This weekend Ryan and I along with a great new friend took a red eye bus from Quito to the beach town of Atacames in the province of Esmeraldas.  The bus ride was about 6 hours long and we arrived to our destination about 5:45 am and totally bleary eyed and catatonic from our long overnight ride. We boarded a rickshaw taxi and checked into the first hotel listed in our trusty travel guide. We climbed into our bunk beds and proceeded to sleep into about 10 am when we were awoken by the Reggaeton music that is ubiquitous in Atacames.  We started off our day with a bowl of delicious Ceviche de Camaron, which was a refreshing dish consisting of shrimp, onion, and lime juice paired with a bowl of fried banana chips and an appetizing tall glass of chilled coconut milk.  I am a huge fan of breakfast foods and this dish will definitely give llapingachos a run for their money as my current favorite meal in Ecuador.  Atacames is your typical little beach town complete with vendors, thatch roofed huts serving cold drinks, and tour guides offering boat rides to the surrounding beaches.  For only about 1o bucks a person per ride we were able to visit the beaches of Sua and Same, the mangroves and the Island of Birds that was home to dozens of blue footed boobies.  Atacames was a much needed change of pace and is definitely a good time for those visiting the Northern coast of Ecuador.