For the first weekend in May Vinicio led a group of students around his home territory of Otavalo.

Early Saturday morning four of us, including our guide Vinicio set off for the indigenous community of Chilca Pamba for the weekend. On the way we stopped off at the animal and the handicraft markets of Otavalo. We spent a number of hours wandering around the incredible array of products for sale and sampled the colour and life of this famous market. That afternoon in the pouring rain we took a boat ride on the beautiful Laguna San Pueblo and got very wet visiting the waterfall in the small village of Peguche. That evening, we wearily made our way to the Chilca Pamba Community located about an hours bus drive outside of Otavalo. Upon our arrival we were welcomed by a local family and served a traditional meal of delicious cuy. Afterwards we were entertained with indigenous music by a local band. The next morning a guide gave us a tour of some of the native vegetables and fruits available in the nearby fields and local artesans at work producing some of the wares we had seen at the Otavalo Market. That afternoon we trekked to the stunning Laguna Cuicocha and took a boat trip around the lake before returning to Quito late Sunday night.

Peter