Hi friends and fam! It feels surreal to finally be gone after so many months of preparation. We have spent the past two days at the Hacienda San Martin about 2 hours outside of Quito. It's a working dairy farm run by an incredible family who takes amazing care of their animals and land. We have felt like part of the family here because everyone is so warm and welcoming.
Yesterday, we rode horses around the farm, which totally rocked the kids' world. (Shout out to Guagua Pichincha in the background, which Ryan and I climbed in 2012 to acclimatize for Cotopaxi.)
We then hiked around the property, following the "cow trails" down the steep hillsides, and learned more about the native flora and the farms' operation.Then...wait for it...we got to milk cows AND feed bottles to the calves! The kids could hardly contain themselves. We might be getting a pet cow when we get home (hope that's cool with our 70th Ave SE fam).
Today we visited the Cloud Forest outside Mindo. I should mention here that two of three kids absolutely vomited on the winding Andean roads; thankfully only Ryan got hit by splatter. But we rallied! We saw hummingbirds, butterflies, and some incredible waterfalls. Baker of course met a random dog, lovingly named "Hiker," who accompanied us on our hike (hence the name).
We ate some lunch in Mindo, and the little kids even choked down quinoa (Ginny still refuses). Then we tried to go on a tour of a chocolate factory in Mindo but everyone was losing it by then, so we ditched that and came home. We are really, really tired.
Now we are back at the hacienda and the kids are happily playing hide-and-seek with the granddaughters of the farm's patriarch Javier, which is a good reminder for me that kids don't need all the fancy stuff to be their happiest. Tomorrow we head to another hacienda at the base of Cotopaxi. We'll be staying at 11,000 feet, and I can already feel my red blood cells multiplying. Yum.
All my love,
Madeline
Hi Ginny, Baker, and Lulu! Cool you got to ride a horse that is so cool and fun. Love, Meryl.
70 ave fam is down w the cow! Love the post and thanks for keeping us updated. xoxoxo
Priceless! Well maybe not the barfing part.😐 Have fun at 11,000 feet. Love, Q and Paul
So happy that you guys made it and is totally immerse into your new surroundings.
Fully supportive of y’all adding a cow to your animal sanctuary upon your return. And, of course Baker found a dog in the Cloud Forest. 😂 What a fantastic couple of days to kick off your adventures! …maybe not the motion sickness part; N and P were wincing in solidarity with the two who puked, and I—having also been splattered—was cringing in solidarity with Ryan. Lots of love to everyone, and looking forward to reading more about your meanderings!