Sunday 11th Oct - Arrival in Latacunga
If this is your first episode of this journey then take a minute to read this note.
This morning we woke at 6.30 and after packing we were the first people for breakfast at 7.30. Being such early risers we had some spare time to kill so we toured the streets of Banos again. Being a Sunday we noticed that the streets were more crowded, the people better dressed, the food stalls had different food (guinea pigs) and there were more beggars. We played our part to help the needy and gave some sweets to the scruffy children who came pleading to clean our shoes, but I'm sure preferred money instead.
At 10 we left the room and went to the bus station to catch a bus for Latacunga. This was the first and only time we had a problem finding a bus throughout the whole trip because there weren't any direct buses to Latacunga and the buses to Quito weren't going to pass from Latacunga, so to avoid waiting at the bus station we caught a bus to Ambato. Catching the bus to Latacunga from Ambato was a piece of cake because as soon as we dropped off the bus we found a bus 'salesman' calling Latacunga and all we needed to do was hop in his bus.
About Latacunga
Latacunga isn't a fraction as beautiful as Banos. Actually it's the ugliest city we've been to, but it's the closest city to the Cotopaxi Volcano and Laguna Quilotoa. The roads are laid out in a grid formation so it's not difficult to find your way around but there nowhere interesting to go. To add insult to injury we arrived on Sunday afternoon so everything was closed except the cemetery and the dozen florists in the area. A few blocks away from the cemetery there was a market with the only thing worth noting being a fiery volleyball game between the elder people of the village. On Monday the city looked much busier with open shops, though its appeal didn't increase.
Click image to download Latacunga video
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Hotel Rodelu
According to the outdated Lonely Planet this is the fanciest hotel in town, but I think saying it was the best is more than enough. This statement says much more about the state of the town then the hotel because it had nothing fancy at all. That said, I doubt there exist better hotels in Latacunga. The cable TV with 39 channels including ESPN was a relief from the city's boredom and was much better than the view out of the window which portrayed a perfect snapshot of the village - bleak. To give it its due credit the room and hotel were clean and our room was cosy. The room had much more bed space than room space but then if you look at it from the bright side you can say that everything is within arm's reach of the bed. The hotel is in the centre of the village and most places are within walking distance, including the cemetery.
Window view from Hotel Rodelu
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Restaurant China Chifa
The restaurant is the best Chinese in town according to Lonely Planet, we think it's discrete. We had some trouble communicating with the waiter because he didn't know any English and there weren't any translations in the menu. Otherwise the food was eatable but nothing more.Not having anywhere to go or anything to do we spent the rest of the evening watching Animal Planet and slept early.
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