John & Sun-Ling Wander the Earth: I underestimated Otavalo market

Otavalo is famous for its Saturday market. It is on every traveler's Ecuador itinerary. The local indigenous people are well known for their weaving. I had thought Otavalo was just another souvenir megacenter. Boy, was I wrong!

We got up at 7AM to catch the animal market. I was expecting maybe a few dozens of animals. Instead, there were hundreds of cows, pigs of all sizes, chickens, various pets, and turkeys. Business was brisk too. Money and animals changed hands left and right, just as we looked on.

In fact there were different markets and stalls all over town. It turns out the vendors that cater to tourists were only a fraction. But there were still a lot of them, enough to make John, who usually gets or feigns illness in face of shopping, queasy. But I hardly bought anything. The only thing I do not like about long trips is that I have to be extremely selective so not to overload our family mule.

Some shots from the market.

Cattle Market