The Bicycle Diaries

Hola,
Many new things to report from the last few days. Firstly, I bought a mountain bike complete with a rear rack capable of carrying my tent, sleeping bag etc. However, a rough bout of food poisoning for the last couple days have kept me in bed and off the streets. Today, however, I'm feeling okay and was able to go for a nice bike ride for a couple hours. I also just finished my first of ten four hour spanish lessons with a great Ecuadorian teacher named Santiago. My history with French and English has allowed me to pick it up pretty quickly - forty hours ought to stand me in good stead for the rest of my trip.

A note on culture: I've been thinking about how exactly I would put it, and I thought this anecdote would be a good start. When NASA was competing with the Russians in the space race, NASA engineers spent millions on developing a pen that would write in space. Tremendously sophisticated and expensive, they finally managed to make a space pen. Asking the Russians how they got around the same problem, chuckling the Russian replied "we're bringing a pencil". Ecuador, from what I have seen, is the land of the pencil... You will never see concrete where wood would do, or a TV screen where ink on paper would be sufficient. The culture supporting that attitude is, I would say, of a maturity that I have never encountered before. People are very in tune with a reality sprung from nature, not consumerism or whatnot. People are not overly sensitive - think how many times people in Canada superfluously say "sorry" or "thank you" - or really concerned with what people think of them. That being said, the fashion is very interesting as is the food; Ecuadorians take both seriously, but not too seriously. Overall there is an authenticity to life here that I have really been longing for, something I am glad to know exists.

I am also amazed how seldomly I am singled out as an outsider. Although obvious from my skin colour and English tongue that I am foreign, there is no resentment or special treatment (including when it comes to people trying to sell things). I feel much less welcome in Montreal than I do in Quito, for example. The exception to that rule is with children. Today I found myself lost on the playground of a local school. Within seconds there were maybe twenty kids smiling at, giggling at, and crowding around me. One kid ran to fetch an english speaking teacher who was very happy to give me directions (even though I could understand only a few words of them). Several pictures and hugs later I was on my way, sporting a flower that a little girl gave to me, as shy as can be. Never before have I felt such openness, it was simply amazing.

Overall the feeling is that you are very welcome and the target of nothing but genuine interest. There are so few foreigners here that I can understand why - I didn't see a single other white person in the two hours I was biking around. Being here has already been a wonderful experience for sure, something I am sure will be heightened by being able to speak spanish.

The only other news to speak of is that my camera was broken during the Jungle trip. Other than that, though, my gear is proving to be a perfect success (the gravol especially).

I hope everyone is doing okay, I miss you all!

Ciao y adios!

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