Nous voilà donc arrivés après une très longue journée de voyage. On s’en sort bien, car en discutant avec d’autres viajeros, il existe des options plus exotiques, avec des escales à Amsterdam, Miami, ou encore Atlanta. Une finlandaise a même mis 48 heures pour arriver jusqu’ici… Dès notre arrivée à l’aéroport de Quito, deux équatoriennes nous alpaguent pour les aider à remplir leur documents d’immigration. La belle ironie du touriste qui aide les locaux alors qu’il n’écrit qu’à peine l’espagnol, c’est un face à face immédiat a [View Full Entry]

---

---

Greetings from Hosteria Mandala where I am again filling in while the owners do some travelling! Upon my return to Ecuador from the US, I took a taxi to Maggie’s house where my truck was stored during my visit to the US. Alas, it wouldn’t start but I had backed in so I was able to push it out. Once I did so, I saw a huge puddle of oil on the floor of the garage. OH NO! We should have put a diaper under Morci!! A kind passing taxi driver helped me try to push start my truck, but to [View Full Entry]

---

---

I'm not usually very entertained by museums, however this one was really neat. Oswaldo Guayasamin was an Ecuadorian artist who as a boy dealt with many hardships. His first encountering with the cruelty of life filled his heart with anger and rebelliousness, which later inspired his painting career. Specifically, the murder of his best friend by a stray bullet is portrayed in his painting "Los Ninos Muertos" (the death of children). Since then he assumes a position challenging the discrimination of the poor, the Indians, the blacks, and the weak ones of South America. Other things that inspire [View Full Entry]

---

---

Gather necessary items. Halve items. Remove those clothes that you don't really wear... but think you might get the nerve to wear in another country. Halve items again. Add in numerous extra pairs of underwear and socks. [View Full Entry]

---

---

(Best accompanied by singing "A-weema-weh, a-weema-weh, a-weema-weh, a-weema-weh"). The new "must have" item for your Bucket List is... le Jungle Trek. No visit to Ecuador can be complete without it. In fact, President Correa just signed a law decreeing that if you don't go on a Jungle Trek while you're in the country, theyll stamp your passport "WUSS" on the way out. No wusses we. On to the jungle. No problem finding a guide to lead the way. The streets of Baños have more adventure companies than the Amazon has piranha. Selecting the outfit to go with is somewhat confusin [View Full Entry]

---

---

Four weeks in Ecuador and I am one week away from home. I am writing this in my Hostel in Quito, waiting to fly off to the Galapagos Islands tomorrow until I return to Quito on Saturday, This has been an unsettling experience in some ways, Ecuador ties with Mozambique as the poorest country that I have been to and the project I have been on is the only one where the conditions I have stayed in have reflected this. After an 11 hour long and very confusing flight to Santiago in Chile, I had a four hour wait for my [View Full Entry]

---

---

Short for two reasons: a) We only stayed three days, swiftly despatching the (rather twisty) 700 or so miles from the Colombian border to the Peruvian border. b) The people. They're tiny. Even smaller than the Guatemalans. Not much else to report, except we crossed the equator, so I suppose in some sort of strange way, we've reached the half way mark, again. Also, temporarily suspending twenty years of vegetarianism, I ate a mouthful of Guinea Pig. Frankly, it's not tempted me back to full time meat-eating. Next stop, Peru. Adios! [View Full Entry]

---

---

So Im here!! On the last part of my journey... galapagos. Getting here was a pain...lots of waitingg around at quito airport when the plane was delayed. I met a nice dutch girl who speaks english so perfectly I thought she was american! Anyway she was less than pleased when she got on the plane and her seat which was 1 A didnt exist because numbering started at 1 D...very strange..but she did get a seat. It was nice to fly over quito and appreciate its aamazing location and how hilly the actual city is..in fact even now im getting a [View Full Entry]

---

---

Leaving has ben long drawn out and strange... Thursday was the last full work day because friday was a public holiday for the freedom of guayaquil.. So thursday was my last day to say goodbye and also the day all the interns were leaving to other jobs,, which was good as it took the focus off me!! So after the obligatory examination of the con diarrhoea y fiebre kiddies, it was time to have a min goodbye party...what better food to sa goodbye with than encebollado..an ecuadorean delicacy. Someone trotted off to the takeaway and then we all got a tub [View Full Entry]

---

---

An early departure from our house had us in the back of a truck with mountain bikes on the roof, heading straight towards Cotopaxi National Park. This park is Ecuador's premier Andean sanctuary, housing the country's second highest peak, which is also the highest active volcano in the world. It's summit is 5897m above sea level, and demands dedication, adjustment to altitude, and excellent physical condition. "The first refuge", located at 4800m, is reserved for the more laid back Cotopaxi experience... AKA me! A bumpy drive brought us to the base of the volcano, where we were promised a "shor [View Full Entry]

---

---