Zuleta - Day 2

Day 2 at Zuleta found us visiting the gardens, cheese factory and worm farm immediately after breakfast.

Artichoke Plant

Digging in the worms

We then changed into cycling gear, got our bikes fitted, and headed out for an all terrain ride to the condor sanctuary. Road or tri bikes are what I've grown accustomed to, but we were using mountain bikes, for reasons that would soon become apparent.

A Common Sight

Main roads in Zuleta were cobblestone, making for bumpy terrain, and new riding conditions for me. We were cheerfully zipping along the first few kilometers, then made a left turn into Zuleta. Kai (one of our guides) quickly caught up with us and told up that the road up that way was a mess, and we should turn around and go to the right. We did, and found the bus up ahead marking a turn-off for us. We were now off the main road, and onto paths comprised mainly of dirt, and quite muddy in some places.

I started riding with Yarden, who was struggling a bit with the challenging terrain. She would yell and scream about how hard it was, but keep going. We took several breaks for water and gummy bears along the way. Although I told her several times that if she wasn't enjoying herself, she could get on the support (cow) truck, she refused. Kai then came along and helped her with the final push to the end. Gotta admire that tenacity!

Once at the condor sanctuary we saw several wild condors flying above, which apparently they frequently do, and occasionally land on the condor enclosure. Fernando told us a bit more about the condors, clearly a very strong passion of his, then it was back to the hacienda for lunch.

After lunch, there were several activity options. Amit decided to stick around the hacienda with her new friend Danielle while Yarden and I opted for the horseback riding. After being fitted for helmets and chaps, we were provided with ponchos as it had started drizzling.

We got on our horses,who were quite adept at navigating the slippery cobblestones that marked our route. I was unite enchanted by my horse Stefania, who was very responsive to my subtle commands, and didn't require a heavy hand. All too soon, our two-hour ride was over, and we dismounted and said goodbye to our horses in town.

Every two weeks there is an embroidery fair in Zuleta, and that Sunday happened to be one of those days. Because we were late getting back from horseback riding, we hurriedly headed over to the embroidery area to admire their work and make some purchases. Amit helped me pick out some gifts for my mother and sister, as well as a table runner for our house.

I asked one of the women how long it took to do the embroidery, and she told me that it took 2 full days to make a hand towel or bread cover. However they sold each of those item for merely $8. Can you imagine living on or earning only $4/day?!

Back at the hacienda before dinner, we went to visit a mama horse and her day-old foal



were treated to a rainy bonfire, s'mores, baby bananas stuffed with chocolate and melted in the fire (must do at home!), as well as Andean music. Before long they had us dancing around the fire!

It was a great ending to our stay at the warm, delightfully hospitable Hacienda Zuleta.