Our apartment is across a very small one-way street from a park that has a river running through it. The river is the Rio Malacatos. The name of the park is Parque Lineal La Tebaida. It has a grand entrance on the other side. This entrance is on a large street and is much higher in elevation than our street on the other side of the river.
The wall behind the caterpillar above is part of the entrance. From this elevated space there is a lovely view down to the river.
Ecuadorians are pretty serious about their exercise. The park is full of people walking and jogging at all hours. The park has exercise machines for adults. Below is about 1/3 of the equipment. It is fun playground equipment for big people. There is also a soccer field and basketball hoops. There are nets for volleyball as well. Everything seems to be used constantly and the park is cared for beautifully.
Just down the street from us, this exercise class is underway every morning at 6:30 AM. I am too chicken (and lazy) to join them.
We love to take walks in this park and do so almost every day. We always go south and it is maybe two miles before we have to cross a road. The Universidad National de Loja begins along the river and across that road. The park does extend to the north also but you have to cross a big street. On this street the mercado is on one side of the river and SuperMaxi and a shopping center is on the other side. Beyond a block-long bus stop (where the buses turn around to return to the center of town) there are more sports fields and a plaza beyond that.
Above is the big bridge that crosses the river near our apartment. It reminds me of the Jetson's TV show - very retro-futuristic. There is a big spillway and gates on either end so they can control the water flow.
This is the area above (south of) that spillway. The building below is set up to be a restaurant. It has been open for drinks and snacks but not for very long. Either it is seasonal or not very successful. It would be successful for a clientele of small boys, or Lewis and I, who like to watch construction machines when they change the flow of the water so they can scoop up the gravel and fill dump trucks.The waterfall below is behind the restaurant.
The bridge above is north of the big bridge and closer to the mercado and SuperMaxi. Below you can see the other spillway that is further south.
And above that area is this covered bridge.
Here is the excavator in this area when he has rearranged the flow of the water and scooped up the gravel into large heaps to drain. Then he loads the dump trucks and they presumably take it to build roads or assist in new construction.
A few more photos of the more civilized parts of the park:
Our favorite parts are when we venture beyond and go further south.
The house below used to have some space in front of their front porch. Then we had a large and heavy rainstorm. Yikes!
Below you can see where the excacator cut a road down to the left. We watched him knock down those trees. We later learned that they are building a new road on the other side of the river. Eventually they will have a bike path that will run from Vilcabamba all the way to the large park in Jipero here in Loja. I did not have an appreciation for how strong those machines are. Watching him take out trees and in another place, carve away a cliff, was very impressive.
Below is a photo I took a couple of months ago. This house had been built illegally right above the river.
This is what it looks like now. The people were given ample notice and then the excavator came through. It is a good idea to be sure you own the land before you build a house.
I love the eucalyptus trees here. They smell just like the ones in Camarillo, CA.
I brought home a bunch of the leaves that had fallen after a storm. They were bright red and green — perfect for Christmas.
This bright yellow/orange flower grows on a vine that covers whole trees and swaths of vegetation:
This always looks so strange to me. It is high above the path and we have not climbed up to see what (if anything) is on the other side:
These grow in marshy places:
This is a very small cliff but illustrates what happens all to often in these mountains:
This is an interesting bridge to cross:
We have not attempted to cross this one:
Here is my sweetheart taking a rest:
See how these flowers grow one on top of another on the same stalk...very efficient I guess. I have never seen a flower like this before.
The boys below were having a great time making jumps. They even had a little one for the smaller boy.
There is a lot of construction going on in Loja.
A calf and a black bird. The people just tether their cows near the river so they can eat and drink. No one has to buy hay here.
This is part of the university:
This is what the older homes look like. Later they built two and three story buildings.
The police check on this pathway and there is always a policeman on his bike in the park. We have never felt like we were in any danger.
This is the lovely bird that has a very loud chirp/song. There are many of them that sleep in the tree outside our window. We hear them every morning before sunrise. At least it is cheerful. If I don't feel like getting up I just go back to sleep.
One of the many wildflowers that grow near the river. It is a lovely place to get our exercise.
