San Lorenzo

Hello everyone,
Here's the second part of our adventure on the ecuatorian north coast.

After Mompiche, we rolled to (almost) the end of Ecuador, until the (almost) border of Colombia, at the boiling city of San Lorenzo.

San Lorenzo is one of the biggest city of Las Esmeraldas province. This province is quite interesting mainly because it is the heart and center of the afro-ecuadorian community.

In San Lorenzo, we feel like we're travelling a lot. This city leaves the impression that we're at the end of the world.

 






















Without a boat, there's no where to go. But even if we had a boat, we wouldn't know where to go because here, Mangroves are ruling the area. We know that somewhere behind all that is the pacific ocean, but we feel like getting there could get quite scary.


 

We like to imagine that the earth is flat and the San Lorenzo's mangroves are where you fall off the face of the planet.

Another tasty idea would be that behind that water wig is located Neverland, that place where we spend our restless days fighting pirates and can't grow old.

We're still looking for tinkerbell!
Therefore, we're still travelling around the globe.

 

Here, when we watch merchants filling up their boats to go who-knows-where, we're in Mali. Simon would really love to have pictures with him to show you guys how amazingly it looks like Mopti's port.

Here, when you walk to the end of the docks and get lost within the river of mangroves, we suddenly feel like we're in Laos, on the Mekong river. At this exact moment, at the end of the biggest island of Sipandon we watch our toes in Laos, while dreaming that we're crossing to the Mekong rapids to the end of Cambodgia, few steps away.

Here, it's also Montreal, at 228 Rose-de-Lima, in front of our primary school of our last 4 years. We wake up at 7h30 to children shouting and playing. We sit on the balcony and watch "gangs" of girls and boys catching up in front of the main entrance. The big difference here, no parents are bringing them to school.

 Oh by the way, physical education here consists of jumping as far as posible in the river, hoping to reach the infinite (or at least to have a free day off school).

 



 




 
 

Here, we're also in the middle of one of the most important mangroves reserve in the world. We secretly hoped to get kidnap by pirates and have a glimpse of the outside world; just to feel a drop of that watery labyrinth. But, colombian para-military kidnapping are more likely to happen and that we couldn't risk.

We didnt't stay long in San Lorenzo but strangely, it felt longer than a 2 day trip. Like we really went to Neverland!





 

When you go arrive at the end, you feel a bit like Forest Gump...can't go forward but can't stop running. Therefore, we turned around and went back on the road again: to the south...
Next destination: San Miguel