Be calm gentle readers. Kongo did not actually shoot people while on his recent trip to South America. He photographed them. The monkey is very peaceful and doesn’t own a gun. Full disclosure: He has an old Red Ryder BB gun that belonged to his father-in-law. He sometimes uses it to plunk at squirrels raiding his backyard bird feeders. That old relic couldn’t wound a cricket at 10 feet. Anyway, this post is about photographing interesting people while walking around the famous Otavalo Market in Ecuador.
The Otavalo Market is located in the Andean highlands of Ecuador. It is one of the largest and most famous indigenous markets in South America. It’s situated in the town of Otavalo, roughly two hours north of Quito. The market dates back to pre-Incan times when locals traded food and woven products. It grew in popularity in the latter half of the 20th century with the development of indigenous textile production. While the market is open throughout the week, it is most active on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Kongo visited on a Saturday.
The market showcases Ecuadorian culture through its textiles, crafts, food, music, and Quichua language. Visitors can find a variety of goods, including textiles, artsy crafts, jewelry, leather goods, souvenirs, musical instruments, and food. Now that’s all fine and good (and the monkey did come home with some souvenirs), what he was searching for were people with interesting faces. And it turns out they are everywhere in Otavalo.
Let’s be honest. Shooting woven napkins, ponchos, and native handicrafts can get boring pretty quickly. But we never get tired of interesting faces. Now there was also some interesting food. One fruit, which actually comes from tropical Asia and was introduced to Ecuador in the mid 1800s is the rambutan. Have you ever heard of rambutan? The monkey hadn’t either. Kongo sampled some of the fruit from a nice lady on the street. He found it quite tasty. It had a distinctive flavor. It reminded him of the fruit of the strawberry tree Kongo has in his backyard. Its supposed to be similar to lychee, but the monkey hasn’t tried that either so he can’t say for sure.
But let’s put the exotic fruit in the rear view mirror. Kongo was looking for people. In his quest he paired up with Joe McNally, one of the most iconic photographers alive today. Joe has shot cover stories for National Geographic, Sports Illustrated, Time, Newsweek, Geo, Fortune, Business Week, Life and Men’s Journal. He is also a Nikon Ambassador and an acknowledged “master of light.” Walking around with Joe and watching him work is a huge thrill for a monkey photographer like Kongo. He’s known Joe since 2013 when he attended a NatGeo Photo Expedition workshop in Santa Fe led by Joe. Since then he’s attended several photo workshops with the photography master and each time he learns more and more. Joe has a website and blog here.
Joe always says you need to get up-close to photograph people and people are his favorite subject. Kogo is normally a shy simian. However, like the monkey cousins he would soon be searching for in the Amazon jungle, he forced himself to get closer. I mean, after all, who doesn’t like little monkeys?
Kongo particularly likes to shoot people engaging with each other, like the two women shown above. When you look at the face of the older woman on the left, you can imagine the things she has seen in her life. It’s written in the lines on her face. The hand-embroidered blouse, gold jewelry around her neck, and the traditional sheep’s wool hat commonly worn by Quechua women of Otavalo establishes who she is and what she is about.
The guy on the right is selling belts, cannabis, and coca leaves. That’s right. Dope on the street. He followed the monkey around for a while, trying to unload some of his leather belts, but Kongo wasn’t having it. Monkeys don’t wear pants anyway. He passed on the cocoa and weed too. The last thing the monkey needed was the potential to see the inside of an Ecuadorian jail!
Kongo did leave this lovely lady with some of her hand embroidered heavy linen napkins. Mrs. Kongo will likely use them for sure at her next garden party or bunco card-playing group when the ladies meet at Kongo’s tree house. At $2 each he probably should have bought more than six.
Kongo loved this woman’s face. Her name is Louisa and you can tell from that mischievous smile and the twinkle in her eyes that she is the life of any party.
This woman sold drawstring alpaca bags, knitted sweaters, and ponchos. The stick is not to beat off monkeys. She uses it to reach the items hanging behind her that she can’t easily reach. Kongo was intimidated by that stick but she turned out to be a real sweetheart!
Kongo loves this image of two older women sharing a confidence or two on the street. You can tell that both of these gals have seen a lot in their years at the market and the monkey appreciated the fancy attire they wore on a busy market day. Markets are not just for selling things here. It’s a place to see and be seen.
This housewife, carrying a bag over her shoulder and a cell phone, eyes a bunch of merchandise from someplace other than Ecuador. I wondered what her great, great grandmother would think of what the market is like today.
This older woman was selling greens and nuts from her home garden, Notice her hands. Joe always says that the hands tell the story of a person’s life and her hands have worked hard over the years.
These guys are cutting small pieces of Palo Santo. Palo Santo, meaning “holy wood,” is a fragrant wood from the Bursera graveolens tree, native to South America. It is traditionally used by indigenous communities for its aromatic and spiritual properties. It is burned as incense during rituals or used for cleansing spaces and promoting relaxation. Vendors at the market typically sell it in small chunks or sticks. This makes it a popular souvenir for visitors who want a connection to Ecuadorian culture and traditions.
No, these people did not “just fall out of a coconut tree.” A signature dish in Ecuador is encocado, a coconut-based stew made with seafood (fish, shrimp, or crab) or meat.
So, the next time you’re in Ecuador you must visit Otavalo and it’s incredible market. The hand-crafted fabrics and other items are fun to look at. You might even take some home. However, the real delight in this market are the people. When you visit, be sure to take home some images of them to remember the wonderful people of Ecuador.
Travel safe. Have fun.
Up next: Kongo straddles the equator!
Follow Kongo on Instagram: @kongotravelmonkey