40 The Andes and the Amazon. 



CHAPTEE II. 



Our Tambo. — Ascending the Andes. — Camino Real. — Magnificent "Views. — 

 Guaranda. — Cinchona. — The Summit. — Chimborazo. — Over the Andes. — 

 Chuquipogyo the "Wretched. — Ambato. — A Stupid City. — Cotopaxi. — The 

 "Vale of Machachi. — Arrival at Quito. 



We reached Savaneta at 5 p.m. This little village of 

 hardly t"wenty houses becomes the Bodegas, or place of de- 

 posit for the mountains six months in the year, for in the 

 invierno the roads are flooded, and canoes take the place 

 of mules from Savaneta to Babahoyo. Even in the dry 

 season the dampness of this "wilderness is so great that the 

 traveler's sugar and chocolate are melted into one, and en- 

 velopes seal themselves. We put up at a tamho, or -way- 

 side inn, a simple t"wo-storied bamboo hovel, thatched with 

 plantain leaves without and plastered with cobwebs with- 

 in, yet a palace compared ^vith what sheltered us afterward. 

 The only habitable part was the second story, which was 

 reached by a couple of notched bamboo sticks. A ham- 

 mock, two earthen kettles, two plates, and a few calabashes 

 constituted the household furniture. The dormitory was 

 well ventilated, for two sides were open. Our lodging, 

 however, cost us nothing ; travelers only pay for yerha for 

 their beasts. Though this has been the royal road to Quito 

 for tliree centuries, there is but owQjposada between Guay- 

 aquil and Ambato, a distance of one hundred and fifty 

 miles ; travelers must carry their own bedding and provi- 

 sions. 



Lea-ving Savaneta at dawn, and breakfasting at a wayside 

 hut owned by an old negro, we struck about noon the Rio 

 Charriguajaco, dashing down the mountains in hot haste 

 for the Guayas. It was refreshing to look uDon living wa- 



