixed the shrimps with the onions, the peppers and the coconut juice and left it on the stove for 10 minutes. Luckily, the rice was already prepared, so we finally could satisfy our hunger with a delicious Ecuadorian meal. Only after a little while the food was gone! Thank you, Hipathia!

Feliz Cumpleaños Tim!

2009-01-29T09:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Tim!!

It's really been great having you around and we wish you all the best for the upcoming year in Lima. We will celebrate big time tonight! :)

Quilotoa

2009-01-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

The past weekend we went to Quilotoa for a hiking weekend. Quilotoa is located only 3.5 hours by bus southwest from Quito in the state of Cotopaxi. We took the bus at 7 o'clock in the morning from the Terminal in Quito to Latacunga. From Latacunga we immediately got on the bus to Quilotoa...okay after having some freshly baked Tortilla de Papas from one of the vendedors in the street. Yummy!
We got to Quilotoa at around noon and were welcomes by José and his family. The family owns a hostels and usually hosts volunteers. We had some tea and since the clouds were coming in, José took us down to the lagoon for a short hike. We decided to do the roundtrip of the crater lagoon the next morning. The hike down to the lagoon was easy but to come back up again needed strenght and good lungs. At an altitude of nearly 4.000m my lungs were pumping. :)
After a simple but delicious early dinner with soup and potatoes, eggs and cheese we enjoyed the evening with the family in front of the oven, helped cutting wood and had some tea to keep warm. The next morning we rose at 5.45 and enjoyed the sunrise. The clouds were still hanging low and you could see the sun rise above them. We had breakfast and left at 6.45 for our 5 hours hike around the lagoon. The views were incredibly wonderful and the colour of the lagoon seemed to change with every hour. José, our guide, would play the flute, no matter if he was going up a mountain or down. We hardly spoke going up a small hill, our lungs were longing for air. Tim was an exception...he walked like as if we were going for a stroll at sea level.
After a 5 hour hike through the wonderful landscape of Quilotoa we got back to the hostal, hungry and exhausted BUT: HAPPY!!
A trip that is really worth the sweat of a long hike. :-)

Quilotoa Loop: Wes, Nicole, Sandra in front of the lagoon - Tim's already around, we guessed!

Mercado de Frutas

2009-01-16T05:03:00.000-08:00

The Fruitmarket of Vida Verde

Dear Vida Verde friends,

it has been a while since you last heard from us but as you probably know the first days of the New Year are always a bit hectic. We surely hope you are all well and are enjoying the time whereever you are right now. After we had such a wonderful sunny day yesterday it has turned pretty cold today and it seems so quiet in the streets. We wonder if people are precautious and stay at home to avoid another chaotic day like we had yesterday. Late in the afternoon the electricity was gone in 70% of the country and led to chaos in some parts of Quito, esp. in the streets. Busses and cars were not moving, candles were lit in the houses, registers in shops were not working and people were sitting, waiting and hoping the electricity would come back. After a couple of hours it eventually did.

But before all that happened we had a wonderful day at school.
Right now we are about 13 students from the United States, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and Japan.
The students task for the break yesterday was to present and introduce all kind of exotic fruits - from Pineapple and Papaya to Maracuja. Each of the student chose one fruit and told the group what was so special about it, what does it good for us and our body except for tasting delicious.
We all got to try the fruits after we learned everything about them - and they only do us good, therefore we enjoyed them even more!!

The students had made notes and read out what they had found out about their fruit. Of some fruits they have never heard of and the names had to be repeated several times by the teachers - Toxi, Taxi or Taxo? Tim gave us an idea of his Taxo fruit.

Platanos or Bananas? - Kazu tells us what he knows about it - tan chistoso!

Michael (USA)

Rita and Michael from Germany

Happy New Year 2009

2009-01-02T06:35:00.000-08:00

We hope you all had some wonderful holidays we wish everyone
a very Happy New Year and all the best for 2009!

Salat-Mix

2008-11-27T10:21:00.000-08:00

How much fun can it be to learn the Spanish words for all the different vegetables when you get to eat them later?? During our lessons break yesterday each of the students and teachers took turns to name a type of vegetable. If someone failed or repeated a vegetable that had already been called out that person would have to do something to make up for it, i.g. dance salsa with someone. Afterwards students and teachers were devided into groups of 4 and each of them received a salad recipe. Each group had to find their ingredients in the kitchen and make a salad. Still looking a bit sceptical, Arturo and Gustavo (right) made a wondeful salad with aguacate, tomates and some delicious salsa.

Some people have not been too lucky with their choice of salad recipe given. Poor Mike had to make a salad containing his "favourite" vegetable of all times - BEETS!! After having accidently eaten beets soup on our trip to Mindo the other weekend he now thinks someone evil wants him to catch up on all the beets-dishes his mom made him in his childhood and which he had been succesfully avoiding until now. Who knows maybe he will start cooking his own beet-dish soon... ;)

Good job to everyone, we surely enjoyed every bit of the 6 different salad versions. Thanks! :-)

Bye, bye Chikara!!!

2008-11-21T09:26:00.000-08:00

After he had been with us for nearly 4 months and has sweetened our day with his unique and cheerful personality, we now had so say "goodbye" to a great singer and entertainer - Chikara!!

We hope you still will be around sometimes, take care and please keep on singing!! :)

We have surely enjoyed having you with us! When will be the next concert??

Mindo - a perfect weekend

2008-11-17T06:36:00.000-08:00

Ohh, what a weekend we had! I guess we still cannot believe that we are back in Quito. Our short stay in Mindo felt like a week of vacation.

On Saturday morning, after we all met ON TIME at 7am at the Casa Vida Verde, we took the bus to Mindo - a very chilled place only 2 hours northwest of Quito. When we arrived it was hard to believe that car alarms, traffic jams and crowded city busses were only a few k´s away from us. In Mindo welcomed us with a very warm climate, the sun was shining and we all happy. Walking to our hostel - Casa de Cecilia, which I can highly recommend!! - we decided on having breakfast before we head off to explore what Mindo has to offer.
We could have easily stayed in the hostel, hanging out in the hammocks and just enjoy the silence and the calm purl of the river nearby.

After some of us had some breakfast and others enjoyed a cup of coffee or a glass of fresh juice (Mike went for Beets soup - no one knows why?! :)) we took a taxi that brought us to the tarabita - a cablecar that takes us across the treetops to the side to a series of 7 waterfalls.
We hiked up and down through partially very adventurous parts to explore every single waterfall and finally had a cold wash in the last one. Back in Mindo we went out to eat pizza at a very overprized restaurant but the pizza was delicious.

Since there is not much to do at night in Mindo, we were in bed before midnight and started the next day very early at around 7.30am. After a very tasty breakfast at the hostel we enjoyed the day tubing in the Río Mindo and we visited the Butterfly farm "Mariposas de Mindo" where we could watch butterflies hatch. That was quite an experience! The afternoon we just spent in the hammocks reading, sleeping or talking.

Tubing on the River Mindo

At the Marisposas

Now we are back in Quito working and studying Spanish again ;) We spoke way too much English and German at the weekend! Back to Spanish again! :)

Hasta luego!

Good Bye Daniel!

2008-11-10T06:23:00.000-08:00

Dear friends,

many things have happened the last 2 weeks.

After weeks of hard practise after work, at nights and during Spanish lessons we all enjoyed a fantactic concert by Chikara, Ellen, Ilona, René and Hugo at Cafelibro. The band - mixed with members from all over the world (Germany, Japan, the Netherlands and Ecuador) - offered a broad variety of songs covering nearly every genre in four different languages - german, japanese, spanish and english. The audience, mostly friends
and family members from Vida Verde, also sang along to songs from The Beatles, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Bill Withers.

"Ain´t no sunshine when *he* is gone" as one of the last songs that night was dedicated to our good friend Daniel who has worked for Vida Verde for 2 months and has now taken off to explore South America with his freshly pimped Landcruiser "Antonio Azul".

For his farewell party last Wednesday we had cheese-fondue and looots of wine at the Casa Vida Verde. We ate until we were stuffed and then lumbered on the sofas singing along to the sound of Rene´s and Chikara´s guitar until our voices were sore.
Only the neighbor could stop us - at 5am the next morning!

Thanks to everyone who joined and save travels to you, Daniel!!!

Colada Morada....Yummy

2008-10-30T07:10:00.000-07:00

Buenos días,

on the occasion of All Soul´s Day (aka "Day of the Dead") on the upcoming Sunday, November 2th - the day to remember the loved ones that have passed away, Vida Verde celebrated this day in a very special way.
In Ecuador people enjoy a warm fruit juice called Colada Morada which contains blueberry, blackberry and pineapple. Versions of the juice differ from region to region. Some will also use naranjilla juice (an Andean fruit), babaco (champagne fruit), strawberries, and even raisins.

Students and teachers enjoy their Colada Morada during lessons break

Along with the juice we had bread to eat. But before we could start to enjoy the feast, Patty explained to us the traditional background of having this warm, red coloured drink with bread.
Since the drink is red it stands for blood, the bread stands for a human body. In order to free oneself from all bad thoughts and low energy one is supposed to dip the end of the bread into the drink. Only then are you allowed to start to eat and drink.

Thank you very much to Rosi, Gabi and Patty who have prepared the feast and brought us the indigenous custom a bit closer.

Music is the key

2008-10-27T11:03:00.000-07:00

Hola amigos de Vida Verde,

we have been having some great weeks here at school.
Most of the students have been staying in Quito for quite some time and we had good times at school, in after-school activities as well as on the weekends with trips to different places.

Although some students headed off for their travels through the world again, something is still with us - the music from Chikara.

Chikara is from Japan and had first inspired teachers and students with his music a couple weeks ago when he gave a little concert on a Thursday night.

He has been sweetening our break during lessons ever since, at least once a week. Here we sit and watch him play in our backyard of the school. Sometimes we would sing along the chorus if we knew the song.

Only last week he got some support in the vocals part

when Ilona, from the Netherlands, would sing with him during a lessons break. While the audience had tea and nachos they both sang some familiar songs.

Now we are looking forward to a concert that will take place in the nearby Cafelibro on Friday night. Ilona and Chikara will be on stage together with 3 other musicians to give a concert to whoever wants to listen to some great songs by Oasis, the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Ben E.King and some songs from the Musicians native countries.

We can't wait!!! So, if anyone of you out there is around please come and join!

Hasta luegeo...