A Pacific coast New Year’s

I hear there’s a cold snap in North America at the moment – I hate to rub it in, but the weather here on the Equator is pretty amazing as always. I like to say that here in Quito it is eternal springtime: pretty much all year long you can expect highs of about 70 degrees, mostly sunny skies, and a chance of rain. Like many Quiteños, I decided to descend from the Andes and head towards the warmer climate of the coast to celebrate New Year’s. Gaby (my girlfriend of about a month in case you didn’t see my last post) and I traveled to Canoa, a small little beach town near the city of Bahia de Caráquez.

It was fantastic to spend five days on the beach. Canoa had plenty of people around, but it wasn’t super crowded like some beaches here in Ecuador can be during holidays. The temperatures were warm throughout our time there, and for the most part there was pretty good sun. However, the best part about being on the Pacific was simply the fact that I really didn’t think about work, or nearly anything for that matter, for five days. It was super relaxing, and a much needed breather before diving into a lot of work during this first month of 2014. I won’t spend too much time writing about this trip, but rather let some pictures speak for me:

Driving to Canoa by private car – a much faster alternative than public bus!

Day one – relaxing with Gaby and some of her friends from work

I could do this all day…oh yeah, I did

The beautiful beach of Canoa

Looking back at the beach from the water

Enjoying the waves of the Pacific

A local restaurant had french press coffee!!

This was the scene basically every afternoon

A paraglider taking off from the beach – a common sight in Canoa

One of several bonfires that were lit to ring in 2014

On the beach at midnight

The other fantastic part about being on the coast, especially in the province of Manabí, was the food! I love me some meat, rice, and potatoes, which are the staples of the Andean diet – but the food on the coast of Ecuador is so refreshing by comparison! Every day we ate fresh dishes made with fish, shrimp, or other seafood, and our share of plantains (usually fried in some way!). Here are a few highlights, with some pictures following:

– Encocado: Fish or shrimp in a delicious sauce made with milk and plenty of coconut.

– Ceviche: Fresh fish, shrimp, or clams (or all three!) mixed with lime juice and lots of tomato and onion.

– Corviche: A fried delicacy! A dough made from plantains, formed into an oblong shape, stuffed with a bit of fish, and deep fried!

– Arroz Marinero: A huge pile of basically fried rice, with tons of seafood.

– Emborrajados: Battered and deep fried plantains cut length-wise into strips. Essentially Ecuadorian fair food!