Third visit to Ecuador. This time with a text blog as well as videos. The video site had been removed due to lack of interest. All pages have at least one photo. If you don't see them you may have an ad blocker on or need a cache purge. (Firefox Win)
Yesterday I gave away my umbrella to John at the end of the tour. Never really needed it this year and didn't want to carry it around anymore. He called me some slang that meant I was a cheap bugger, because I was giving him something I had bought it in a Chinese import store and not a quality store.
Should have kept it I guess and saved hime the insult for someone else. Bad news too. It is 8 am and beginning a downpour. Natural street cleaning.
For those of you with a sense of humour I just had to put this picture in. It's an Ecuadorean wheel chair. The rest of you can scroll down.
After the rain quit we packed, paid our bill and went out for a last walk around Quito. We stopped and had a coffee and chocolate cake at one of the Republica del Cacao locations in the old city.
It's a decent cup of coffee with an amazing slab of desert made with some amazing flavours of chocolate. The one we were at is literally hidden on a boring street but has a wonderful sitting area surrounded by shelves of various chocolates.
Then we walked for a bit more, shot some video in the Independance Square of some musicians, and stopped for a light lunch of chicken at Caravana.
OK time to wear off the calories by walking some more. This time we ended at another coffee shop called San Mateo's Cafe. This time we sat outside and had another coffee to top up our caffeine levels.
Back to the Hotel San Francisco one more time to grab our suitcases and hop into our taxi.
The next stop will be Quito Airport Suites in Tababela.
4.6 km walking today
At 1:30 I took a taxi to the Estadio Olimpico (Olympic Stadium). This is the view (zoomed in) from the Teleferico.
Today was the FIFA World Cup qualification between Ecuador and Colombia in the race for the Russia 2018 tournament. I stood in the heat for an hour and a half before I managed to spend my last penny literally to buy a ticket off a guy so I could get in. The football match had just started when I found my $40 seat in the preferred seating area.
One suggestion, it is better to detour to the pee trough before the game if you are even remotely in need of relief. Waiting til after thinking you will do it on the way out will be an experience you won't soon forget. (Sorry, no photos!)
So there I am in my winter coat soaking wet from sweat. Everyone else is in a winter coat too so that was not an issue. Except I was hot and took it off for the game whereas most others wore theirs and wore scarves too in order to keep warm- or keep the sun off their heads.
Interesting game except that Colombia Azul y Blancos won 2:0 over the home country Ecuador Amarillos. So the only excitement was a few skirmishes between the locals and a few Colombian fans who were expressing their happiness.
Funny how when a problem starts, all the armored police head for that one spot. Nobody including the spotters are paying attention to the rest of the crowd where something could happen there. Oh well, if it works for them, fine.
Overall it was a great experience and I thought the fans were great. I would take more money next time. I would think if you took something like $50 for a $25 ticket and $80 to $100 for the higher ones then you would likely get into the seats quickly before the match starts. I only had $43 and change so I was very fortunate to get in at all and am thankful to the unknown guy who wanted to unload his extra ticket at the last minute.
It took me about 45 minutes to walk the 4 km to the Swissotel where my next stop was waiting. I had used my last penny to purchase the soccer ticket so walking was the only option. By the time I got to the hotel I was soaking wet again in sweat and stinking profusely. Nose pinch!
I had promised to go see my friends Fernando and Karina play in the bar of the Swissotel. Their group name is Una Buena Excusa and they are the President's favorite group- for another four days as he is not eligible for another term in the election. My friends are very good professional musicians. You can catch them in their own coffee bar or at various events. And also some songs on my own YouTube channel Una Buena Excusa
Made it back to the Hotel San Francisco de Quito at about 10 pm dead tired. Fortunately my brother met me at the Swissotel bar and he had money for a taxi.
We then grabbed a cab to the gondola or teleferico on the side of the mountain. It was a partially cloudy day but we figured we had better take it. Tomorrow might be worse and it might even be raining.
After a quick bathroom break at the base we rode the cable car to the top. The ride is somewhere around 20 minutes. Being a Monday in the middle of the off season the lineups were non existent and the cars not filled to capacity. BTW bathroom use at the top is 50 cents and the bottom is free.
We immediately began hiking up the trail to get the valley views over Quito. When the compass app showed we were at 4000 meters altitude we stopped for some photos and video. Then pushing on we hiked over a couple of small hills and arrived at a place selling horse rides. I opted for an hour ride up into mountains for $10. Well worth the time. You get to ride some small, bored and often uncooperative horses up and up into the clouds. You can see a couple of volcanoes, a few condors and some other birds. Lots of vegetation even at this altitude as the rich topsoil is thick and black.
I'm not a horseman so riding up and down over the rough terrain with a GoPro in one hand and my HD video camera in the other was like trying to ride saddle bronc at the rodeo. Most of the time it was both hands and arms in the air with the reins tied around the horn. I might be sore tomorrow.
Eventually we finished with the sightseeing and headed down. At one point I asked the guide what the altitude was and he said 4050 meters. Although that is what the sign says right when you get off the gondola. Oh and he walked the whole way as our group of three used up all his horses so he had to walk.
We took the free shuttle down the mountain avoiding the taxis. Then at the base we avoided the taxis again and took a group taxi for only $1 to the Foch district to get something to eat. They let us off when we spied a place called Toro Carni. The name and the photos did well to attract our attention.
We took a look at the menu and each ordered the first item. It was a meat eater's sample platter. We each got a large steak, three pieces of chicken breast, large blood sausage, large ballpark frank, and a large pork chop. Also a lettuce salad with sliced tomatoes and carrots. Choice of drinks and fries. We had watched while the chef cooked our meat on his large coal fired BBQ grill. Then the meat arrived on small individual coals heated grills brought to the table.
This is by far the best tasting meal this whole month in Ecuador. The price was well under $20 each. It is a great place if you are a meat eater. Veggie people stay away. Two people could easily enjoy this one meal and by the raised eyebrows of the server when we ordered I suspect it is more often ordered that way. But hey, I'm a carnivore.
After a stop in the marsical market to buy an Ecuador flag we took a taxi back to the Hotel San Francisco de Quito in the historical area. Realizing we had not had enough coffee for the day we went up the street to Galletti Coffee Roasters for a cup of black coffee and a delicious cheesecake.
The city wifi reaches the coffee house so I sat and typed today's blog.
With this kind of dessert in the coffee houses I will not lose any weight even though I am walking much more here than at home.
In other news. They moved me again this morning. Something about the drain in my room leaking to a room below. I'm in a suite again. Comes with a jacuzzi tub. I did not bother using the tub as I do prefer a shower- especially in a stranger's tub.
But the room was nice except for the wifi which only worked in the bathroom. This large suite was just too far away to pick up the signal.
Breakfast first and it is included with your stay at the Hotel San Francisco de Quito. Scrambled eggs but you could ask for fried and the staff would get them right away for you. Toast, buns, rolls and breads. Freshly squeezed fruit juice that changed daily. Sliced pineapple, watermelon, passion fruit, and others. Coffee, tea, butter and jam. What you eat here can keep you going for a long time each day.
Went to church in the morning. It started at about 10:30 and went til after 12:30. A rather lively establishment of worshipers.
In the afternoon I wandered the streets for several hours, taking pictures and just looking. It was Sunday and the whole city it seemed had come to the historical area to spend the day. After four I stopped in at a grocery store to stock up on water, juice, apples and Doritos.
That was my supper for the evening along with a piece of vanilla cake with white icing and piece of strawberry soaking in milk I bought off a street vendor. The milk was not something I was excited about- not that it was bad tasting - just different and very sweet. Later a guy told me it was goat's milk and some other milk mixed.
Slept in a bit today. Up at 8 and should have got up at 7:30. So a bit rushed to get out of the rental and ready for our ride to Guayaquil. Juan Jose made up time in the driving. He describes the ultimate thrill of movement to be a fast motorcycle. We were just a liability like parasites as he was required to drive his pickup truck to carry us and luggage to the city. That meant lots of braking when approaching the many speed radar photo machines and then acceleration and weaving between traffic at speeds of 110 plus plus. The seat belts were useful in preventing too much air between the seats.
Just before reaching the airport he took us through an old area of Guayaquil where the architecture all looks like California in the '50s. Like looking at an old movie except for the addition of walls and gates.
Don't buy any airport food before the checkin. We did as we were ready for breakfast. But it was $10 for a panini and large coffee.
Pizza panini and (thankfully) unsalted chips.
Wait til going through security and the prices of several choices are much better.
We just noticed that our boarding passes are on South American time. The plane takes off before boarding opens. Que sera sera.
Maybe they are having safety meetings out there.
OK we are still sitting here at 3 pm. Announcements on the PA describe that our plane will not be landing here due to a lack of fuel. But don't worry as it will pick us up later. For more info please contact a clerk. Talking to an agent and indeed the plane has been circling and could not buy fuel here. So it is flying to Manta to buy fuel and will come back and we will be in the air by 4 pm. With all the safety meetings going on there must have been nobody to do any work here. Ha. Or maybe the price of fuel was a couple of cents cheaper in Manta and the guys here in Guayaquil would not budge.
Even the airport has digital speed indicators. I wonder if they get fines or reprimands.
Got to the Hotel San Francisco by about eight. Checked in and went around the corner to the Sheriff Colonel Restaurant. BBQ chicken was just a thin slab of chicken with BBQ sauce.
Hotel San Francisco de Quito. Nice hotel so far. Will sleep first and think more tomorrow. It is cooler here in Quito at about 12 degrees and heavy rain. Umbrellas and jackets tomorrow. Might be sleeping with a shirt on tonight.
