While we spent a lot of time at our hosteria in San Jose playing on the beach, surfing and learning Spanish, we did get out and have some amazing adventures. The most memorable activity was parapenting. Parapenting is a cross between hang-gliding and parachuting. We all got the opportunity to fly like birds. Pablo at Parapenting Adventure and his crew…
Our month on the beach in San Jose, Ecuador with ten other families was one of the best times we have had traveling. It was not what we expected, but it was magical. We booked the trip through a company that over-promised, under-delivered. Luckily, the groups of families attending the meetup are amazing. All the families stepped up to create a…
We don’t actually know how to survive a tsunami, but we were at a restaurant in Olón when the Tsunami siren went off. We did. Not understand what was being said, except the word ‘tsunami’. We asked our waiter, and he said the announcement said to clear the beach and the town and head to higher ground. The restaurant closed…
After a month in Cuenca, we said goodbye to friends, played our last pickleball match, and headed for the beach and our worldschooling meet-up. We stayed in a hosteria on the beach, in a small town called San Jose near the bigger towns of Olon and Montañita. We opted to hire our friend Jon to drive us to the beach…
Many of our worldschooling friends tell us to say yes when opportunities arise. An opportunity arose when our pickleball friends Rick and Sharon invited us at the last moment to go with them to Shell, Ecuador. Shell is a small town on the edge of the Amazon where Rick and Sharon lived for 23 years. They are missionaries, and they…
Being with our kids 24 hours a day, seven days a week can take a toll. We love our kids, but every once in a while we like to get away for a few hours to spend time together, just the two of us. Michael and I went on a date to Piedra de Agua thermal spa. The spa is…
I chose to stop posting on social media for a variety of reasons, but we do use Facebook as a way to get to know a city before visiting. It is also a great way to meet people in the places we visit. Through Ecuador and Cuenca-specific Facebook groups, we met people and families that live in Cuenca. This allowed…
Ecuador has 24 provinces. Cuenca is the largest city in the province of Azuay. The city’s full name is Santa Ana de los Cuatro Ríos de Cuenca. It was given that name because of the four rivers that run through Cuenca. The Rio Tomebamba flows through the center of town, and it is a great place to walk or have a…
On our second day in Ecuador, we took a bus from Guayaquil to Cuenca. It was a small 12-person bus that cost $12 per adult and $10 per kid. The ride to Cuenca is usually 3 hours, but because of road closures, the ride took more than 5-hour. The hotel recommended a specific bus company, but our taxi driver decided…
Watch out! The Watkins are on the move. We took off for Ecuador for the start of our South American adventure. We are excited to be traveling again. The Flights We flew Spirit Airlines from Atlanta to Guayaquil, Ecuador. We had a layover in Ft. Lauderdale. We chose Spirit Airlines because it is considerably cheaper than other airlines. It is…