Irina Bernebring Journiette

Hanging on for dear life on the back of a pick up truck during the ride down from the main road to the sleepy village of Mindo.

Hiking to our little hotel, the chocolate factory.

Learning how to zip line through the cloud forest high above the ground.

Throwing oneself out there whilst doing the “Superwoman” — no hands and the sensation of flying through the forest.

Kari dared to try the “Mariposa” or butterfly, which meant flying upside down.

Hiking to our next adventure. The cascadas, or waterfalls.

I kept wondering when the dinosaurs would show up.

The best place to enjoy some spanish grammar.

It’s 7.30 am and I’m writing this from a hammock in the cloud forest in Mindo, Ecuador. A serene place to wake up to. Yesterday humid and tropical rain clung to a body heavy from hiking all day, zip lining through the forest and losing oneself to the beat of a drum at night.

Now as the little sleepy town slowly start to waken I watch majestic and exotic birds enjoy their morning rituals. Mindo is a calm place, a scene for self-reflection very different than the noisy existence in Quito, the capital city of Ecuador which I now call home. Besides spending four hours every day in school to study spanish, my new awesome companion and I do our best to explore the city’s night and day life and try to master the Latin-American passions with salsa and cooking-classes.

This weekend was an escape, an adventure and time for indulgence. Said hammock hangs in the balcony at the chocolate factory El Quetzal. And yes, their brownies are as good as rumour has it – so is the hot water and filtered tap water. A luxury to say the least.

Ciao.