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| Otavalo, home to Ecuador's infamous market |
Just a few hours from the Colombian border, nestled between several volcanoes in the Ecuadorian Andes, Otavalo is home to South America's largest outdoor market. I decided to arrive to Otavalo a couple of days shy of the infamous Saturday market to give myself time to brush up on my bargaining skills - I needed to be at the top of my game in order to fulfill my goal of spending as little money as possible to replace my beachwear with some warm clothing suited for the high altitude of the Andes.
Saturday February 15th was game day. I woke early in the morning to catch the animal market which was held at the outskirts of town. Indigenous Ecuadorians proudly wore their traditional clothing as they flocked to the market to sell and buy everything from guinea pigs to horses. Puppies ran for as little as $2 US and cows for $500 US.
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| Animal market |
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| Satisfied customer |
As tempted as I was to purchase some livestock, Plaza de los Ponchos was where I'd put my bargaining skills to the test. Here countless artisans flooded the main square and spilled into the side-streets to sell colourful textiles, ponchos, sweaters and scarves. After several hours of searching and bargaining I walked away with a scarf and two sweaters hand-made from alpaca wool. While admittedly more than I intended to buy, it only set me back $38 US!
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| Artisan market in Plaza de los Ponchos |
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| Food market |
With fresh vegetables from the food market, wool sweaters from the artisan market and funny memories from the animal market, I returned to Hostería Rose Cottage to finish off the day with a stir-fry, a bottle of wine and a view for the books.
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| On the way to Rose Cottage |
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| The view |
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