Vamos Vilcabamba

Last night I left the beautiful tranquilo mountain town of Vilcabamba and crossed the border into Peru. More about beach bumming in Peru later but for now I´d like to reflect on Vilcabamba, probably my favorite Ecaudor stopping point. You can check out my hosteria at www.izhcayluma.com . I had three plus days of relaxation, including a full body massage and a somewhat out of the ordinary hike. The town was set between lush green mountains and my hosteria was about a twenty minute walk out of town with a view down on the valley. I spent the first two days taking it slow with a nice included breakfast, a walk into town for errands, a bite to eat or internet, a dip in the pool, a warm shower, reading and drawing, then a rico dinner. The hosteria had a nice crowd of travellers and its own bar with a chill night life. A couple glasses of wine and a few games of jenga and darts was typical. My last day there I mustered up some energy to go one a hike with 3 other folks. We hiked along a stream with an interesting log bridge cross, then up along the ridge of a mountain with great views. The furthest point was one of the most amazing waterfalls I have ever seen. It had two parts and the mist from the falls chilled the entire area. Unfortunately while we were crossing the stream at the base of the falls one of the girls slipped and landed on her elbow. She was in a severe amount of pain and may have broken something. We had to make her a sling and take it slow for the 2 plus hour walk back.