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San Lorenzo, Ecuador
December 18, 2022
San Lorenzo, Manabí, Ecuador: I've been searching for any kind of historic info about San Lorenzo and cannot find anything, the few websites that have any info simply talk about the beaches, the lighthouse, the waterfall, the caves, cliffs, etc. I did find that the population is/was (in 2010) about 2600. San Lorenzo is a tiny coastal village, it has no stoplights, no gas station, no supermarket, and no ATM. Here at the Lookout Beach Hotel where I'm staying, the owners are Canadien and very friendly and helpful. They've been here in San Lorenzo for 8 years. They bought this piece of land and built their home on it. Then they added two more floors to open the hotel. Then they added a second building of 3 floors as well as a pool. Now they're in the process of building a restaurant. I highly recommend Lookout Beach Hotel to any travelers visiting San Lorenzo, Manabí.
Read MoreJipijapa, Ecuador
December 15, 2022
Jipijapa, Ecuador: Founded in 1565, but it never really grew until the 19th century with the introduction of coffee farming. The city may be very old but has little in the way of equally-old buildings and architecture. Since there's little to attract tourists the city is currently working programs to bring eco-tourists to the area. Some of the attractions include the Agua Dulce Waterfall, the Andil fresh-water wells, the mineral water wells of the volcano Chocotete, the Anegado waterfalls. Other area communities are also promoting other attractions, including bird and flora observation trails, archaeological sites of the Manteña culture such as the Petroglyphs, and tours of ecofarms.
Read MoreManta, Ecuador
December 14, 2022
Manta, Ecuador: Population: around 200,000. Founded in:1563. Manta is the largest shipping port in Ecuador and it has been in use since the early 1700s. It is also known as the "tuna capital of the world" due to its large tuna-fishing industry. At least four international tuna canning companies have processing plants in Manta. The climate is quite nice with an average daily high in the low '80s F and the average nightly low in the low 70s F. There are only a couple of beaches here in the city and they are okay, with more gravel than sand it appeared to me. To get to the nice beaches you have to leave the city and go either north or south.
Read MoreMontecristi, Ecuador
December 11, 2022
Montecristi, Ecuador: founded in 1536/1537 when the indigenous people living in the Manta region ran away from the Spanish invaders. Apparently, the official name of the town is Ciudad Alfaro. The population is about 46,000. Montecristi is famous for it Panama Hats. Montecristi is the original birthplace of Panama Hats, not the country of Panama, or anywhere else for that matter. I saw more hat shops in this little town than I've ever seen anywhere. And, I had the opportunity to talk with the two men in town who actually hand-craft the hats. They have a large hat press machine and dozens of molds for different shapes. If you're ever in Montecristi look for Modesto Hats, modestohats.com. The two men there speak English. The climate is very nice: the daytime high average 27° C (81° F), and nighttime lows average 22° C (71° F).
Read MorePortoviejo, Ecuador
December 10, 2022
Portoviejo, Ecuador: Founded in March 1535 which makes it one of Ecuador's oldest cities. When it was founded it was located on the coast and was given the name "Villa Nueva de San Gregorio de Portoviejo." The city was moved inland 30 kilometers (19 miles) because of attacks from the indigenous people in 1628. Apparently, they didn't like the Spaniards taking over their lands. The city has a population of around 210,000. In 2016 there was a big 7.8 earthquake that killed more than 300 people here in Portoviego. In 2019 UNESCO recognized Portoviejo as part of its Creative Cities Network. They received that recognition because of their preservation of ancestral recipes and their gastronomy in general. I can attest to the delicious encellobado. Encellobado is a fish soup and is incredible. The climate is unbeatable: daytime highs average 29° C, (84° F); and nights average 22° C, (72° F).
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I used to teach English as a foreign language in Barranquilla, Colombia. Now I'm retired and traveling throughout South America.
I'm from Kennewick, Washington, USA. In my previous life, as I call it, I was an IT guy, systems administrator, computer tech, as well as a shipping/receiving guy and also worked as a merchandising guy in a RV/Camping store.