Ecuador was an eye-opening experience. There were many things to do and many places to visit. The Ecuadorians are very laid back,  not like us crazy workaholics. I was suprised to find that Ecuador is almost nothing like Mexico. Also, they do not know what Tortillas are! They think it is fried bread.

This was a large church in the town of Cuenca.

On our whale watching trip, we saw these whales! Even though they look small in the photo, they were actually huge!

This is a beach in a fishing town that we visited to go whale watching. It was very dirty.

One of my favorite events in Ecuador was when we drove through the Andes mountains to reach Cuenca. Plus I loved Maria and Rodolfio Del Carmen, from whom we rented a house. Our house was very nice, except for a centipede infestation. There was an adorable dog named Fita (Originally Fajita) who was full of love and appreciation for snuggling. Maria and Rodolfio cooked food for us for about every meal, and they enjoyed our company, so we talked a lot.

This is my favorite dog in the town of Olon. Her name is Fitah (Originally Fajita)

This is a small hotel where we ate at almost every meal. The owners are cooks, so the food was amazing.

This was our average meal. Rice, Shrimp, Vegetables, and fried bananas. :)

When we stayed in Olon, we had partying American neighbors who liked to live in Ecuador for its relaxing lifestyle. Our grandpa became friends with our neighbor Bobby who was building a hotel in hopes that more Americans would come down. Olon has a beautiful beach that stretched for miles, filled with playful children having fun. The beach also has multiple vendors that sell delicious sea food. Olon also has a supermarket, so if you get tired of seafood and want some normal cereal or milk, you can buy it there for very cheap prices.

This was a beautiful beach sunset that we stared at for about thirty minutes. This is one of my favorite moments in Ecuador.

This is the small Ecuadorian neighborhood we stayed in, and it was full of happy Americans!

When we went to Ecuador, we lived in the small town of Olon. This is the fun, quiet beach in Olon

We eventually decided that we wanted to visit the popular town of Cuenca. We hired a van service that would drive us there and packed up to travel. The ride was very long, but the views were worth it. We drove past miles of cotton fields, forests, and small villages. Then we arrived at a toll booth. The man let us through, and as I looked up, the Andes mountains were right in front of me! The ride up was beautiful. We were surrounded by fog, and we could only see five feet in front of us. The whole mountain was covered in vegetation. There was a narrow road with only two lanes that went the whole way through the mountains. There were small and big waterfalls falling next to the road. There were tons of cars and the occasional house sitting next to a ledge. The whole mountain was one of the best things that I have ever seen in my life.

Carter O'Neill is a member of the Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program.

All photos courtesy and copyright Carter O'Neill