Last weekend the boys set off on a jungle adventure six hours away from Quito. Since I was working and unable to join them, on my days off I decided to explore one of Quito’s closer destinations: the tranquil village of Mindo. I’ve been drooling over Freddie’s pictures of his trip to Mindo, and it did not disappoint.

My friend Amy arrived with our new video camera the night before and I had been carefully observing her to see whether she was experiencing any signs of altitude sickness or jet lag (and nagging at her to keep drinking water). When she professed that she felt fine, I set our Mindo plan in action. Amy, Laurene, and I raced to find a bus to take us the 2-hour drive to Mindo.

The bus ride to Mindo was nearly as beautiful as the town itself: a windy hilltop road snaking through the lush forest. The surrounding mountain range was draped in fog.

Mindo is a small one-street town with rustic guesthouses open to the forest and the incessant wake-up call of roosters shrieking long before dawn. Children race bicycles through the town’s small plaza and babies climb in the trees.

We stopped by an orchid farm specializing in minuscule orchids and strolled through the grounds as the owner used a magnifying glass to describe a few of the 200 various species on the farm. He informed us that Ecuador is home to an astounding 4,000 species of orchids.  Although the tiny country covers less than 0.2% of the planet’s surface, it is home to 18% of the world’s bird species and orchids.

The next morning we woke to the sound of roosters imploring us to get out of bed. We tried to ignore them but finally decided they were right, so we rolled out of our colorful $4 guesthouse and into the verdant world of Mindo.

Gazing at the scenery from the open-air loft of our guesthouse

Select photos contributed by Laurene and Amy Blogs Chow