'Echoes of Ecuador: Tales from the Trail

  Congratulations to Papallacta Spa! Winner, for 2 years in a row, of the Best Resort in all of South America! We are SO proud of our wonderful vendor for having such a beautiful place to visit! I have been going to Termas Papallacta Spa for many years with my family.  Established in 1994, Termas Papallacta Spa is set on 625 beautiful acres in the middle  of the Cayambe and Antisana volcanoes, at the beginning of the Amazon Rainforest.  Their pools are fed by several thermal baths, heated by the heat of the volcanoes. There are also walking nature trails that can go on for hours if you so choose. Here you can see over 100 species of humming birds in a beautiful setting of flora & fauna. Along the way, you are treated with views of the organic garden & many varieties of plant life. My favorite part of Termas Papallacta is the Salus Per Aquam Spa .  Part of the Spa holds an amazing set of 5 hydrotherapy pools that range from 86 degrees Fahrenheit to ...

 Cotacachi is one of my favorite places to visit. There is so much to see and so much of what I love is right in the heart of this beautiful little town, rich in heritage, culture and amazing finds of all kinds.  Cotacachi's Hollywood Sign by Daniel Bozza  As you enter the town limits, you are treated to this Hollywood like sign up on the hill. This is the town where leather goods are made. Many bargains are made here at this artistic town. This is Catredral La Matriz de Nuestra Señora de La Concepcion or Immaculate Conception Church, is  in the center of town where many activities are held. One of the most attended festivals is that of the celebration of Inti Raymi (Fiesta of the Sun)  According to retired resident and historian, David Sasaki ;  It is a tradition that dates back to pre-Hispanic times in the Andes. The commemoration is related to the end of an agricultural cycle, for which nature is thanked with products for the 10 months of planting. The S...

August 2023 Bella and me in Cumbaya, Ecuador How long have you ever waited for something? Do you think 30 years is a long time to wait? I sure do. I am not sure why I did not make it more of a priority to make my way back sooner, but as soon as I saw an opening to make a run for it, I did. I can't tell you how nervous I was to go back. Packing was a 2 week process. I wanted to remember (and bring) everything.  I went over what I needed over and over in my mind. Did I forget anything?   Did I pack everything? Was there enough room?    (I did end up remembering everything and it turned out to all be fine!)   I used this occasion to take my 2 youngest daughters with me to mark  their graduation and for turning 16. It was their very first time traveling out of the country  and to Ecuador. It was also the first time they would meet some of my family members.   It was a pretty big deal on many accounts.  You see, my Uncle was on...

  This is the story of how Mindful Ecuadorian Travel Adventures began.  To be honest the vision of this business started a long time ago. The seeds were planted back in 1990 during my trip at the end of college. My parents gifted me a trip as I was the first to graduate from college in our family. While I was there, I felt a deep connection to Ecuador and wanted to make a way to always be connected, but of course life happened.  I got married to Dan and we created our family of seven children. The financial strain of raising such a large family kept me away for so many years. Yet, the seed that was planted over 30 years ago took root and never stopped growing. So, when I returned in 2023, it was easy for me to see what needed to be done to cultivate the connection. When I landed in August of 2023 it felt as if Ecuador had been waiting for me. Like the prodigal son returning to his father, I had made my return. The trip in August provided a firm foundation from which to gr...

One of the first things that I did after starting our business on September 27th 2023, was to go to church and have our business blessed by one of our local priests, Fr. Luis. It was important to me to bring our business to God first. The funny thing was that Fr. Luis, without even knowing what the business was, said; "I will come" which I found very odd since i had not even told him what the business was or anything about it. He just made the proclamation after he blessed the business. The next thing that I did was some research to find specific words that would connect us to the energy of Ecuador. Energy is the language of the ancestors and using these words would properly convey our message that we want to honor the spirit of Ecuador and those that have gone before us. I looked to the ancient language of Kechua from the indigenous people of Ecuador and South America.  According to www.perurail.com: "Quechua, also called Runa Simi, was the language spoken by the Incas ...