Excerpts from Ecuador: My Safe Spot: Las Penas

Las Penas is pretty much one of the only tourist attractions in Guayaquil. It is on the edge of the river Guayas, and has little restaurants, stores, bars, lookouts, and my favorite, the Anthropology Museum. Las Penas used to be one of the poorest parts of Guayaquil, until a Governor gave money to them to fix up their houses, open shops, and thus creating an income from them by providing a tourist attraction. There are about 500 stairs to the very top, where there is a monument and you can look out over Guayaquil.

I call Las Penas my safety spot because it really was the only place in Ecuador I could go alone and be safe. I did get pick-pocketed there once, but other than that, this was the place I could go to walk around, think, and be independent without having to worry.

I loved this place. I would climb to the top of all of those stairs, and then stand on the edge, looking out over this city and I just felt liberated, inspired, and focused. I was studying Anthropology at Auburn before this trip, so I was fascinated by the artifacts that the museum had. The first month I was there, there was an art exhibit by the artist Viteri. This artist reached into my soul and did a number. I could spend hours trying to understand his work. I will show you some pictures. Besides Van Gogh, Viteri is one of my all-time favorite artists.