Day 6 - By Dylan Y and Sam

However hard it was to say goodbye to Carlos and Sarah, who we grew close with during our stay at Hotel Pircapamba, we said goodbye and left on the bus at 8:30. The drive was around an hour to the marketplace, at which time we got to explore the market.

The market was very interesting. Maggio had recommended that we not buy any street meat for the sake of our health. To my awareness, we all took her advice. There was a wide variety of items being sold at the market. These included sweaters, scarves, gloves, knives, tools, food, and even speakers. We wandered through the market for two hours shopping and experiencing Andean culture.  We were some of the only foreigners (aka “gringos” or so we heard as we walked…) at the market as this is not a tourist market but where locals come for their weekly shopping.

Our time went by surprisingly fast. Many of us bought food from various venders throughout the market. Cakes wrapped in leaves, evidently known as “leaf cakes”, were being sold for 25 cents each, and coconut milk still in the coconut was being sold for $1.50. Maggio bought fruit and sugared breads for us for the bus ride to Guayaquil.         

We went to lunch at a nice hotel near the marketplace. We were first served tomato soup and then were offered a selection of ham, deviled eggs, and bread. After we ate lunch, we all got back on the bus and were taken to a place where we were given the opportunity to eat guinea pig. 

Some decided to try it, others decided to stay on the bus. After we finished, we got back on the bus and left for the hotel. Five hours after we got back on the road, we arrived at the hotel from which we are leaving for the Galapagos in the morning.