La Merced

To escape from the city, write their theses and relax, Steve and Myriam have a farm near the village of Merced. No wonder they are often not at the house in Quito! It is beautiful and peaceful, up a cobblestone-type road on the side of a mountain (the reason for the Landcruisers is now clear). Now I know when most of you think "farm" you don't think of such a place, and if I wasn't getting so used to the highlands, I too would think of the fields near Ripley with big barns and silos. Instead, potatoes, maize and other vegetables are grown on hillsides. The biggest challenge is irrigation, since aside from the rain there is no other good source of water. They have dug a large reservoir to catch rainfall so that it will last throughout the dry season.





the view down the mountain








the house and Capi

inside the house

the view up the mountain