Polaroid of the Week

I am back in South America! Nearly exactly one year after my last trip to South America, I touched down in Quito this week. Read on for my first impressions of Ecuador’s capital..

I returned to Hong Kong and I got to enjoy the city for a second time – and I finally made it up to the Peak, famous for its sweeping views over the city.

We met Frank walking through the jungle on Little Corn Island. For $1.50, he offered to climb up the tree and cut two coconuts open with his machete for us. You don’t turn down coconuts, and you sure don’t turn down a man with a machete in a jungle.

Antigua’s Central Park is home to a quite unusual fountain – four mermaids on each side of the fountain are spraying streams of water out of their breasts. The fountain, ‘Fuente de las Sirenas’ in Spanish, was built by Diego de Porres in 1738, who took his inspiration for the fountain from the Neptune Fountain in Bologna, Italy.

Antigua, the former capital of Guatemala, has frequently been hit by earthquakes, but especially the earthquake in 1773 left severe damages, and up to today, dozens of ruins of churches and convents can be seen throughout the city.

We set off on our New Mexico road trip last week and have experienced so many unforgettable sights since then – but the White Sands dunes were a true highlight!

After months and months of hostels and 20+ hour bus rides, settling in our Brooklyn apartment has been nothing short of miraculous. We love the neighborhood, at least a dozen …

We’re back in Tucson for our third housesit here and have already had an interesting visitor in our front yard – a javelina, also known as skunk pig!

This week we leave Arizona and head over the border…to New Mexico! Our two week road trip starts tomorrow!

Last weekend we visited Tubac, a small artists’ colony only 20 miles from the Mexican border in Southern Arizona. This little town had quite a tumultuous past – read more about it here!