Day 91 - Leaving Paradise

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We heard the breakfast bell for the last time at 7 this morning, had our last luxury meal for the next couple of months (even breakfast is an all you can eat buffet!) and hopped in the dingys for the last time. We were all pleased to see the weather was miserable for our departure - cloudy and drizzling with rain. We spent the few hours before our flight in an interpretation centre; not learning much more than we already knew from our own research. It took an hour in an internet cafe to sort through our 1800 photos before begrudgingly boarding the flight back to Quito, by which time it was blazing sunshine again. Quito was cold and miserable, a mere 15 degrees and raining. Traffic was noisy and smelly and I was not looking forward to being back in a city, and unpleasant city at that, too unsafe to go out after dark, making evenings a bore. Luckily our GAP adventures hotel was near the steakhouse Claire and Matt had taken us to, so we took the group there for our last meal together. It was good to sit around the same table after having only small 3 or 4 person tables on board. I was looking forward to a glass of wine after seasickness rendered me T-total all week, but the seasickness had followed me to land and I felt like the ground was moving beneath me. We bid farewell to Rachel, who was flying home to Denver, Colorado, at 6:30am the following day, and headed to our luxurious hotel room for what we hoped would be a peaceful night's sleep.

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