In this [SUPER LONG] entry, I will be outlining my beach trip/spring break
(pictures included), discussing my final days in Ecuador, as well as sharing my thoughts about a country under-appreciated by us.
SPRING BREAK
Mompiche
Home of the black sand beach (I brought some home with me) and also the sight of our things getting stolen. E lost her ipod, phone, and $100 to that robbery. Al lost her camera and I lost about $10. ¡Que pena!
This beach is isolated and quiet. The locals are all men. As I noticed in other coastal towns, there is a huge rasta influence on the locals. The women are nowhere to be seen and the men sit around and smoke. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of musical talent here.
Canoa
1 hitchhike (hitchhiking doesn't exist in Ecuador, because nothing is free. We paid $5 to be taken to a small town) and 2 buses later, we ended up in Canoa. We loved this place, which is full of butterflies, rainbow colored tents, and happy people, but we had very limited funds, so we moved on quickly.
Bahía de Caráquez
Bahía is more of a city. There were tall buildings everywhere. Tall buildings meant banks. Al and I were able to get money. We felt pressed for time, so we decided to stay the night. Our room was super sketchy. The first place we went had bed bugs, so we relocated to a place that reminded me of an old victorian house. It was slanted.
T, a girl from our class, and her dad had rented a car and were in Bahía. They offered to drive us to Puerto Lopez, so the next morning, we crammed 6 people in a small car and drove through Portoviejo and Jipijapa (prounounced Hippy Hoppa for all you non-spanish speakers). Outside of Portoviejo, you can find tons of hourly motels. I don't know why, but it's sort of like the brothel section of Ecuador. Jipijapa was nothing more than a huge bus transfer area. The entrance to the town did have a huge statue of corn (pictured).
Puerto Lopez
This was the leaving point for the Poor Man's Galapagos. The town itself was decently sized. Although I lost a whole day to illness here, I still enjoyed the quiet fishing town/ huge tourist starting point. Al and I went to Isla de la Plata and saw blue footed boobies up close as well as mascaras (pictured at left). All of the mascara birds were hatching eggs, so we saw tons of babies and tons of eggs up close. I would recommend this place over the Galapagos for anyone on a budget.
Montañitas
The unofficial Cancun of Ecuador, I never saw anyone over the age of 30, except some misplaced tourists from Colorado. There are two main groups of locals here: the nomadic artisan craftsmen and the local surfers. We had our fair share of both of them. The craftsmen were really interesting. I think I preferred them. They were just enjoying life. The surfers were also just enjoying life, but in a different way. The two groups went to the same events, but never spoke or crossed paths. It was an interesting experience. I was sick for most of Montañitas (hence, there are no pictures), but the rest of the girls LOVED it. Save for our horrible hostel located right across from a discoteca that played extremely loud music until 5:30, I liked the surf town. I realized here that I am not much of a partier and enjoy the more tranquil life style. We went to a local reggae show one night, which was really fun. It was raining and the roof broke, but everyone kept dancing in the rain.
Guayaquil
Guayaquil is sort of like Tacoma, in that it doesn't sound all that appealing and if you just travel through it, you would probably never give it a second thought. It's just another big city. Fortunately, with a good tour guide, places like Guayaquil and Tacoma can be amazing. Our family showed us a wonderful time. Every city has nice, inviting places. As I mentioned before, the family was warm and inviting. I hope someday I can be that hospitable.
Cuenca
Cuenca was full of beautiful churches. It is considerably colder than the beach, so it was a climate struggle, but I quickly got used to it.
I think if we had not been there on a Sunday, we may have had a different experience. This is the only city I felt truly safe in. It is said that the water is potable and there is very little crime at night. Always take caution, however.
Baños
Who doesn't love this place. A, E and I all agree that this place is probably the best spring break spot. It's unknown to anyone outside of South America (maybe even outside of Ecuador), which keeps it somewhat pure. There is something for everyone in Baños. We watched E jump off the bridge and we enjoyed the views of the waterfalls. Anyone who ever goes near Ecuador should make Baños a stop on the list. You won't be disappointed.
FINAL DAYS
We made it back to Quito at around 4 on Tuesday. After a lazy afternoon, A, E and I went to the Mariscol to find me a hostel for the night. We had planned on staying out until 3 (time for E to go to the airport) but I couldn't make it past 12. E went to the airport early and A and I passed out.
The next day, I woke up and sat around my expensive ($17) yet comfortable hostel room. I walked to the artisan market with the intent of buying some expensive colorful shoes. I decided against it and bought some hemp for bracelets and some really cool earrings. I caught a bus to my old park and met up with S. We walked around Carolina as I told her about my coast trip. She has another 2 months in Quito. We watched a local soccer game, then parted ways with the promise of talking more frequently while in the States.
I had called my host mom earlier to see what time was good for picking up my suitcase. She told me 5. I went to the house at 5 to find she wasn't there. I decided to wait. After an hour, I figured she probably had purposely been gone, so I asked my empleada to call a cab for me. She and I had a proper goodbye. I will miss her. I don't know what happened between me and Susy, but I'll probably never hear from her again. Weird.
That night, I paid for a room at the $6 hostel. I wasn't planning on sleeping, since I had to be at the airport at 3:30 am and had no means of alarm. I repacked my bags and hung out with the other hostelers. They were all really cool. There was a lot of Spanglish going on and I absolutely loved it. I'm not bilingual, but I understand enough that I feel like I am. Spanglish is my new favorite language. A guy named Eli from Toronto had met two guys at the Teleferiqo that day. They came over and were planning on going out. I told them I knew the Mariscol pretty well, since it was were all of my class went to celebrate weekly. I took the three boys (one was of Indian descent from Australia and the other was a big old teddy bear from Belgium) and then a girl from Argentina to Shawarma. I wasn't planning on going out, but somehow got roped into it. We danced for hours. It was a lot of fun. I got back to the hostel around 2, took a shower, and headed to the airport. It was a good way to end my Ecuador experience. A night with complete strangers, speaking accented English.
At the airport, I paid too much to check a second bag. I tried paying with one of my debit cards, only to find that it had been expired since January. Wow. I literally had one debit card and my passport as the only forms of valid ID on me for the past 2 months! The security at the Quito airport is crazy. They have normal security, then more security at the gate. I went through the gate security and realized there were no bathrooms and no food services. I had two hours before my flight. I fell asleep.
I woke up and got on the plane, where I fell back asleep for most of the flight. In Houston, I had to go through Customs. I made it through, dropped off my bags, bought a starbucks coffee and relaxed. I decided I would try to get an earlier flight (my flight was to leave at 5:30 that night and it was 1). I was put on standby for a 3:00 flight. I was the 8th person on the standby list. I went to the gate and waited it out, I didn't have much faith. My name was called and they told me I had a seat: 10B. It was almost time for the plane to take off, so I rushed to a pay phone and left a message on my dad's phone (for a dollar?!) that I would be getting in 3 hours early.
I rushed back to the gate and was in line to board, when they called my name again. They told me that 10B had showed up. Ugh. BUT they had a seat in first class. I was moved up to 4E. Okay, no extra charge? Nice. I watched tv the whole time. We actually got hot towels too.
I made it home and my dad was ready with a welcome sign (it actually said "Truck a bucka" which is my childhood nickname sort of). He took me straight to the Tacoma Mall (it has changed sooooo much) and I got a free new phone. I came home and got my new driver's license. I flushed toilet paper down the toilet. I wore a seatbelt while in the car. I drank tap water. I am already overwhelmed with everything I have to do, but I'm very happy to be home.
Will I miss Ecuador? Of course. I am only beginning to experience culture shock. I have come back with a new perspective on life and on the U.S. I am lucky to be from here and have come to appreciate how lucky I am.
This is my last entry. Thank you for reading it. I hope you weren't totally bored or annoyed. My parting words: Go. Travel. Explore. Share.
Keep on truckin'
Ali Jensen
