Hi, my name is Anai and I had the privilege of being the leader of the day for our first fun day. Our day started off early at seven in the morning and followed by a two hour bus ride to our destination, the Pailon del Diablo waterfall. During the bus ride I kept emphasizing how important it was to keep hydrating before we started our hike and because of that we had to stop the bus a few times for bathroom breaks. But in the end all of the bathroom breaks were worth it because everyone was hydrated during our hike through the amazon.

As soon as our bus ride ended we embarked on the hike through the amazon. The hike’s trial was set in a natural manner, it was made up of rocks and mud. When we hiked to the waterfall, we were fortunate that the hike had a negative slope. As an experienced hiker I was going at a faster pace than most of the group and I had to be reminded to slow down. Of course I fixed that mistake after our GG leader told me to slow down. Our hike ended and we had split into two groups, one group went to a viewpoint that involved crawling upwards in a natural stairway that was little to no space. To get to the upward viewpoint we had to literally get on our knees and crawl up. The second viewpoint was from under the waterfall whereas the other viewpoint was from the beginning of the waterfall. For the second viewpoint we just had to go down some stairs and we were there. But regardless of which viewpoint we went to first, we were soaking wet when we were heading to the opposite viewpoint.

In the viewpoint of the beginning of the waterfall we got drenched because we were literally right next the water fall, our GG leader, Hector, held us from our backpack meanwhile we let our face get splashed by the gushing water from the waterfall. And in the viewpoint under the waterfall we also got soaked because the water of the waterfall was being carried toward us by the wind therefore causing us to get soaked.

After both the groups got to visit the two viewpoints, we crossed a long wooded bridge from one side of the amazon to the other side. It was honestly pretty scary because some people were making the bridge wobble from left to right while we were crossing. On the other side there was a cave like area in which ate ham sandwiches and enjoyed a hot tasty drink that is made only in the Andes mountains. But sadly it all had to end at twelve thirty when we started to hike upwards back to the bus.

On the way back I made sure we went at a slow and steady pace. We actually made it in time with about twenty minutes to spare. Within that time period some of us went to little tourist shops and some of us also brought chocolate covered bananas as a refresher. But even with twenty minutes to spare some of us still didn’t have enough time to buy gifts and unfortunately had to leave empty handed back to the bus.

Later when we were on our way to Riobamba we stopped at a town named Banos. At Banos we walked to a candy shop where they make all their candy from real sugar cane. We all brought candy and then went back to the bus to Riobamba loaded with sweets.

Overall, being a leader was challenging and fun, but at the same time it was stepping into very big shoes. With so many people around, it was difficult keeping everyone together. I enjoyed being a leader and it made me realize that you need to be loud and clear when leading others. With that in mind, I had to step outside my comfort zone by talking more, but all in all, I felt it was a great learning experience for me.

Standing at the waterfall

Standing at the waterfall

The group at the top of the waterfall

The group at the top of the waterfall

Anai, Jannett, and Joey on the hike

Anai, Jannett, and Joey on the hike

Crossing the rope bridge

Crossing the rope bridge

Walking through Banos

Walking through Banos