hiking and swimming...

Today i took the bus out to machalilla national park, and headed out on a
hike to the coast. the hike in was about 3 hours but this was with many
stops for beach combing and sight seeing... i was able to stop at 3 beaches
each bigger than the next and collected many shells and interesting bits of
shells. i may need another bag to get them all home.

The last beach �los frailes�was a long gently curving beach with very fine
sand. i met the dutch/ecuadorian couple that i met whale watching , and
sheila and i had a really nice swim. it felt especially god after the long
hike through the dry coastal forest. i was pretty sweaty and dirty. it was
nice to have a swim buddy as i really don�t feel comfortble going very far
in by myself... oceans still give m e the willies--- and not the free kind.

The weather is remaining overcast, but that is making things easier for ths
white girl to get a tan with out getting a burn. it also means that it is
not nearly as hot, as the ocean breaze makes it pertty much perfect.

I have decided to stay in puerto lopez for an extra day and then take a
plane from manta ( 2 hrs from here) to quito- the trip is otherwise 13hrs
onthe bus, and it is not recommended for gringas like me afterdark. so will
mean about 2 days on the bus if i stop midway. other times of year this
might be scenic, but as it is so cloudy i will not be able to see the
mountains, so will basically be stuck in crowded buses looking at bus
stations and street vedors... something i have already spent a few hours
doing and will still be able to enjoy from quito back to guayaquil at the
end of my trip.

any wh all is well here, I feel like this vacation is really making sense
now... just
had to get out of the city!

Love yahs!

Erin