Sliding south down the coast to Salinas

Perdón por la demora en no saber de mi mis amigos (I'm apologizing, you have to translate it on your own). I have to say it took a bit to get over the Puerto Lopez high and transition to Salinas (that's Susan and Paul's fault). The trip south to Salinas covered some of the road we covered during our "South Tour" while at P.L.; and then transitioned into huge shrimp farms along the highway prior to entering Salinas. As we neared Salinas, the high rise apartments were easy to see; expats and locals call this "little Miami". I can see why...but might use "tiny" instead of "little". Salinas is on the Santa Elena peninsula that juts out into the Pacific ocean, the westernmost part of Ecuador, and the coastline is full of tall residential buildings and hotels butted up to each other lining the malecon and beyond. Our new home is atop a nine story residence near the "beginning" of town facing the ocean that has a spectacular view of the beach and the harbor. 

A quick update...We missed seeing the finished product of our stepping stone project at Susan and Paul's by just a few days. So I have to share the finished products that will now become a part of the VBV walking path. (Thanks again, S&P, that was the best!)

Nowhere near approaching Quito's size, but vastly larger than Canoa or Puerto Lopez, we took our time "adjusting" to our new "big city" surroundings in Salinas. Having stocked up with supplies before we got to our building with our driver Tito; allowed us the option to slowly explore our new surroundings as the first days went by. (do you remember what yada yada means?)

There may be some; I'm hoping not many, that will be happy to know that the sunsets are going down over the far point of the peninsula from our condo and not into the water that we got so used to at P.L (I may find a way to fix this, but you'll need to stay tuned for that). Regardless, sunsets on the ocean are still pretty cool from our balcony.

Just had to share my cool membership card from one of the local grocery+ stores in town, Mi Comisariato. Please don't share or use my account number to try and get discounts on any future purchases; you could get me in trouble.

Our weather here in Salinas has been consistently in the low 80's, with feels like temps in the mid to high 80's. Mornings have been mostly overcast, and as the day moves toward late morning, the sun comes out and it turns hot and beautiful. Don't get me wrong, this is not your grandpa's low 80's, this is equatorial low 80's; it's still hot people. Rehydration is a full time job for BB; and I mean not just water, this requires the good stuff.
​NGG, and her inner Dora the Explorer, have continued to encourage us to get out and see our new neighborhoods; although we have smartly been "traveling light" with no valuables and keeping our phone (for pics) low key. We have found the people of Salinas (and Ecuador in all our visited places) to be friendly and welcoming to us in every interaction. The malecon is home to the high rise buildings; but mere blocks from there is where the local neighborhoods are. We have felt safe and enjoyed these sights almost every day. We even found a large outdoor market on one excursion.

One of our favorite daily occurrences, and usually 2-3 times a day, is the arrival of the garbage truck. No lie, they play the coolest song (over and over) to let the neighborhood know they are coming (so get your stuff out to the street!) and are some of the hardest working people in the city. We have even seen them at 8:30 PM, for the third time in that day collecting refuse. We smile every time we hear their music playing! (Play the video in the second frame for a small taste of their groovy tune.) The city is super clean! Oh, and by the way, the roads are in excellent shape throughout all the areas that we have explored.

Ok, there's your first taste of Salinas. We hope you've enjoyed our experiences so far. I'll bring the second half of our stay to life in the near future.

Stay safe and breathe deeply my family and friends. Ciao for now.

​Pura Vida!