Greetings from Manta (Ecuador's ugliest town . . . )!

Hello!

We are on the coast of Ecuador, in the town of Manta, on our way from Quito to the coastal town of Canoa.

A lot has happened since our last post! First of all, Parque Tayrona is stunning, and you should all visit. We began with a long hike through the forest, where we were astounded to find monkeys! Dozens of them, filling the trees above us - amazing. After the hike, we reached the water, where we were greeted by an expansive beach, big waves, palm trees, and mountains. We hiked along the beach to Cabo San Juan, a sort of hippie beach village. We whiled away the day, reveling in the beauty around us, before digging into a sleepless night in hammocks.

Highlights of Colombia: Luis and Ivan, Santa Marta, communal dinner, Tayrona, Juan Valdez.

After Tayrona, we returned to lovely Santa Marta, before flying to Quito, Ecuador. Arriving in Quito was quite an experience - to return to the place of so many memories for Magui, and for Betania to finally see this place that she had heard so much about. We settled in to Hostel Centro del Mundo, arriving in the midst of free rum-and-coke night, which, needless to say, gets a little crazy. It was a fun way to be welcomed into life in the Mariscal (Quito's GringoLand). We had a really great time in Quito, and met a whole cast of new characters who added color to our adventures.

Highlights of Quito: Old Town, dancing, fritada, live music in La Ronda, lunch with Mariana, Papaya.net (and Fernando and Nephy), seeing old friends, dinner at a Chinese restaurant with our new Haitian friends.

We hope that you are all well, and we will share more with you from the shores of Canoa!

Peace, love, and full-fat peanut butter,

Magui y Betania

COLOMBIA!

Greetings from Santa Marta, Colombia!

Meg and I are having a wonderful trip so far - perfect day after perfect day. We began in Cartagena, a beautiful town with a colonial center. We did many fun things in Cartagena - went to the local beach, Boca Grande; went on a boat tour to two nearby islands, including the stunning Playa Blanca; and enjoyed the sea breeze in the evening at Cafe del Mar. By far the best part of Cartagena, however, was meeting some truly great people. On our first night in town, we met two locals, Luis and Ivan, who we quickly dubbed "the nicest men in Colombia." We also had the pleasure of getting to know two others staying at our hostel - Andrea, from Virginia, and a Brazilian named Gustavo.

Our favorite part of our time in Cartagena was the six of us cooking a communal dinner in our hostel kitchen. We shared good food, great conversation, and some good jams (including Bob Marley, who we have decided is the one person that EVERYONE in the world likes).

We are now in Santa Marta, which we were shocked and amazed to find is even more beautiful than Cartagena! We have only be here for a few hours, but we are in love with it already. We encourage you all to visit Santa Marta; with its quaint colonial streets, beautiful beach, pleasant plazas, and friendly people, how could you not love it?

Tomorrow we will explore the nearby Parque Tayrona. Having read extensively about the beauty of this national park, we are eager to finally see it!

Thanks for checking in. We hope you are all doing well!

Cuidense,

Magui y Betania

The Adventure Begins!

Hello, everyone!

Thanks for checking in here! I'm super excited to have all of you follow me along this incredible adventure. I have this amazing opportunity - to see the world, to make memories, and to do it all with my best friend, Meg.

Our departure is fast approaching - we leave in three days! We will fly into Miami this Friday (Meg's birthday!), and spend the night. On Saturday, we officially begin our international travels, as we embark for Cartagena, Colombia.

I am thrilled to be able to stay connected and share stories with each of you over the next four months, and I hope you enjoy following me through Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Italy, and Greece. Wow!

Peace,

Bethany