Neighbor

One of Goldie's favorite places

Lantana

Female harmonica player at Inti Raymi in Cotacachi.

Two centuries ago, Floreana Island in the Galápagos was home to approximately 20,000 giant tortoises. However, whaling, a devastating fire, and relentless human exploitation eventually led to their complete extinction on the island. Now, the species made a comeback. edition.cnn.com/2026/02/22/t...

US skater Alysa Liu wins the gold medal in women's figure skating at the 2026 Olympics in Italy. Liu, who retired from competitive skating at one point, came back to become the first US female figure skater in more than 20 years to win Olympic gold.

A report, published in the scientific journal Frontiers, reveals that almost half, or 47.4%,  of the fish samples analyzed in cities in Ecuador's Sierra region, such as Quito, and sold under generic commercial names like "corvina," turned out to be shark meat.  www.primicias.ec/ciencia-tecn...

The year of the Horse begins today.

Great song by Laura Nyro. Better than the 5th Dimension's version which reached Number One on Billboard. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvKz...

Miss Universe Fátima Bosch suffered a slight fainting spell due to the altitude at the Fiesta de la Fruta y de las Flores, in Ambato.

The Nazca Lines in Peru. Experts still debate the meaning of the lines.

Carnaval in Ecuador involves pranks such as spraying people with foam or water. Many shops sell cans of foam or water guns.

Geraniums

Cat pile. This is how they stay warm.

Peru's Sacred Valley. Photos taken during a trip in 2017.

Andean condors in Peru's Colca Canyon. Taken during a trip in 2017.

Liam Ramos and his dad are back in Minneapolis after they were released from a Texas detention facility.

A federal judge has ordered the release of 5-year-old Liam Conejos Ramos and his father from the South Texas Family Residential Center, according to a ruling obtained by CNN. Liam and his father were taken by immigration agents from suburban Minneapolis. edition.cnn.com/2026/01/31/u...

Once again, Ecuadorian cuisine has made headlines in a global ranking. This time, a Taste Atlas publication placed Llapingacho ninth among the best potato dishes worldwide. The Ecuadorian dish, a potato tortilla with achiote and a cheese filling, ranks ninth. www.primicias.ec/entretenimie...

Rush hour in Cotacachi

The flowering of the guayacán trees in western Loja Province. This is a natural spectacle that attracts national attention. These are actual flowers and not blossoms that turn into leaves. Photo courtesy: Prefectura de Loja

There is an unusual attraction in Otavalo that many visitors probably overlook. It's a dinosaur park. There are several of these prehistoric critters just off the Pan-American Highway. I guess you can call it Tyrannosaurus topiary. Photo courtesy: John Astudillo & Luis Alberto Orellana Mora

A number of years ago, I had an amusing experience at the fried chicken place in town. The worker didn't know any English and I forgot the Spanish words for wings and breasts. But I pointed to what I wanted. She confirmed my order by flapping her arms and then putting her hands on her breasts.

Woman with firewood in the Cotacachi commune of Turuku. I took this photo a number of years ago. In rural areas, there are still many families that cook with firewood. You will never hear rural women complain about the loads they carry.

Ecuador occasionally gets tornadoes, though it's a relatively rare phenomenon. Twelve years ago, Cotacachi came close to having a tornado. I remember standing at a window, looking outside, when I saw a funnel forming in a cloud. But fortunately, it never touched the ground and eventually dissipated.

In many bakeries and grocery stores, a sweet bread known as Rosca de Reyes is being sold. It has candied fruits, figs, chocolate, dulce de leche and nuts. January 6 is Epiphany or Three Kings Day when, according to tradition, the Magi visited and brought gifts to the baby Jesus in Bethlehem.

First Supermoon of the year. Very bright in the sky over Cotacachi.

List courtesy of author Stacey Gustafson

Ritual cleansing and purification is a tradition in indigenous communities. These rituals often take place in the highland moors at pogyos (small natural spring waters) which are designed to catch the good energy of the water and land. The pogyos are considered sacred sites.

Backstrap weaving is a technique that is slowly dying. But there are still Ecuadorians who do it. José Manuel Fuerez is a very talented weaver in the Otavalo area. He is helping to keep the backstrap weaving tradition alive. José is a former student of the legendary weaver Miguel Andrango.

Angochagua is a rural parish in Imbabura Province. It is southeast of Ibarra and not far from Zuleta which is famous for its embroidery. The whole area is known for embroidery and has been designated the "Ruta de los Bordados." The inhabitants try to maintain their ancestral traditions.

You never know who will answer when you knock on a door in Cotacachi.

There are indigenous people who do modeling. It's interesting how their philosophy differs from that in other cultures. "We do not seek to compete. Our identity as indigenous people is not merchandise. It is a living culture that we seek to maintain.

Oilbirds (tayos) are nocturnal birds that live in caves in northern areas of South America. The Amazon is not the only place where you can find oilbirds. There is also a Cueva de los Tayos in the Intag region of Imbabura Province. Oilbirds produce this high-pitched sound that could wake the dead.

The various faces of Mama Cotacachi, as seen from different viewpoints. The first is at sunrise, as seen from town several years ago. The second photo shows the mountain on the drive between Cuicocha and Intag. The third photo shows Mama Cotacachi as seen near Cotacachi-Cayapas National Park.

18th Century illustration of Cotacachi. The town was founded in 1544 by Friar Pedro de la Peña. He was a Dominican priest who later became a Bishop of Quito. So what does Cotacachi mean? According to some, it's a reference to the town's once-thriving salt market.

It's estimated there are 10,000 merchants and musicians from the Otavalo area working overseas. They are considered the cultural ambassadors of Ecuador. Many people around the world get their first exposure to Ecuadorian culture through them.

Some of my neighbors in Cotacachi. My wife and I adopted the orange-colored cat in the middle when he was older.

The Yumbos were an ancient people in Ecuador. The Danza de los Yumbos is an ancestral dance of pre-Spanish origin. Try picking up a cup of chicha this way! Only a few villages in the Cotacachi area still perform this dance: Cumbas Conde and San Nicolás.

Mahatma Gandhi once said, "The true India is to be found not in its few cities, but in its seven hundred thousand villages." Ecuador is a little like that. Around Cotacachi and Otavalo, there are dozens of villages and communes where many of the indigenous live.

When I first came to Ecuador, I was surprised to find that artichokes grew so well in the Andes. I had always thought they needed a lower elevation. But they do quite well at close to 8,000 feet above sea level.

Photos of Taita Imbabura at sunrise, taken over the years.

It used to be a common sight in Cotacachi to see people traveling around town with goats. You could get goat's milk delivered right to your doorstep.

An indigenous wedding I once went to in Cotacachi. The wedding was like many Christian weddings, including the throwing of rice at the newlyweds as they left the church. Many indigenous people are Christians. Kichwa weddings often have a washing ceremony the next day.

On November 2, Ecuadorians will observe Día de los Difuntos, known as Día de los Muertos in other countries. It's when people visit the cemeteries and pay their respects to deceased loved ones. Sharing drinks and food, cleaning the graves, praying and singing are some of the traditions .

On the mountains of Otavalo, the Condor Park Foundation opens its doors to the research, rescue, preservation and reintroduction into the wild of birds of prey, owls and the famous Andean condor, which live in special habitats for their optimal recovery and growth. The place is called Parque Condor.

Mama Cotacachi is the tallest mountain in Imbabura Province at 16,250 feet above sea level. It's more than a thousand feet taller than Taita Imbabura. It's not the easier mountain to climb. Five years ago, two mountain guides were killed in a rockslide. www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVEd...

It measures about 8 centimeters, is epiphytic (that is, it grows on other plants) and has flowers in shades of yellow and pale green: it is Telipogon villonacoensis, a species recently described by scientists. The first specimen of the orchid was discovered in Loja in 2023.

The Union of Campesino and Indigenous Organizations of Cotacachi (UNORCAC) led a peaceful march through the streets of Cotacachi. This mobilization took place, despite the fact that the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) declared the end of the national mobilizations.

The only known specimen of the Phyllophaga sumacoensis beetle, a species new to science, was discovered at an altitude of 1,750 meters in Sumaco Napo-Galeras National Park, Napo province. Scientists used a light trap to attract the individual. www.eluniverso.com/noticias/inf...