One night while staying in Chugchilán we were treated with the music of the locals, a magical and timeless performance with flutes, a bass drum, a guitar, a ukelele, and several women wielding shakers. It just becomes so much more unique and special when you consider that this type of music has been sung in this way for so many generations. The ladies enter with very high-pitched vocals and sing in a mixture of Spanish and Quechua songs that must have been older than anyone I have ever met in this life. Everything is tranquil and smooth as all their instruments work in a different sort of rhythm than my Western ear is accustomed to.

The result is a beautiful combination of sounds that stick with me for days to come as I hike about the Andes and gasp for breath at the 10,000+ foot altitude that is not easy to acclimate to in only several days time. This brings me to my other favorite experience of the Andes, the hiking!
The next day at the Quilotoa Crater situated at 12,500 feet, I really felt like I was near the top of the world. Although many peaks in our close vicinity tower near 20,000, they are so far in the distance and shrouded by clouds that we truly felt as though there was no where we could go that would really feel that much higher. I did some push-ups to really feel that lack of oxygen, and boy did I feel it. From this view we could see the quaint village of Chugchilán, our destination, from across a valley with its white buildings. It seemed like an incredible distance to hike in one day but somehow we all made it (barely). We had to descend all the way to somewhere around 9,700 feet before climbing back the other side of the valley another 800 feet or so. That last 800 feet was some of the most difficult hiking for me and most of the rest of the group as well since it was after hiking for a good 9 kilometers down from Quilotoa. Following? Regardless, it was an excellent work-out and invigorating experience that made me craving to hike something even more difficult. To get an idea of the scenery here is a view from around that area of a farmer tending to his crop in the foggy Andean countryside: