Making miles or South america is rather large

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Ecuador is a new place for me, never been here before, so I got on the bike with all my paper work in order and set off to Quito.
My GPS doesn't like Ecuador so I went by the road signs and the fact that the road would take me to Quito what ever I made.
I had a date with a mechanic to check out the bike and I had no idea where the place was .
I took a chance and went into Quito south and was at at total loss about where to go, I was looking for some cops to give me some ideas.
I spotted a pair at a round about were they sold a crate of mangoes for 5 $,should have bought a 100 crtaes or so and sold mangoes in Sweden for a buck each...
It ended up with me getting the police to take me the whole way to the workshop, and good thing that they did because there were endless turns and round abouts.
Spent the next day working on the bike and and had a so so dinner, the hotel was quite nice though, German owned and absolutely spotless.Had fresh mangoes with yoghurt for breakfast, a good way to starty the day.
Quito is a world heritage and it deserves it, the old town is very nice, got on one of those top less sightseeing buses and then a nice walk about.
Very nice Indeed.
The hotel treated me to a glass of wine and then I proceeded to treat myself to a few more, after all it was Christmas eve.
An ok dinner with a Canadian couple who I shamelessly invited to share my table, the ones of you who know me well are probably not surprised.
Someone told it would be a good idea to go to Banos, a nice little town with loads of volcanoes, someone else must have told half the Ecuadorian population the same thing because it was packed, big time.
So I left for the south, crossing over some mountain ranges, going up to about 3600 m, at that altitude it's a bit cold, especially when you get into the clouds and even more so when it starts to rain, to top it the clouds got really thick and the speed went down to 30kph.
Rather worse for wear with a sore behind after 10 hrs driving, I arrive in Cuenca, I take the first room in the first place I found, a bit of a mistake, but i had had it,
Dinner was nice though, surf and turf for 15 $ + and in the nice part of town.
Actually a lovely center, but no time for more colonial stuff, gotta get a move on.
Somehow I must look as if I need some TLC, just got accosted by a rather nice looking middle age hooker who wanted to take me to a hotel and have some fun.....
From Quenca to the border it's not very far as the crow flies, but go and have a look on Google maps and take the satellite image and enhance it a lot, Santa Rosa to Macara'.
Google's estimated driving time is pure unadultered sihte, twelve hours later saw me in Piura just south of the border in Peru, with worn out shoulders and a VERY sore behind, their estimatre was 6 or so, so I must be a very lousy driver.
Great driving though, roads in Ecuador a good and the petrol is cheap and the locals are nice and curious, when I had lunch some shop ownwers came over with their kids, pictures taken and I had to be in all of them, I got the kids to sit on the bike and that made their day.
Once in Piura priority #1 was to get a cold beer and a ceviche, mission accomplished.

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Photos

2013-12-24 09.39.53
Quito and the rest as well

2013-12-26 13.12.40
Wannabees