Ecuadorian entrepreneur Dom Buonacami is greeting the New Year by publishing a bucket list.
Here are items from El Aventurero's list followed by what a Gringo retiree might think about each....
Bucket list: Hike and summit Chimborazo, Cotopaxi and/or Cayambe -- 19,000+ ft. volcanos near Quito.
Gringo's input: Since Cotopaxi's summit has been put off limits to hikers since the volcanic activity of mid-2015, that narrows the choice here.
Bucket list: Begin importing and/or exporting something with continuity.
Gringo input: Good luck with that, Adventurer. Especially the parts where you have to deal with Ecuador's dogs of SENAE, the opaque customs agency that is a law unto itself. To launch such a project, one really needs to be clear on the answer to this question: Was I really put here on this planet to buy stuff for a dollar and sell it for two?
Bucket list: If the dollar stays high, buy a property on coast of Spain or in Colombia.
Gringo's input: Right. 
Welcome to the "wonderful world" of absentee ownership -- dealing from hundreds or thousands of miles away with tenant vacancies, deadbeat non-payers, damage to the property by tenants, long-distance maintenance, dealing with distant bureaucrats, finding/replacing a property manager who walks away when the first serious problems occur. Like flood damage.
Bucket list: Hang out for a night with the artists/hippies along the infamous Cocktail Alley in Montañita and see if they will show me how to make some of their jewelry.
Gringo's input: Yeah, sure, the hippies can't wait to teach a newcomer to Cocktail Alley the artesenal skills that could put you in direct competition with their livelihoods.
Bucket list: Hitch-hike on the coast of Ecuador. I've heard it's easy.
Gringo's input: It could be easy, but is it safe? The folks who pick up strangers on the side of South American roads are historically not well-vetted.
Bucket list: Bike down the entire Ecuador coast.
Gringo's input: That coast is over 900 miles long. So pack light.
----
We're just getting warmed up here.
cccmedia in Quito
The Adventurer's 2016 Bucket List .. and a Gringo Retiree's Take on It
Dom's bucket list for 2016 -- Part 2....
Bucket list: See an Anaconda in the most remote area of Ecuador, the Yasuni.
Gringo's input: No, tell us you don't really plan to risk exposure to a large and dangerous snake in remotest Ecuador 
with the nearest medical facility many hours away.
Bucket list: Take the newly re-opened train through the high Andes from Ibarra to Salinas.
Gringo's input: Lucky for you, they no longer are allowing passengers to ride on top of the train. 
Bucket list: Watch the Tungurahua volcano erupt at night from the look out over Baños.
Gringo's input: Don't get too close to the volcan. It's right at the edge of town. Scientists say a major eruption could destroy Baños.
Bucket list: Scuba dive in the crystalline waters of Galápagos off Wolfe Island where it's common to see schools of hundreds of hammerheads and dozens of whale sharks.
Gringo's input: We retirees generally prefer to avoid swimming with the sharks. But, hey, go knock yourself out! 
Bucket list: Hunt for fossils along the banks of the Nargaritza River.
Gringo's input: Puh-leeze. Way too boring unless someone's bringing the grandchildren. How did this item get on your so-called bucket list?
Bucket list: Eat two buckets of the locally-famous garlic crab at one of Guayaquil's best crab houses -- Manny's Cangrejal near San Marino Mall.
Gringo's input: Eating two buckets of anything in Ecuador is just asking for trouble. This item is certainly not a good enough reason for anyone to visit the largest, most dangerous, hot and humid city en la República.
--
Nevertheless, we wish Dom well as he launches his bucket-list quest in 2016.
Source of bucket-list items: an e-mailing to subscribers of Dom's ecuadorrealestate.org
-- cccmedia in Quito
Articles to help you in your expat project in Quito
You have made it to Ecuador, now what is there to do in your free time? A lifetime in Ecuador isn't enough time to ...
Las Cajas parque nacional is located about a half hours drive (or hour bus ride) to the west of Cuenca, along the ...
Ecuador is famous as a retirement haven. But you might not want to wait until retirement age to move there and ...
What kind of food will you find in restaurants, cafes, and private homes in Ecuador? Many restaurants in Ecuador ...
Family is everything to an Ecuadorian. The extended family unit is the most important aspect of life in Ecuador ...
Ecuador, as a fast-developing nation, has laws that are constantly evolving, but one thing is certain: the ongoing ...
