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Crooked Tree

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BELIZE

Published March 16, 2014

After four days of relaxing and talking about the kids, the grand kids, the economy, retirement, health, you-name-it, we dragged our rolling bags through the sand and boarded the 6 am Richie’s bus to Belize City.  After so many horrendous taxi rides, I was relieved to be on the bus.

In Belmopan we had a short potty stop, and Verda and I went to find the bathrooms.  Yuck!  Why can’t people in the Latino cultures ever keep anything clean?  How hard is that?  This place looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in 5 years!  Plus you had to pay to use the toilets.  After that, Verda started saying she didn’t want to take any more buses.

When we arrived in Belize City, we would have had to find a bus going to Crooked Tree, figure out how to buy tickets, fight the pushy crowds and endure another two hours on the bus.  Unbeknownst to the rest of us, Ron found a taxi driver who agreed to take us all the way to the Lodge at Crooked Tree for $50 US.  He must have known we were about to have a mutiny.  The car was the typical wreck with no suspension at all, and no a/c of course – at this point we had learned to be grateful if the damn car could make it to our destination.  So off we went.

The driver had indicated that he had been to the Crooked Tree lodge before but when he missed the turnoff, we thought that once again someone had simply told us what we wanted to hear.  Finally we arrived at the causeway out to the village.  In January of this year the floods were so bad they nearly wiped out the causeway.  In fact, we read on Trip Advisor that our hosts had picked up visitors in a boat to transport them to the Lodge during that time.  Creeping along the 2 miles at 0 mph, we finally drove into a small village with multiple trails going off in every direction.  Our driver asked every person, from a middle-aged woman to a 10-year-old boy where the Crooked Tree Lodge was.  Obviously, he had never been to this place before.  Finally we headed down the last set of ruts toward the buildings in the distance.  About 100 yards short of the main lodge, the road turned to mud and puddles.  The driver was reluctant to drive into it since the car was dragging bottom even on the dry parts.  We told him to stay put and we would walk ahead and see what’s what.  Sure enough, we were welcomed by Mick who quickly went to help carry our luggage from the car up to the lodge.  Even the crocodile in the small pond by the bridge seemed to smile and say “welcome to Crooked Tree!”

Panguche

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Published 07/20/2012

Today we rode the bus for the first time.  We walked to the square and it was easy to find the bus to Otavalo.  When we got off the bus there was a taxi dispatcher and we simply told him that we wanted to go to the Panguche Falls.  Quick as a wink a taxi was there.  We hopped in and in about 5 minutes we arrived at the falls area.  It was a lovely spot, the smell of eucalyptus in the air, and the soothing sound of the stream running just off the path.  The falls were quite nice-not as impressive as Glacier, but can there be a lousy waterfall? 

We made the mistake of agreeing to let the driver wait for us. We thought it was really nice of him to offer; we would pay for it later.  After we saw the falls the driver took us into Panguche, a community known for its weavers.  He stopped in front of this little shop and we stepped into a shop filled with beautiful wall hangings, sweaters, scarves, tablecloths, wallets, socks, tons of stuff.  Downstairs were 5 looms and other equipment.  I will post a video on Facebook of the young man weaving.  I bought a tablecloth and two wallets.

 After the weavers shop we had the driver take us to Otavalo for lunch.  He stopped at the square, The Plaza of Ponchos, in front of a restaurant.  Bill and Ron asked him how much we owed him, and he said $30!  We were not prepared for that.  Next time we will know better.  Got to learn, I guess. We had a good lunch – shrimp for Ron, and rice with vegetables for me, Bill and Verda shared a “tipica” plate with steak, pork, chicken, potatoes, and some sort of corn.  Afterwards we went shopping in the market.  Ron bought an alpaca sweater, I bought an alpaca poncho, Verda bought a zip front sweater and a beautiful alpaca blanket.  Oh, and I also bought a pair of slippers for these cold tile floors. Finally, we headed for the bus station and found a bus going back to Otavalo.  By the time we got home we were all ready for a drink and some tv time.

The Baths at Banos

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July 19, 2012

We stayed at the somewhat seedy hotel in Ambato, but it had the most comfortable bed we have found in Ecuador, with a heavy quilt to keep us toasty.  We had breakfast at C’bastian’s.  I had a waffle with yogurt and honey, no butter, no syrup.  Even the waffles are a healthier version.  Ron had huevas rancheros, but when it came, it looked like French onion soup.  

After breakfast we took a taxi to the bus stop to take a bus to Quizapincha, where they supposedly make a lot of the leather goods that are sold in Cotacachi. I tried on a few leather jackets, but they were made for the smaller Ecuadorean people and felt tight, not comfortable.  And the prices were much more than the guidebook had promised.  I did see a bag that I liked, mainly because it had a woven pattern that was similar to the bedspread on our bed in the condo.  At the same shop I saw a pair of sandals that were only $13.  The owner sold us the bag and the sandals for $22.  We then hopped a bus back to Ambato. 

We thought we would go from Ambato to Tena, but I started reading about Banos, a town on the way to Tena.  There are many mineral baths in Banos, heated by the nearby volcano which is only 5 miles away to the south.  The guidebook advised to check the status of the volcano before going there since there is a risk of another eruption.  I ignored that advice and we got off the bus in Banos.  Found a lovely hostel, Isle de la Banos, just blocks from the mineral springs.  There was a restaurant, Cafe Hood, where we went for lunch.  I had yet another great burrito, with some of the worlds best guacamole.  Ron had enchiladas and claimed they were the best he had ever eaten. Plus he ordered a drink that was hot passion fruit juice with the local cane liquor.  Oooh, it was delicious!  

We strolled around the pretty park and took some photos, then went back to our room until time to go to the hot pools around 7 pm.  we watched the US national team play Great Britain and win.  I saw my boy, James Harden, playing with all the big-time stars. As soon as it was dark, we walked the few blocks to the baths.  We paid the “tercera erad” or senior rate so it was $1.50 each.  It was really crowded, mostly with locals, but felt wonderful.  There was a light drizzle falling, but the water was like a hot, hot bath, with steam rising into the cool air.  We left that pool and went to the pool that was “medium” hot, but right under the waterfall.  What a treat.   Am so glad we stayed in Banos.  It is a lovely town and there are quite q few ex-pats living there.  Our hostel is owned by a German, and we saw many restaurants that cater to foreigners. Watched The Big Bang Theory and went to sleep in a hard, firm bed with another of those heavy quilts that kept us warm.

Summer Trip 2010

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Published 09/31/2010

We had a great trip to the midwest. I want to go back! We flew into Cincinnati, rented a car, drove to Bethel, Ohio, to Bill and Verda’s house, and left the next morning on a ramble up to Lake Michigan. We started out with a delicious brunch prepared by Verda’s cousin, Gary, at his beautiful home outside Cincinnati. Then we departed for French Lick and to see the resort at West Baden Springs. We stopped that first night at Salem, Indiana, and stayed at a lovely B&B named Laning House. Mrs. Hart was our gracious hostess, and we had the entire annex to ourselves for $65 per couple! Living room, dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms and two baths! We highly recommend the Laning 

House if you are ever in Salem. The next morning we saw the amazing West Baden Springs resort and played the slots at French Lick. 

That night we stayed in Bloomington, Indiana. What a neat college town that is! Verda and I went into Buffalouie’s for wings, and while we were there we were talking to the owner. During our conversation, he stopped to welcome George Taliaferro, the first African-American to be drafted into the NFL. George played for the 1945 IU football team. I had the pleasure of talking with George for several minutes and he told me the story of how he used to peer through the window of that restaurant at his picture on the wall, but wasn’t allowed to come in because he was black. Now that same picture resides in a place of honor in Assembly Hall. We toured the campus the next morning and went to the library to use their computers. In the afternoon we headed north for the southern shore of Lake Michigan and stayed in Chesterton. The following pictures are of this first part of our trip.