I met a Facebook friend and the very first day of meeting her she invited me to travel with her to Salinas. I thought why not I can celebrate my 56th birthday on the beach, May 20th, 2019. So from Vilcabamba to Loja we took a shared taxi for $2.00 each then another taxi in Loja to the bus terminal for $1.25. The bus from Loja to Guayaquil (Cooperativa De Transports Loja)  was $12. and 8 hrs overnight. Another bus we caught which was right away at the Gauyaguil terminal and waiting being a direct bus to Santa Elena another 2hrs of travel at a cost of $4.15, so $16.15 and 10 hrs from Loja to Santa Elena.

In Santa Elena being the central part, I have found a hostel called Hostel Girasoles, it is a nice unit as it has a jacuzzi tub, AC, TV, a couple of sitting tables, very secured place, at first I was told $20. a night, but got it for $15. a night because I said I’d stay a week, so a discount and also it is just outside of the centre, not that far out but still on the outbounds of the centre. I wake back and forth it is only a 10 minute walk, but taxi charges $1.50 give or take .50 cents.

The nearest beach for the resident’s and travellers of Santa Elena is the beach 10 minutes away by bus costing .30 cents at the very nearby town called ‘Ballenita’, which means ‘whale’ or as I heard someone say ‘small whale’. Now this is a very small town not much here but the beach for the people living at Santa Elena.

I did go to a part of the beach that was in La Libertad which I have been told means ‘freedom’, so I guess ‘the freedom city’. I saw many, many fishing boats sitting still in the waters and on the sidewalk a small portable bar with all of the fancy drinks one could want, like a Long Island Ice Tea which had at least 4 oz of alcohol, maybe 5oz, a very strong drink for like $6.00 so the booze is cheap, the taxi’s appear to be cheap also which is good for getting around.

By car from Santa Elena to Salinas beach areas is about 30 minutes by car or 1 hour by bus which cost only .30 cents. I went to Salinas and walked the beaches, i noticed many more local Ecuadorians than white foreigner tourists. The local Ecuadorians still wear pants and shirts, it appears the hot sun and temperatures of 28C is just not hot enough to dress cooler, perhaps they just do not want darker skin, but how they endure the heat being fully clothed and covered up is beyond me.

Many hotels and condominium’s line the beach front for beautiful views of the beach, the beach has many colourful umbrellas to provide shade, and many boats in the water, making for a very beautiful picturesque postcard image. 

The last day for me being in Santa Elena I found a barber to shave the head and face for $3.00 the other barbers that I priced, ranged from $4.-6.00, so finding me a shave for $3. was a bargain, because after the shave, I found a restaurant right across the street that served me a vegetarian meal consisting of a salad plate, a bowl of beans in hot tomato sauce and fried plantanos, it was very tasty especially the beans and filling all for $2.50, so comparing shave prices I felt I just got a free meal with the shave.

As far as restaurants and hotels in Santa Elena all of the restaurants serve local Ecuadorian food, nothing special, rice, chicken, fish soup for a cheap price, and you’ll find a few pizza places, but if you are looking for a vegetarian eatery good luck no such luck here. With hotels on average the price per night is $20. within the central square area.

Now I want to continue exploring the coast, Montañita, Olón, Ayampe and Puerto López.