Our journey to Cuenca from Quito, started with a bus ride to the town of Riobamba (5hrs) arriving late at night. The next morning, we woke up at 5am to have a quick breakfast and get good seats on the top of the 7am train past Alhausi and down the Devil's Nose (Nariz del Diablo), a five hour journey. As you can see, by 6:15, the train was already filled (mostly by tourists as the cost of $11 is four times more than the bus would have been... but what an interesting way to travel!!).
Rebecca and I are sporting our Ecuadorian/Peruvian tuques (that is "woolly hats" for you non-canadians!). We are also sitting on rented cushions as the train ride can be long and uncomfortable otherwise.
The train was about 7 wagons long. And the terrace, where we were sitting, offered no protection from falling off. Still, it wasn't that hard to keep yourself from falling.
We saw great sights along the way... high mountains surrounding us...
...patchwork fields on hills...
...deep gorges and valleys.
Each car had a very official looking train conductor spinning a wheel on top of the wagon. My theory is that this helps steer the train's individual cars to smoothen the ride.
Our train stopped along villages where some of the locals (but not all) wear the colours of their pueblo, like the fuschia and red ponchos that these folks are sporting.
Funniest thing. Right next to the train station there was a tent set-up with 6 foozball (table soccer) tables.
We weren't the only ones doing the watching. I think this couple liked to have their picture taken as they stood in front of the train for a while.
This couple against the pink and green house made for a fantastic setting!
This pink guy is dressed up as a Latino TV Star cross between Superman and Homer Simpson. He goes around trying to hammer problems away but always causes even more trouble in the end. Just imagine the scriptwriting possibilities!
Out of town again, we passed some very green valleys,...
...Ecuador's highest peak, Chimborazo,...
...and rice fields and more agricultural plots in well irrigated grounds.
Though many houses that we passed were in hut format ... quite a few were also cement cubes (Ecuador really seems to love cement-based buildings!).
I had to take a picture of these sheep jumping over the bushes... reminds me of my childhood!! (For the scientifics out there, I did notice I was getting sleepy counting them.)
Passed a cemetery. This tall cross displayed the words "Dios no muere" (translation: "God does not die").
And these graves are made out to look like ornate houses.
These two very colourful chaps, surnamed by us as the rainbow twins, was the source of much giggling on our side of the train.
You want a life-threatening job?... Here you go; selling snacks and drinks on top of the train while the train is moving at full speed! We actually helped him along by holding on to his hand so he could very calculatedly walk across the lack of foot space on top of the train.
