We leave Hosteria Cabanas del Lago well rested and head into Otavalo. Someone Lady Luck was with us, although I had my doubts initially. It was somewhat by random 'happenstance' that there was no decent routing to Quito on Fridays or Saturdays. This meant using our free airline miles on a Thursday departure. But in doing so, our bike riding schedule has landed us on perhaps one of the best markets I've seen. And the with the stunning weather, the market is in full bloom.
We are directed to park the bikes next to this Toyota HiLux. I guess these are attack pigs which will make sure our helmets and jackets aren't stolen as we peruse the market?
We are directed to park the bikes next to this Toyota HiLux. I guess these are attack pigs which will make sure our helmets and jackets aren't stolen as we peruse the market?
In all reality, Pacsafe nets are unbeatable. We put 4 riders gear in the net and locked them through the chassis of the bike.
I marvel at all the different wares that are on display.
It occurs to me that all this cripty crap is brought in the hard way. By hand!
Everything is made from Alpaca around here. And it's so soft. Some Alpacas gave some, and others give all
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The blue swimmer crabs are bound by just a single string. I wonder how many times someone was pinched before all the claws were properly folded for tying?
All this excitement, and you are bound to work up an appetite. It's a shame that we aren't bold enough to give a try, and ironically we'll save that food poisoning for a few days from now from a more reputable source!
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This is Keith trying to figure out if this will be carry-on baggage on Copa Airlines
Keith has obviously forgotten that we are on small, nimble dual sports as he spends his life savings within the market. In order to contain his loot, he now needs to buy a duffle bag, and the poor KLR looks a bit like shanty town for the remainder of the trip
I thought that the best wares were further to 'centroid' of the market. The further in we went, the more interesting the wares became. We walked a few of the outside streets, but found most of that to be low end resale stuff which you'd find at any flea market. I really wish I would have figured out to mail stuff from enroute, because there was no lack of want for me. While we've only spent 2 hours here, it's clear that we are actually on a moto vacation. Time to rolls some tires, lest we not make Mindo tonight.