Manta, Ecuador

Today we started out on our private tour with seven of us. Our first stop was at a local fish market. Manta is known for their yellow fin and skipjack tuna. This market is for the locals. The market opens at 5AM and closes by noon. We got here about 830 and many of the stalls were already closed.

Right next to the fish market they were building fishing boats. Almost all of the fishing boats are made out of wood and the sealant between the wood planks is coconut fiber.

Ecuador is famous for their handmade Panama hats. You may wonder why they are called Panama hats and not Ecuador hats. They are called Panama hats because when they Panama Canal was built the workers wore these hats, so they were known as Panama hats. This is a statue of a young lady weaving a Panama hat.

This is a picture of a woman weaving a Panama hat. She leans onto pedestal as she weaves the hat. I can’t imagine her poor back.

Of course, I had to buy one!!!!

We stopped at a cultural museum and then were back to the ship. Sail away was at 1PM. Short stop here, but there wasn’t a whole lot to see. The people were very friendly, quick smiles , and always a Buenos Dias. 

We are now off to Guayaquil. Will get there about 3AM as some folks are going to the Galapagos. They will be back for sail away at 9PM. A very long day to look at some big turtles!!!