I'm not sure who first said it, but all good things must come to an end is certainly apropos here. We arrived back into Quito last night around 9 p.m. and were greeted at the airport by Diego Garcia, one of the proprietors of the Hotel Casa de Hacienda La Jimenita. The grounds where the hotel is located have been in his family for generations. He and his parents, along with his brother, Emillio and pleasant staff run the hotel. Unfortunately for us, our stay is one of only one night and all day while we await our flight back to the States this evening.
On our next trip to Ecuador, and I can assure you, there will be another, Hotel Casa de La Jimenita will definitely be our home base for a few days. Located 45 minutes outside the city of Quito (read: away from the hustle and bustle of the city) and only 15 minutes from the international airport, Casa La Jimenita is another jewel in what we have discovered are many in the beautiful country of Ecuador.
Diego, family and staff have treated us to a completely relaxing day and invited us into their beautiful home as family, not guest. It's just another example of how warm and friendly we have found the people of Ecuador to be. But our home is in Alabama, and Alabama is where we head tonight. So for one last hurrah, let's close this journey out with a collage of photos from the beautiful grounds of Hotel Casa de Hacienda La Jimenita.
In the last picture you get a glimpse of one of the ten volcanoes visible from the property. Below are pictures of some of the others. Unfortunately, I didn't get up in time today to catch the snow capped peak of Cotapaxi, which you can vaguely make out behind the clouds in this photo. What follows are other volcanoes in the distant views.
Jana and I took a little walk around the grounds. In the process, we met several folks that are also enjoying their stay here. In the "it's a small world after all" category, we met a lady by the name of Nahla from Charleston, WV who, after chatting for a bit we learned is very close friends with my first cousin Paula who lives in Charleston as well. She and I did a little video hello that she sent to Paula via Facebook. Here she is in the courtyard and what follows are more pictures of the beautiful grounds here at La Jimenita.
We had a wonderful fresh breakfast and lunch, relaxed a bit more and then it was time to say goodbye. With that we bid you adieu from Ecuador and thank you for following our blog of one of the most incredible journeys either of us have ever experienced!
For the past couple of days we've been pinching ourselves and asking if this was even for real. We keep waiting on Robin Leach to show up for a filming of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Obviously two things we are not, but from the looks of our surroundings we've certainly felt as such and have even been pampered like we were among the elite Hollywood crowd.
Above is a photo of the restaurant at Hosteria Caballo Campana. It is located on the grounds of a gorgeous hacienda only 15 minutes from downtown Cuenca. Sprawling over 28 acres with a colonial home housing a lodge with close to 20 rooms, it is a family run operation that has been in business for twenty years. They have an active farm that trains competition horses, provides space for eloquent banquets, has a lodge with close to 20 rooms and as we learned, a beautiful restaurant that serves wonderful gourmet dishes.
When we checked out of our apartment on Friday, September 12th, we needed a place to simply relax and enjoy the day while we waited for our 7:50 p.m. flight to Quito. We took a $4 taxi ride to the hacienda and settled in for the afternoon. The owners' daughter, Priscilla, provided us with a tour of the grounds, which is essentially a botanical garden in and of itself, the stables, which house some sixteen competition horses and of course the wonderful restaurant where we would be served a delicious meal later in the day.
But first, it was off on a horse back ride through the local village. As our guide and his helper readied our steeds we made quick acquaintance with some familiar looking faces. There are 11 dogs that make their home at Hosteria Caballo Campana, three of which reminded us of our three back home. These two reminded us of Alex and Cassie. The black lab mix was laid back just like Alex and the husky mix talked with us like Cassie.
Then this little guy came up and said hello. We named him "Little Chester".
So before we knew it, the guide was ready for us to mount up. This gorgeous creature was my mount.
We climbed aboard and off we went, with Little Chester and Cassie's "sister" leading our way.
We headed by the hacienda on our way out of the compound and out into the nearby village.
With Little Chester and Cassie's "sister" still leading the way we rounded the bend to this magnificent sight. Eventually, we would trek down into the village located in the valley in the distant view below.
As we passed by the people doing their daily chores I wondered what these people thought of these gringos strolling through their village on these magnificent beasts. Jana even heard one of the little boys shouting to his older brother and pointing towards us, "Gringos, gringos"! She said she saw the older boy cover the little boy's mouth. I guess in some ways we were living the lifestyle of the "rich and famous".
At one point, our guide had to stop to put Little Chester into his vest to carry him the rest of the way because he came so close to being hit by passing cars a few times. We would have been devastated! We wanted to put that little dude in our suitcase and bring him home!
Then it was back to the hacienda for some relaxation and almuerzos.
Here is a picture of our hostess for the day, the lovely Priscilla, a sweet little Ecuadorian young lady who plans to visit her good friend in Anniston, Alabama in the coming year. If so, we may get the chance to host her in our casa and return the graciousness she showed to us during our visit to her home.
The Barabon Restaurant is a warm and cozy setting, another "must see" when in Cuenca.
As the sun began to appear from behind the clouds, it was getting late and we had a flight to catch. We toured the grounds one last time and took in the sights of the farm and the beautiful plants gleaming in the sunlight growing all around.
As this blog entry comes to a close, I ring the bell one last time from Hosteria Caballo Campana. Where for only $127, the total price for our 2 hour horse back riding adventure, incredible 5 star lunch with a bottle of wine, and just the simple pleasure of being made to feel at home, you too can feel like the rich and famous, at least for a day.
Ciao ciao, for now.
