Otavalo, a Lake and a Parade

August 28 – 30, 2024.

Otavalo was the first Ecuadorian city we set foot in after leaving Colombia. We had asked our taxi driver at the border to take us to the bus stop in Tulcan, but while we were en route, he waved down a bus on the other side of the highway heading towards Otavalo. When the bus stopped, he made a U-turn and pulled behind it. We grabbed all our belongings and boarded. I had booked an apartment near the bus station in Otavalo, so we’d be able to walk there when we arrived. But after we entered the city and I looked at my map app to see how close we were, I noticed we weren’t going anywhere near the bus station. The bus wasn’t making any stops, and we were heading out of the city.  I saw a little bus icon on the map near the southern edge of the city. We asked in our broken Spanish to be let out there.

We hefted our backpacks onto our backs and crossed a busy 4-lane highway to flag down a northbound taxi. But it was wasted energy. A southbound taxi saw us, disappeared, and came back to pick us up and take us back into the city.

Otavalo is a town of about 42,000 in the northern part of Ecuador’s central Andes Sierra region. It is known for having the largest indigenous market in South America, selling blankets, jewelry, musical instruments, dream catchers, leather goods, purses, clothing, masks, and more.

It was the first South American city we visited where we noticed a significant indigenous population. Many women wore traditional white embroidered blouses, shawls, dark wool skirts, long braids, gold beaded necklaces, red coral bracelets, and some type of head covering. The traditional dress for men consists of dark blue ponchos worn over white pants. And like in many other indigenous regions of the Andes, people spoke Kichwa. Spanish was their second language.

Otavalo is a cute town with decorated sidewalks, murals, attractive shops, a wide variety of restaurants, and a spacious central park called Parque Simón Bolívar.

Pretty sidewalk and shop in Otavalo.

Mural.

A scene in Parque Simón Bolívar.

We spent our first full day there just wandering around, getting a sense of the city. Greg was on the hunt for a Panama hat, so eventually we headed over to the Plaza de Ponchos.

A Panama hat is a lightweight, brimmed, straw-woven hat that, despite its name, is made in Ecuador. It is possible that this hat acquired its moniker from the many people who bought them as they passed through Panama on their way to California during the mid-1800s gold rush. Or perhaps it was when Teddy Roosevelt was photographed wearing one while touring the Panama Canal.

The market was pretty quiet when we walked through it. The big day is Saturday, and this was Thursday. Shopping isn’t something we indulge in much since we have no extra space to keep the things we buy. But we did buy a small zipper pouch to replace one that had broken, and after Greg talked to a few vendors and tried on a few Panama and other hats, he settled on a mid-priced Panama.

Greg tries on hats at the Plaza de Ponchos.

The Plaza de Ponchos.

The Plaza de Ponchos.

The Plaza de Ponchos.

On our second and final day in Otavalo, we made an excursion outside the city to visit Laguna de Cuicocha, a caldera lake at about 10,065 feet above sea level, formed by a massive volcanic eruption about 3,100 years ago.

To get there, we walked a couple of blocks from our Airbnb to the bus station, where we caught a bus to the town of Cotacachi. From Cotacachi, we found a taxi driver who took us the last 8 or 9 miles to the lake. Before our driver left, we got his contact info so we could call him when we wanted to leave.

At Cuicocha, we visited the Centro de Interpretación Cultural, a nice museum with exhibits on the Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve. Outside, we stood at the edge of the lake’s steep crater walls and looked across the brilliantly blue water. In the middle of the lake sat two green islands formed by lava domes. The lake’s name, Cuicocha, comes from the shape of the larger island, which some think looks like a guinea pig. Cuicocha means guinea pig in Kichwa.

There is an option for a boat trip on the lake, but we wanted to hike the 8.7-mile trail that circles its perimeter.  We walked down paths lined with lush vegetation, looking for new plants and animals to add to our iNaturalist app. We weren’t disappointed. We made 63 observations! Along the trail, we also encountered several stonework sites, including the Solar Calendar, the Lunar Calendar, and the Offering Site.

The museum.

The trail around the lake.

Northern Banana Passionfruit

Tillandsia lajensis

Jamieson’s Epidendrum

Whorltail-Iguana

Lunar calendar.

Offering site.

Back in Otavalo, the atmosphere was festive. We had no idea before we arrived in Otavalo, but it was the first day of the week-long Yamor festival, a celebration of the corn harvest. The name of the festival, “Yamor,” comes from a traditional drink made with seven varieties of corn. Yamor is available during the festivities, but unfortunately, we had no idea about any of this at the time, or we would have sought some out.

A stage was set up with a brass band playing at Parque Simón Bolívar in the afternoon. Then, as the day turned to evening, people began lining the streets for the parade. As they waited for the start, mobile vendors walked along the parade route selling snacks, souvenirs, and plastic stools to sit and watch the parade from. Portable grills selling various types of meats and carts with fresh fruit were set up behind the spectators on the streets that intersected the parade route. I might have enjoyed photographing the vendors and people watching just as much as the parade!

As parade time grew closer, people packed in and jostled for the best view. And then, as the light started waning, the motorcycle police showed up, followed by an oversized costumed character of an Otavaleño man.

Vendors worked the crowds during the parade.

There was trash clean up during the parade.

Colorful dancers twirled and swayed, costumed characters with elaborate headdresses rode horses, musicians played flutes, and marching bands belted out tunes. Large floats were decorated with giant hummingbirds, flowers, and oversized fruits. Sequined, tiara-wearing women rode the floats, waving and throwing candy to the children. Tons of costumed characters passed by with cultural significances that eluded us.  After about an hour, we decided to work our way out of the crowd and get some dinner. Two hours later, when we were calling it a night, I went up to the roof of our Airbnb for one last look at the parade. It was still going strong.

Our last views of the parade from the rooftop of our Airbnb.