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I've spent a decent amount of time on planes in my life, especially in the last year working on this project, but it never felt as good as my maiden flight in an ultra light. Our Host Juan Alfonso and his brother Francisco own one of these small planes that they built themselves years ago. They offered to take us up so we could get some aerial footage of the country and Cotopaxi, the large snow covered volcano that Ecuador is famous for. We drove to their friend’s farm where they keep the plane and where a mower keeps the runway open. As we passed through the early morning streets of Tombaco and Cumbaya (a town nearby) on our way to the farm we saw food stalls setting up, getting ready for the Sunday morning rush that follows church. The majority of the population in Ecuador is Catholic, and even at this hour of the morning people were already leaving the many churches we passed in droves in their Sunday best.

It was a perfect day or flying, no wind, clear and very warm, although you have to dress warmly in these planes because the cockpit is open and you’re exposed to the elements. Before long I was strapped in, helmet on, heading down the grass runway at 50mph. There is only so much weight that these light planes can bear, and the amount of weight limits the height you can climb to. We slowly climbed to 1200 feet and the views of the countryside rolled out before us. We headed towards Cotopaxi passing over neighborhoods, fields, factories and farms. The feeling of flying with the wind in your face was amazing. You can't fly too fast in these planes (between 30-50 mph), which allows you to almost float above the land below and provides perfect filming conditions. From above the inequality of wealth in this country is ever more noticable. Unlike in the US where neighborhoods often distinguish the rich from the poor, here large villas with swimming pools sit alongside small shacks with gardens filled with corn and animals. The rich and poor side by side, yet living in such different realities, so close physically yet so far in so many other ways.

Denise and I spent the rest of the morning flying, filming and enjoying this unique opportunity to see Ecuador from above. We had no interviews scheduled for the rest of the day we took the afternoon off and spent time hanging out with Juan Alfonso his brother Francisco and their family.

Tomorrow we will be meeting and interviewing an artist/ornithologist/naturalist named Juan Manuel Carrion at his painting studio.

Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee