Heading home

Well my three weeks has passed pretty fast... not as fast as the time i
spend sitting at a desk, but i can hardly believe it is over. In some ways i
feel like i have been away forever. Though my trip has been great i an
mellow and happy about coming home.
I was planning on going to a museum today before heading to the airport, but
i am feeling lazy about it right now... the idea of busing down town in the
loud CAR-EXAUST filled heat is not on the top of my list right now.
Yesterday i few to quayaquil from Quito, as i decided to spend a few extra
days there, doing some hikes and taking over night trips.

On thursday a group of 8 of us from the hostal hired a mini school bus to go
to the equator. there is a big french monument but they put it inth wrong
place... which is pretty funny! Beside it is a smaller museum that is in
the correct place and has some nifty demonstrations of the quirks found at
the equator. such as water going strait down the drain one the actual line,
and clock wise and counter clock wise at either side. I remember learning
that water went the other way down the drain on the other side of the world
when i was small, and always trying to convince the water to swirl in the
other direction when the tub drained...

Friday i Climbed Pichincha, an sleeping but active volcano with a group from
the hostal. It was amazing. petrifying at times due to my fear of hights but
well worth the nerves and the tiredness of 4800 meters... the air is
definately thinner up there!!! that pertty much ate up friday and i was
happily sleeping shortly after i finished my super and a glass of wine.

I attended the �mamma Negra�festival in Latacunga on saturday, a huge
catholic-pagan fusion. Parades with people carrying crucified roasted pigs
and other animals on there back with alcohol food and cigarettes hanging
pendulously from them... miniature ones for the little boys.
I was supposed to go with sheila the dutch woman that i met in Puerto lopez
and kirsten from australia that i met in Montanita, but they were too hung
over to go, so i went with Christian, a german guy from my hostal that i had
met on a number of my day excursions. I was actually kind of glad that the
girls didn�t go because i am pretty sure they would have wanted to tie one
on, and I think that would have been unwise.. and one sober blonde girl
baby-sitting two drunk blonde girls in small town boozing festival would
have been impossible. i think i would have had to abandon them to their
fates... Sunday morning there were more drunken pig carrying parades that
ended in a catholic mass... Go figure.

Sunday afternoon i got back to the hostal on the bus from Latacunga. I rode
back with a brit couple i met at the hostal, and provided gringa (white
girl) entertainment to a couple of little kids who stared at me between the
bus seats for most of the 2 hour ride until about 5 minuts from their stop
when the older boy (8?) got up the nerve to talk to me. We had a short, and
basic conversation in spanish that i think put him a few rungs up the ladder
with his friends for shear bravery... funny.

When i got back to the hostal it started raining and everyone was coming
�home� with stories that made you think there was a full moon, so i stayed
in and chatted with people and had some dinner before an early night. The
Type-A swede that lost her passport returned to the hostal sunday, and
being a sucker i invited her to join me to the natural history museum in the
morning... Now who is a big old kook!

MOnday morning we met up at breakfast to head out and thankfully another
girl, a brit named jenny decided to join us... The museum was abitof a joke,
but they had original fossils on display, and a decent though not astounding
insect collection. The fossils were not casts and they were not behind
glass, and i think i pissed off the swede by telling her she shouldn�t be
touching them with her hands... she replyed that the place was second rate
anyway so she didn�t see why it mattered... nice!

when we finished at the museum there was a botanical garden next door that i
wante to go to but the other girls decided that the 2 dollar cover was to
much money after spending the same on the museum... AT first i was going to
offer to pay there way but realised that a few minute of solitude were
really what i wanted from her complaining, so i said i would meet them
outside the gates when i was finished. The Gardens were amazing, there were
2 orchid houses and many quiet paths to walk along. a cute little juice bar
supplied me with black berry juice which i enjoyed sitting by the pond. it
was great.

I was there for over an hour i think. Then i met back up with happy jenny
and type-A-Swede, and we went for lunch. went to this place that had amazing
icecream! but before that i enjoyed some more ceviche, and a guayabana
juice... good stuff!

The swede still m,anaged to complain that she had no appetite, and proceded
to not have enough money to pay for her lunch anyway.

sorry. now i am the one complaining...

okay one more... we hopped a cab back to the hostal, as jenny had a spanish
class, and Type-A-Swede wanted to stop at one particular internet cafe, as "
it is the cheapest and best" however she did not know where it was and could
not explain it to the cabby... then she was mad that the cab just ignored
her request for a stop mid way and took us back to the hostal... i was glad,
as i think here detiour would have doubled the cost of the cab, and was
really rather petulant...

When i got back to the hostal i confirmed my flights, and looked arround for
someone to join me to go up to the panacillo, a hill with a huge mary statue
on it with a snake tied to her leg... yup!
Ended up going with Sam a guy from belfast that has been riding his motor
bike arround the world for the past 11 months... he road through india,
pakistan, iran, ausralia, the US and europe. he is on his way south and will
then have his bike shipped to africa and ride north towards home. Cool guy.
rather crazy, but pretty cool. The view from the statue was pretty great
and the vandalism inside the statue was hillarious!!! for example: "Jorge +
Maria forever! give me a son!" crazy!

when we got back i hopped in a cab to the airport and was in Quayaquil
within an hour of leaving my hostal! short flight, great last minute
tickets, so much easier than 2 days on the bus!!!

Any who that is my past few days. i will fill you in on the rest live!

And when i have a better connection i will start putting up pictures...

Love yahs

Erin

Journey to the middle of the world.

After many wonderful days in the forest, I am back exploring the city...
I am going to the "mitad du mondo" or middle of the world equator monument
this morning with group from the hostal. Had agreat conversation with a
couple from the hostal in french this morning so at least i have not last
that language... the spanish is also getting much better as well.
halleluyah!

After the equator i will go to the natural history museum to see the huge
insect exhibit and then will meet up with Dutch sheila for dinner and
music...

Love yahs

E

back to quito!

sorry for the silence! bella vista was out of phone and email range!
Had a great time... lots of bugs, great people, great hiking...
Have to run so i am not out in he streets at night but will give you some
details tomorrow.

Here is all i will say now...

FOOT LONG EARTH WORMS!!!

tiny piece of freedom in the market...

The market so far has been very awe inspiring, people are percistant but
less pushy than the city counter parts... yay for barter and textiles...
I just accomplished one of my goals for this trip... I just traded my old
engagement ring for some locally made silver jewlery... I have never known
what to do with my old rings from then, and it occured to me that thsi would
be the perect place to send them back into the universe... keeping them
makes no sense and they are worth almost nothing in a pawn at home... so now
i have a spondylus and serpentine silver necklaces... felt great... jewlery
for jewlery amke sthemost sense... Took a picture even with the woman i
traded with... she seemed quite pleased with the trade, though possibly
puzzled...
It is hard not to stay and extra day in otovalo, but i don�t think i can
afford it!!!!
Much love and happy thoughts!

Erin

swing of things in otavalo...

well me an the swede enjoyed a nice dinner of �mexican food� i had great
veggie nachos with eggplant and beens and avacados, and she a great
quesadilla with many veggies in it. I think she is feeling more at ease to
be out of the city and distracted from last weeks happenings...

Our hotel is absolutely the cutest thing ever with a cobble stone courtyard
in the middle of the place. we have a little room with 2 single beds and a
view of the court yard, that has many trees and hamocks and is very quiet.
my lonely planet tour book was just right on this place!

We did some early bargaining in the market this evening... it is very hard
to practice restraint went surrounded by in expensive but beautiful
textiles... sigh--- I am all a twitter for tomorrow when all the stalls are
open,,, i am even finding that i am getting better at bartering!

I think we will go get some hot chocolate and go and listen to some music
before heading to bed.

We will stay in otavalo until tomorrow and then hop on the bus back to Quito
so we will be intown before the dreaded darkness decends... then 1st thing
in the morning the cloud forest van will pick me up and will finally get to
see some big bugs!!!!!

Any who, love yah! hope all with you is well... feel free to write or
comment with news... feeling a bit out of the loop!

Cheers!

Erin

Off to the Market!

Last night in Quito was rather tranquil. ha a nice supper of stuff eggplant
etc etc...
DAD: dessert of (pine)apple cumble might be the only way you would ever
enjoy that particular fruit.

It was very good.

Sat by a woman from Sweden who had her passport, her credit card AND her $
stolen from her bag on the bus the 1st week she was here. Not sure why she
would not keep it on her person at all times, but who knows? she was suposed
to be here for 5 months traveling in all of S am. but her temp passport is
only good for 7 months which will not allow you to enter many countries
here. I suggested that she just travel in the other countries until her pass
port would not let her, and then just stay in her destination country for
the last few months... she does not seem very flexible. she says she is here
for mountains and any thing else is un interesting... she likes her food a
certain way (does not like S am food at all!) she only eats green grapes as
she does not like red ones, and she does not liek fruit mixed with food...
We have lots in common! HA!

despite this disconnect, I ran into her this morning and she was seeming
down and unsure of what to do with herself, and I have invited her to join
me in Otavalo for the market tomorrow. It is only one day and i can{t
imagine how she is feeling, so We{ll see how it goes. she can eat bread and
milk if she wants but i want to eat all the local (safe) food i can get my
hands on... It will be good to have company on the bus, and perhaps I can
help her loosen up a bit... crazy swedes!

The weather is nice and sunny for now, which is a great change! I didn{t
mind the cloud, but the sun feels very good. gotta be careful not to burn
though.

I don�t think i have much else to report but i will touch base later...

Love

Erin

Arrived in Quito

Hola everyone...
I have arrived in Quito, at my lovely little hostal in the historical part
of town... the place is very relaxed, lean and funky... the upper terrace
had beetles playing and I will be here tonight, then in otavalo for 1 night
and then here and then to the cloud forests of Bella Vista for 3 (maybe 4
days). This trip is reallt taking on steam... Ia m about 1/2 done already!!!
CRAZY!!!!!
The bus from Puerto lopez was all right, they put my bags right on the bus
with me which feels less precarious, and at the stop midway the drivers
helper watched my stuff while i went for a bathroom break... cost me a coke!
(50cents for a white girl). he was very helpful until his chochy friend got
on the bus, and then he got very macho... CAN NOT STAND THAT!!!! I wasgoing
to get him to change a 20 for me but he told me my money was fake--- he
seemed surprised that i wanted my "fake"mony back.. HA! the lady next to me
said it was real... Funnee! (sort of).
Then i hopped of the bus in busy manta feeling like i needed to be in a rush
to the airport... only an hour until my flight left and i had not bought a
ticket yet... after a calm ( for here) taxui ride i was at the airport quite
quickly where i bought my ticket and had my bag zip tied shut in every way
possible by the ticket people--- I appreciated this. though it does make one
nervous that one will never see one�s bag again... though i am only carrying
clothes in my bag if i can�t see it all the time. i can{t say i will be
heart broken if i lose a few shirts...
I think i did loose a sarong and a pare of socks on my last trip... weird.
When i got here to the city i hopped in a cab, and bartered a fare to the
hostal... bu the cab broke down 172 way there so i only gave him 2 dollars.
hopped in another and after some discussion of my map, he got me to my
destination. only 2 dollars more... so my cab fare that started at 6
dollars, was bartered to 5, only cost me 4. not bad!
So far the altitude is not too bad, i'm a bit lite headed so i will only go
to the bank and back to the hostal in the next little bit and then enjoy my
book for the rest of the evening... this evenings dinner at the hostal, is
hummus and pitas, stuffed eggplant, and pineapple crumble... sounds nice and
i am tired so i will keep it simple today.
Much love!
Erin

leaving puerto lopez

hello all.

I am just leaving puerto lopez on the bus to Manta to catch theplane to Quito... yay--- not going to spend 2 full days on a sweaty bus!

I have reallyloved it here but am looking forward to the next stops on the journey... my next hostal looks pretty cool and tomorrow i will do some site seeing in quito and then head to Otavalo for the market town and some hiking... assuming that the altitude agrees with me.

love now!

details later!

Erin

hiking and swimming...

Today i took the bus out to machalilla national park, and headed out on a
hike to the coast. the hike in was about 3 hours but this was with many
stops for beach combing and sight seeing... i was able to stop at 3 beaches
each bigger than the next and collected many shells and interesting bits of
shells. i may need another bag to get them all home.

The last beach �los frailes�was a long gently curving beach with very fine
sand. i met the dutch/ecuadorian couple that i met whale watching , and
sheila and i had a really nice swim. it felt especially god after the long
hike through the dry coastal forest. i was pretty sweaty and dirty. it was
nice to have a swim buddy as i really don�t feel comfortble going very far
in by myself... oceans still give m e the willies--- and not the free kind.

The weather is remaining overcast, but that is making things easier for ths
white girl to get a tan with out getting a burn. it also means that it is
not nearly as hot, as the ocean breaze makes it pertty much perfect.

I have decided to stay in puerto lopez for an extra day and then take a
plane from manta ( 2 hrs from here) to quito- the trip is otherwise 13hrs
onthe bus, and it is not recommended for gringas like me afterdark. so will
mean about 2 days on the bus if i stop midway. other times of year this
might be scenic, but as it is so cloudy i will not be able to see the
mountains, so will basically be stuck in crowded buses looking at bus
stations and street vedors... something i have already spent a few hours
doing and will still be able to enjoy from quito back to guayaquil at the
end of my trip.

any wh all is well here, I feel like this vacation is really making sense
now... just
had to get out of the city!

Love yahs!

Erin

Finally some boobie watching

I have been enjoying my trip up tyo this point but last night it really
started to click... It was that euphoric traveling feeling that had seemed
rather elusive until now. Last night i left montanita on the bus and came
to peurto lopez. the scenery has finally become more forested. The city less
crazy, and i have seen bugs!!!
My hostal, �hosteria mandala�is one of the most beautiful places i have ever
been in my entire life!
And the owners. a swiss and italian couple are amazing. When i arrived
lastnight they were full, as i was a day early in escaping the party life of
montanita, but they arranged for me to stay in a nice clean place, as i had
a reservation for the next day... I decided to stay and eat supper at the
restaurant and arranged a whate watching tour to isla la plata , thepoor
mans galapagos. Then the owners told me that since i was there guest anyway
the next night and wuld be coming back early in the morning for teh tour
that they would let me stay in the main floor appt of there own home on the
property... I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A BEAUTIFUL room in my life...
Ceilings that were about 3m. in an oval shaped room with one half with full
length windows facing the ocean, and a book shelf along the other wall.
After 2 nights slee`ping with earplugs to drown out the dance music, i slept
to the sound of the ocean crashing, and crickets singing. and awoke to the
waves again, but this time with birds singing. I ahd a nice breakfastof
museli and yogurt with fruit and hot chocolate---

I ahve become a conaiseur of the hotchocolate of Ecuador... it is always
made with boiled milk and lots of cocoa.... Forgive me if i am repeating
myself but it is amazing... the best are quite bitter and they bring you
sugar to add, which i seldom do...

AFter breakfast this morning i caught a little taxi with 4 other people from
my hostal, all from spain to the tour office. Then on to the boat--- the
boat was very clean and well maintained, and though the guides spoke little
english they spoke spanish clearly enough that i could understand most of
it. While on the way tothe island we saw more whales that i could count.
all humpbacks... very cool. on the island we had a 3-4 hour hike around the
island and saw blue footed boobies, masked boobies, frigate birds ( they are
black with a red neck that they puff out) and many others... The boobies
reminded me of a poster from my chickadee magazine when i was young... they
are fearless things.. or maybe just dumb? I also saw a few large
butterflies and some HUGE bubble bees. some black and some bright orange
with VERY yellow eyes.

After the hike we got back on the boat and headed to a little inlet where we
could snorkel... despite my stupid fear of fish and deep water I did it...
staying on theboat seemed very wrong... and once i got used to breathing
with my face in the water it was wonderful. not that many fish but a some
bight coloured ones the size of a dessert plate, or a little bigger.
Tomorrow i will go to a beach where i can do more snorkeling as it was quite
amazing. I Even did the front crawl in the water ( that was for you!) and
it was surprisingly superb with mask and snorkel. I think i shal buy one for
home.

There are also many little lizzards every where here... I have tried to
catch some but have had no luck yet... VERY FAST!

After the tour a few of the others and i stopped for a juice and supper... I
had Ceviche again... SO GOOD!!! it is seafood marinated in lemons or limes
with onions and cilantro. served withplainatin chips. Top drink i had a
�tree tomato milkshake� really good! My super companions were a couple from
the netherlands, a bird biologist and a cummuications person in vaccine and
viral infections for trhe gov�t--- there seem to be lots of traveling health
types. Myother toonew friends were a woman from the netherlands and her
local boyfriend...this seems pretty common. but the men always seem a bit
stunned... I don�t know how to explain it... I don�t think they anticipated
a long term thing with these women, but they keep coming back to visit...
who knows though maybe they are just looking confused by the language that
their partner is speaking...

During dinner a local woman came up to her boyfirend and started yelling
that she was reallyhis woman and that he should tell his white woman about
them... she seemed pretty crazy, but was saying over and over again that she
wasnot... she was showing sheila ( the dutch girl) pictures on her cell
phone--- that kind of put a lag in dinner conversation, but we recovered...

To morrow i will go on a tour of the mainland park, do some more sight
seeing, perhaps some beach--- not exactly sure will chat with the hostal
owners as they seem to know what is good to do...

Much love!

Erin

off to puerto lopez

montanita, has been fun, but i am looking forward to a few days of quiet in
Puerto lopez... I will go to the beach for a while and then to the buss. I
am taking the bus with a couple of girls i have met here. They are studying
spanish in Manta, a town just past Puerto lopez... tomorrow or the next day
I will go to ilsa la plata and do some whale and boobie watching... blue
footed boobies. and a tour of the mainland partof the Galapagolos park.

Last night here was a very big party... All dance music and madona though...
was looking forward to some live latin music etc etc.. I am told i will get
that in Purto lopez... and the water there is calmer--- worse for surf, but
better for swimming playing.. you can go snorkeling and look at the reefs
and fish etc etc. The further i get on this trip the less time i want to
spend in cities... I HAVE SEEN ALMOST NO BUGS!!!
the count so far...
2 large butterflies.
a few tiny ones..
many very small ants.
2 kinds of cockroaches-- giant, american, and german.
a bee.. but i honey bee.
a few neat wasps---
NO BEETLES!!!

sigh!
Any who... to the beach.

Much love
E

MONTANITA: SURF TOWN

HELLO ALL!
wELL THIS LITTLE �FISHING� (SURFING) TOWN HAS BEEN A VERY NICE CHANGE SINCE
ThE CITY. tHIS `PLACE IS ALL ABOUT SURFING AND PARTYING... sO FAR I HAVE
TAKEN A BIT OF A SURFING LESSON FROM A GIRL I HAVE MET HERE THAT TEACHES
SURFING IN cALIFORNIA. SO FAR MY LESSON WAS ALL ON THE BOARD ON LAND AS SHE
WAS TEACHING SOME ONE ELSE AND I AM A BIG CHICKEN. i DID SPLASH AROUND IN
THE WATER WHICH SEEMED VERY WARM TO ME BUT NOT SO WARM TO THE LOCALS.

THE FOOD HERE IS AMAZING.

cEVICHE... A LEMON AND CELANTRO MERINATED FISH IS AWSOME!... I HAVE ALSO HAD
MOROCAN FOOD, AND CHOCATE BANANA PANCAKES AT A RESTAURANT CALLED THE FUNKY
MONKEY. tHEY HAVE THE MOST AMAZING HOT CHOCOLATE THAT I HAVE HAD IN ALONG
TIME... THE KIND THAT YOU COOK ON THE STOVE THAT IS RATHER BITTER... yummy!

mY HOTEL IS A BIT LOUD AS MY BALCONY IS RIGHT ABOVE THE MAIN PARTY STREET,
BUT I HAVE EAR PLUGS SO THAT WAS OKAY... LAST NIGHT WE ( ursella-california,
jardine-amsterdam, marco-swiss, and noemie�s jorge) enjoyed live music and
dancing on the beach.

It is good to be with a group as the men are pretty forward but not really
rude. One thing that was funny was that so many people were cold on the
beach... sweaters and jeans... crazy!!! it is not hot, but it is NOT that
cold either!!! shorts and t-shirt maybe!!!

any way this key board is awful so i will write more later...

Much love. and miss you all...

Out of the city and onto the Coast

Well Guayaquil was an adventure.

ON my Second day there I enjoyed a national treat (?!?) that consists of
fried bananas mashed up with cheese, then formed into a ball. Kinda bland,
not sweet as you would think, nor salty either but an excellent source of
energy, as I didn�t really need to eat again until 9ish rthat night, aside
from a few snacks that were more curisosity.

After i Enjoyed this cheesy Banana ball (bolones) I headed down town on the
noisy bus, this time knowing where to get off! and picked up my contact
lenses that i ordered the day before. Handy things to have if you want to
wear sunglasses and you could not fing you percription ones before
departure. Interestingly they do not sell non-coloured contacts here. so I
am now the proud owner of coloured contacts... I opted for Grey, so you
can�r really tell, but now i regret it and wish that i had gotten purple or
something weird. oh well...

Then i found a local grocery market, with meat and sausages hanging
everywhere, fabric, eggs, food, juice, you name it! All i bought was some
chocolate, afte having a good but broken conversation with the vendor, few
people really understand that asked to speak more slowly, I MEAN MUCH MORE
SLOWLY... The spanish is getting better, but the speed that people speak
makes it a challenge. I really enjoye dthe market, fewer people shoving
things in your face to sell you... busy and loud, but more �civilised�.

after that I wanderd around down town abit more, and managed to get my
camera Ripped out of my hand... I had be warmed about carrying it that way
but it was getting annoying to get it out of my bag everytime i wanted to
take a picture. So after feeling annoyed for few minuted i took advantage of
being in the shopping district and bought another camera so i could start
taking pictures again. Not quite as good as the other one, but it will do
the job. Lesson learned.

It�s hard to stay mad about it when you see the poverty here. It is a wierd
combination of poverty and consumerism. People with nothing and cell phones.
People with nice suites and very run down houses. People are poor but clean,
though there neighbourhoods are not! lots of litter...

After this exciting day at the market and wandering down town, i hopped back
on the bus to my hostal. I am very glad that i was staying in the suburbs,
even though the trip downtown is hot and loud, simply because it is quieter
and fresher. When i got back to the hostal, the cat greeted me, I headed up
the kitchen and eating area and meeting place, where i started talking with
a couple from the Ntherlands. They are coming to the end of their trip and
made some suggestions for the next legs of mine. We went for dinner and had
the Ecuadorian stapl�: chicken rice and beans... very good!

Now here is the weird coincidence... They were both Epidemiologists! We
chatted about how seldom we didn�t need to explain what that was! They both
work in occupatinoal health Epi looking at work place injuries.

After an evening of good conversation etc etc, I headed to bed, and slept
for nearing 10 hrs... after all, this is supposed to be a vacation right?

This morning AFter a good sleep in I had a great breakfast at the hostal,
they have this jam that is kind of like a cross between apple flavour and
raspberry. very good. Also this morning I enjoyed a glass of fresh
watermelon juice. Then to the bank, and to the bus station.

The bus station is a CRAZY PLACE! I am very glad that Jorge explaned which
company to go to as there were at least 60 or more of them. But It was a
fun adventure. People here were very helpful, and obviously used to speaking
at tourist pace!

While waiting for the bus i met a guy named Marco, from Switerland ( lots of
swiss here) who was also en route to montanita. and we chatted with some of
the bus staff. The bus was much too loud to talk, and we were not seated
next to each other so the conversation ended there. The bus was very full
by the time it left Guayaquil, and i was sitting near the front next to an
older woman. We did not talk much but i shared my oranges and chocolate with
her and that was all that was needed. she shook my hand and wished me good
travels when she got off the bus.

Where I am now, Montanita is a very busy but interesting place. so far I
have only checked into my hostal, and wandered down the street a bit. There
are many jewlery vendors selling handmade stuff, much of which is very
beautiful. I have already bought myself a little necklace. The Hostal is
pretty cool, wood and bamboo construction. I have a private room with a
bathroom, and my own balcony with a halmock- not ocean view, but i have a
pretty amazing veiw of the street. Though i think that i will need to use my
earplugs tonight!

Anyway i should head out on the town, and get some food.

Take care and Mucho Amor!

Erin

36 Hours in Ecuador.

Sorry for the delay in getting this up since my arrival! I am sitting in an
internet cafe just down the street from my hostal. The connection is good
but slow and there are armed guards. I think they are actually here to flirt
with the woman behind the counter, rather than protect the place!
well i guess i should start at the beginning... or at least since toronto...

My flights from toronto, were long but good, the food on the plane from
Toronto to Bogot� Columbia was pretty bad, kinda like chef boy R dee chicken
and rice thing... oh well. I sat beside a woman who has been living in TO
for 7 yrs but i s from columbia and was on her way home for family visit. we
had a good chat which made the long long flight better. I watched mission
impossible 3, in Spanish as an attempt at last minute language gathering,
but it was mostly noise and smoke, so not sure what that accomplished! When
we arrived in columbia the gate agent met us with out boarding passes, but
mine was missing so she took me to go and get another one. Security was
tight but rather simple- My bags were not searched, i was asked no
questions, and only got a pretty peripheral pat down by a woman in military
uniform. then on to wait at my gate for an hour...
when i arrived in Guayaquil security was equally simple. was the first one
through customs in my line so that was all there. then i picked up my
luggage, which arrived very shortly afterwards. then i had my bag X-rayed by
some one who didn�t�t seem to be very interested who sent me on my way. the
only real check was that i had to produce my baggage tag to leave with my
bag.

Noemie�s friend Jorge met me at the airport. It was nice not to have to
navigate Taxis etc on arrival! He drove me to my hostal to check in. When
we first got there no one was answering the door, so Jorge used his cell to
call the front desk. He said he was there with a friend ( amiga- a word that
means female friend) and the front desk guy was asking him a bunch of
questions about what kind of friend. i think he though JOrge was looking for
a cheap hotel to stay in with his girlfriend. after that was straitened out.
i put my stuff in my little (though nice sized room) and we headed out for a
drink. He had his lap top with pictures of the things that i should see,
and he made some suggestions for my next days travels. He was on pretty much
the same page as my lonely planet travel guide. He took me back to my hotel
where i promptly fell asleep despite the heat and humidity, and actually had
t get up and put the blanket back on the bed halfway through the night. I
slept very very well!

The next day i was up early but stayed in bed until almost 8. had a lovely
breakfast a the hostal, which makes amazing french toast and fresh juices.
Then i hopped on a bus down to �Malecon 2000� which is the redeveloped water
front along the river.

A note on buses and drivers in general here: CRAZY! honking, speeding, but
some how you still feel safe. Seems that my neck is just fine from being
rear ended on the weekend, thanks to ice, drugs and a good shoulder rub. no
pain, even on the constant start stop of the buses etc here.
The buses do not stop completely for men to get off and on, but luckily they
do for women.

On the way to the waterfront I got off my bus to soon and had a pleasant
adventure figuring out where i was... got some help from some students at a
university (there are many here!) and hopped on another bus to my final
destination. When i got off the bus the driver said i should get a cab down
to the water, but when i asked how long it would take to walk there it was
only 5 minutes, so i just went on foot.

There are little shops selling junk everywhere. i guess i should not call it
that, but that is kind of what it is... knock-off brand name shoes, plastic
jewelry, watches etc etc... When i got down to the water front i strolled
along there from one end to the other, taking pictures of the aquatic plants
that float back and forth up the river with the tide, and of people etc
etc...

There was a group of people there from ba�os near where there has been a
volcano erupt recently, trying to drum up tourism, since it has dried up
quite a bit since. Met a guy from Austria who has been traveling here for 2
months now and is living in Ba�os. he made some good suggestions for
additions to my itinerary.

From the waterfront i climbed a hill called los pa�as, which used to be a
very bad nieghbourhood, but has been entirely reclaimed. the houses are all
in colonial style and bright colours. there were some homes that were under
construction as well. all the scaffolding is bamboo. even for very high
concrete buildings... I will post pictures when i get a chance.

at the top of the hill there is a light house and a little church, and an
amazing view of the river and the surrounding area. you can see the
contrasts between the fixed up areas and the untouched ones. HUGE
difference. At the top i met a swiss woman about my age who is traveling on
a similar schedule and i expect to see her again on Friday in montanita. She
seemed to have a pretty certain sense of direction so when we decided to go
to a artisan market she lead the way. Her sense was not right on though,
and we ended up a the huge cemetery that i had intended to visit anyway so
we wandered there for a while. Huge White mausoleums, statues, etc etc.
very different from here. and up on a very steep hill above it were many
more humble graves built on such an incline I was not sure how any one could
dig or put up a stone up there.

ONce we had our direction set, we headed down to the artisan market, where
there were lots of neat little trinkets and many locals shopping which was
interesting. I didn�t buy anything but i might go back at the end of my
trip.

Next we tried to walk to a large park to get out of the sun and heat and
soak up some green,but we could not go because the police had it blocked
off. not sure why but i was not about to fight with them! instead i parted
ways with my swiss friend and headed to a smaller park: parque de bolivar,
which is full of iguanas. this was fun as they are all sizes and all over
the place. there were a bunch up in a tree, and they would all start
bobbing there heads in unison and the treat would shake. By this time it was
5:30, and it is dark by 7 so i decided to head back to the hostal. After a
help from a few kind strangers i figured out where to catch bus 88 back and
was home shortly after 7pm. I then called Jorge, who picked me up and we
went for supper at a place called frutabar. The food menu was not large, but
the juice menu was HUGE. I had a tamarido juice--- AMazing and a �Hawaiian
chicken sandwich� this was probably the best chicken sandwich i have ever
eaten. for those of you that know my eating habits you know that i am not a
huge poultry fan. but this was awesome. it had roast chicken, with fresh
peaches and pineapple. there was a salsa to go on it that was made of grated
carrots, tomatoes and onions that was superb as well.

Jorge dropped me at my hostal at about 10:30 and i was asleep almost right
away despite trying to write in my journal. I had walked all day, and had a
happy full stomach so my eyes were very heavy. I slept great. i slept in.
and now i am writing this. I am going to go do some more city exploring this
afternoon, and then get ready to head to Montanita on fridday. i am going to
take the bus in the morning so that i can stop along the way. I was goin to
go with Jorge but he is not going until saturday this weekend, and i have
kind of had enough of this big loud city. it is beautful and intriguing but
i am looking forward to a little less bussle.

Love you all and will write again when i next have a chance! hopefully
tomorrow.

Cheers

Erin

En Route

Well i hVE SURVIVED THE WEEKEND and am busingmyself in TO airport.
The weekend before i leftwas beach and sunshine filled, andonly had the
monor hitch of getting my car rear-ended Sat. I seem to have avoided
whiplash though so should be smooth sailing thanks to a bit of muscle
relaxant...
Advent-Truro here I come.
Erin