coasting

Look at all those crazy caterpillars! This is the hotel at Playa Escondida, where I last stayed two years ago with the other Ayuda Directa volunteers. It was muy relaxing and pretty but also muy expensive. Ths time around, Corey and I realized we didn´t have enough money with us because we´d lent some to a friend of ours and because I miscounted the amount in the money belt since I am damn good at math like that. We tried fishing for our food and eating only bread and jam that we´d bought at the bus station, but after one successful meal and three non-meals we decided that no beach, no matter how relaxing or pretty, was worth near starvation. Especially because the caterpillars didn't look particularly appetizing.

Anyway, so this post is the long-delayed update of Julie and Corey's most excellent beach adventures! After two weeks in the jungle, Julie needed a little vacation or her little brain was about to explode! So after a nightmarish journey in which we basically traveled across the entire country in, oh, a day, we met up with the Brian and the Jess in Mombiche with the B´s parents, who visited Ecuador for an epic three weeks. Mombiche is a very quiet, sleepy beach town, a decided contrast to Atacames (which we passed through on our way), another beachside city stuffed to the gills with Ecuadorian families on vacation with little kids drinking enormous batidos the size of their heads and the throbbing bass of reggaeton.

Corey's triumphant catch! The one meal that we did have in Playa Escondida was very good, though: Corey caught fish that were either sea bass or sea trout (the google images are misleading) and we ate it on a big bonfire on the beach, wrapped in aluminum foil. Very, very delicious.

The lone fisherman assumes his position.

Gorgeous beach rocks.

We went swimming when the tide was out and kept banging our knees and feet against the rocks.

This was such a comfortable hotel, I'm sorry we had to leave due to monetary troubles. It was a nice one-year-of-knowing-each-other treat for Corey and I, though (the dates nicely coincided).

We hitched a ride to Playa Escondida on the back of a banana truck.

It went memorably fast.

Pretty handmade necklace Corey made me, which I've lost since then. Bummer.

This fish made a noise like a cow!

Corey caught a lot of these catfish, but we kept throwing them back because we didn't think they were good to eat. The laughing old men, incredulous at our silly gringo fish knowledge, informed us otherness. Oh well, one fewer catfish lunch to eat in this lifetime, I guess.

Wiggly little fellows!

Goopy green horse pond, seen on our hike in Mompiche.

I got excited by the pelican formations in the sky.

Mushroom hunting (unsuccessfully) in the tall grass.

Yeah. Birds are exciting.

This tree reminded me of the Lion King.

Fishing for giant weird fish in the lily-pad filled pond.

Corey sneaks a peek into the bat cave, out of which I ran out squeaking in startled fear upon the sight of the little hairy beasties flying around, panicked visions in mind's eye of their little claws tangled in my hair.

Searching for cool stones and shells. We could have spent all day doing this, because we are dorks like that.

Cool fossilized brain-like coral. Fun to look at, not so much fun to walk on (cut, sore feet).

It's Mr. Crab from Spongebob! These little guys were hard to catch. Corey and I mastered a strategy that involved a lot of shouting, sand-kicking and fast movement.

Points for you if you can ID these!

Cool black sand.

A cool bug we found a long the trail. He had a little dingleberry hanging out there for a while.

El Christof, our steadfast beach adventure traveling companion and beloved housemate!

We walked down a long hot trail in search of the black sand beach.

I think Corey said this was a type of milkweed.

I always make an effort to take pictures of the fishing boats for my dad, since I know he likes them. Portugeuse fisherman heritage represent.

OK, Julie, you liked the birds. Jesus.

We hired a boat to take us back from Cojimies, where we stayed for the Corvina Festival on August 9th. Corvina is sea bass. Long live the sea bass! Anyway, the boat took us by lots of mangrove forests. It was nice to see that they hadn't all been completely devastated (yet) for the production of cheap frozen shrimp in glowing supermarker aisles.

Our chill Capitan, encapsulating the motto of coastal living: reeeelaaaaaaxxxx.

We had a delicious lunch with the leftover shrimp we used as bait.

I was told repeatedly not to step on the darker fish, as it apparently had poisonous spines.

Corey gestures excitedly. The thrill of the hunt.

This is the BIGGEST COCKROACH I HAVE EVER SEEN (and I've seen a lot of them), smashed by my shoe in a fit of un-trademark Braveheart bravery and brutality in our little beach hut in Cojimies. For an idea of scale, that is an Ecuadorean 5-cent piece (the same size as the U.S. nickel.

Long live the sea bass! It was party time for Julie and Corey, as in we stayed up late until 12.30am instead of our usual 8.30-9pm bed time. We are such wild kids! There was a cool salsa band and lots of friendly sketchy drunk guys, and, of course, no sea bass festival is complete without the scantily dressed ladies shaking it onstage by a giant inflated hot-air bottle of alcohol.

This soup, complete with a whole lobster, langostinos, and a squishy queen conch piece, was purchased for the most excellent price of $3, much to the delight of our pockets and bellies.

I felt sad that I am too old to go down these kinds of slides.

Jess devours a coconut.

The withered old guy in the corner of this photo was cool.

Our time in Mompiche was all about the laziness: I read a book I really should have read for my thesis, Corey drank beer and talked with little old men on plastic white seaside beach chairs about fishing (said conversation involved a fair share of hand gesturing). And, of course, there were sunsets.

And coconuts on heads.

I wouldn't be a young white girl if I didn't take a picture of my feet.

Corey forages.

I'd never seen this kind of sand dollar before.

Are you tired of sunset pictures yet?

In more recent, relevant updates:

- Corey and I have been in Colombia since September 1st, visiting la familia for what is more than likely my very last Cali hurrah before Portlandia becomes everyone's permanent address. We are enjoying having some time to relax (or catch up on job and fellowship applications, in my case)

- Today is my birthday! There goes another year. If the next one brings plenty of mushrooms and traveling, like this past one, I'll be pretty happy.