While not ready to leave Colombia, I was quite excited to move on to Ecuador, not only bc I was so looking forward to visiting the Galapagos, long on my must-see list, but also bc 3 close friends were meeting me. I had a day+ in Quito to kill before the first arrived so of course I decided to get out of the city & into nature. It was a Saturday & that meant the largest outdoor market in all of South America dating back hundreds of years was happening up north in Otavalo so I headed there on a 3hr cramped local bus. I wandered, found the Ecuadorian version of street food, shopped too much given I only have a small backpack & then decided to hire a taxi driver to run me to Cotacachi, a dormant Andes volcano 30mins away that especially piqued my interest when I flew directly over it the day prior, for a couple hours of hiking at 4,500m (ugh) before returning to Quito to meet my girl, G. My only regret? Not spending more time up north. The Andes scenery was beautiful & very unique as it was quite lush & featured several massive volcanoes dotting the horizon. I could easily spend a week+ up here hiking & exploring. Next time.