Ecuador Day 5: Heading Back to Ecuador, Guayaquil and Sorting Supplies

We all got up around 7 and started to get ready and pack our stuff.  Jose was coming to get us in his truck at 9:00 a.m. I got myself out of bed...I was feeling the full rampage of my cold now even with the potent South American drugs, yes they are more potent than our drugs in the US.  I moved slower than usual.  I repacked my backpack again so everything would fit.  My poor Cougar bag was getting beat up because it was too heavy with all the stuff I brought to do on the plane along with my laptop.

I ate some of the bread and bananas that were left in the kitchen from yesterday.  I needed something before we went to the airport.  I brought all my stuff down and piled it near the door so I didn't have to climb up the narrow steep stairs again.  While everyone else was getting their stuff ready I took some pictures of our Air BnB.

Jose arrived promptly at 9 a.m. and we piled our bags into the back of the truck and jumped in.  I am glad we had this connection with Alex because it definitely made our stay in the Galapagos much more efficient and we were able to do more with our time.  

We drove the 20 miles to the canal where Jose dropped us off.  We noticed that this side of the island gets the sun and the other side is like being at home in Washington.  What a drag!  We paid him and he helped us get our bags out of the truck.  We thanked him for a wonderful time in the Galapagos and we appreciated his time he spent driving us around.  We got on the next water taxi to get us across the canal and we got to watch blue-footed boobies dive for fish near the boat.  It was fun to see.  About halfway through, they send the money collector around for a dollar.  I gave them one of my Ecuadorian dollars I received while shopping yesterday.

When we got across the canal, we grabbed our bags and missed the first bus, but we sent Kaitlin and Beth ahead so they could get in line for us at the airport plus Kaitlin lost her travel document.  We waited about 15 minutes until the next bus arrived but couldn't leave until it was full.  We had to wait until the next set of passengers got off the taxi and sandwiched themselves onto the bus. 

We got to the airport in less than 10 minutes.  We grabbed our bags and went inside the airport and looked for Kaitlin and Beth.  We hopped in line with them and Kaitlin informed us that they were going to let her go back to Ecuador without the paper she lost.  We went through customs, got our tickets, had our bags scanned and waited at the gate until it was time for our flight back to Guayaquil.

We walked out to our TAME plane, found our seats, put our bags in the overhead compartments, sat and relaxed.  I got to sit by my mom on the way back.  Most of the time we shut our eyes and took mini naps throughout the flight.  The flight attendants handed out sandwiches, chips and drinks again even though this was a short flight.  The nice thing about these international flight is no matter how short the plan ride was, we actually got food instead of just snacks.

This plane ride wasn't as turbulent as the flight over to the Galapagos.  When I wasn't napping I was writing in my travel journal.  Before we knew it we were descending into Guayaquil again.  The weather looked decent. 

We grabbed our bags and went into the airport to wait for the people who were suppose to pick us up.  We weren't sure what they looked like but we knew they were relatives of Dr. Harris.  We had no way of contacting them so we just hung out until someone walked up to us.  We went into the pharmacy to buy more cold medicine which they sell pills with separate ingredients.  For example, we had to buy a decongestant and a fever reducer because they didn't come together like our pills do here in the states.  And like I said earlier, they are more potent too.

Within a half hour of us arriving two older people came up to us and asked if we were here for the dental humanitarian project and we said yes...plus we were wearing our blue shirts so we stood out.  It was Dr. Harris's aunt and uncle and they were helping shuttle people to the apartment in the city.  Her other aunt, Edna was also shuttling people to the apartment.  Amy, my mom and I rode with the aunt and uncle and Beth and Kaitlin rode with Edna.

The city was insane.  I bet if I lived here and knew where I was going I could adapt.  It would take some time to get used to it but once I did better watch out!  It took probably a good 45 minutes to get to the apartment which was above a Chinese restaurant up several flights of stairs.  I knew the stairs were going to be a problem toting our luggage and supplies up and down in the next few days.

When we walked upstairs we were immersed in hospitality and conversation.  We met everyone and the owner of the apartment, Maritza.  They showed us where we could put our stuff and which rooms were available to us to sleep in.  Mom immediately found her bed, changed her clothes and laid down.  Her cold was kicking her butt.  The rest of us sat down at the table while we were served chicken and rice...almost like we had no choice, we were GOING to eat it.  Haha!

The rest of the late afternoon and early evening more people arrived.  As more people arrived the apartment got smaller and smaller.  I just chilled and listened to the people chat about where they were from, their experiences and their adventures so far since they got to Ecuador.  I guess two of them, both from Washington State and about my age, were on a flight down here from Atlanta and their plane got stuck in a thunderstorm and they thought they were going to die but the pilot was skilled enough to keep the plane and the passengers safe.

Most of the people in the city could not afford internet so the city provides it but only for 45 minutes at a time.  I got frustrated when my phone would time out.  We had to be out on the deck for the strongest signal.  It was spotty inside the apartment.

Four people staying at the apartment were suppose to arrive after midnight, that included Dr. Smith and his son, Thomas.  Then we heard about Dr. Harris and her flight companion's unfortunate flight experience.  They missed their flight and had to come in tomorrow evening.  Dr. Harris's mom, Myrna took charge and had us all help her get a little organized for tomorrow's site, Monte en Senai.

I was so tired and my cold was kicking my butt.  I took a shower, got ready for bed and was glad I was not one of the people coming in after midnight because they kinda ran out of comfy beds.  By the time everyone was finally in the apartment there were almost 20 people crammed up in there.  I had a hard time sleeping because I was not used to sleeping with just one pillow so I had to cram some of my clothes underneath it to get comfortable, the Chinese food smell got to me after a while, it was warm then cold then warm again, I am so glad I brought my ear plugs and it was hard just sleeping with a sheet.  Eventually I did fall asleep because I knew the next day was going to be a very busy, long, hot and humbling day.

Next Adventure:  Ecuador Day 6: Our First Volunteer Gig in Monte en Senai

Ecuador Day 1: Seattle to Los Angeles to Colombia

I got most of my stuff ready the night before and double checked it because I did not want to be without anything.  I think I double checked it a few times and rearranged it in my pack a few times.  I was really excited but also really nervous about traveling to another country and how long I was going to be on these airplanes.

I got up and went to work.  I knew today was going to be a very very long day.  That morning we did our inactive letters, I got an enrollment packet out the door and all the claims orders printed and prepared all the envelopes to be ready to be mailed out the next day.  I told everyone bye and that I would see them when I got back on the 27th.  They said to have a great time and be safe.  I told them I would try to send them updates when I had available internet.  I left work at 11:30 and was home by noon.  I had Ben make me a sandwich, I changed my clothes, cleaned the cat box, said goodbye to Calvin and I had Ben drive me to Yelm Dental while I ate my food.

Trish called me to wish me happy travels to Ecuador on our way to Yelm.

We got to the office by 12:40 and hung out upstairs until mom was done.  We gathered mom's stuff and headed over to Amy's house, which was right down the road.  Ben dropped us and our bags off.  I told him goodbye, gave him hugs and kisses and he told me to be safe.  I told him that I would talk to him as much as I could while I was gone.  We packed all of our stuff in the back of Amy's SUV.  We piled in and we were on our way to Fort Lewis so we could pick up something from Josh at work.

From the base we got onto I-5 and continued north until we got to the Ajax parking lot, our long term parking arrangement, we paid, parked and got on a shuttle that took us and our baggage to the airport. 

So it begins...

The shuttle dropped us off at the Alaskan Airlines.  We tagged and checked in the zebra bag with our lab coats and toys for the kids inside.  We would see it again when we got to Ecuador.  We printed our boarding passes from Seattle to Los Angeles.  We went through security, which went smoothly since I had been to the airport in the last few months to know what to do with my laptop this time, and hung out at our gate until it was time to go.  Our group gathered snacks, water and used the restroom.  I plugged my stuff in so they were all charged up just in case I wanted to use them during the flight.  Ben called and texted before it was time to board the plane.

Mom, Beth and I sat together further back in the plane.  We chatted about a bunch of stuff on the way to LAX and looked out the window until it got too cloudy to see.

We arrived at LAX early, which in hindsight was a good thing, and found out where we needed to go for our connecting flight to Bogota.  We had to go outside the airport and wait for bus "A" to take us to Terminal C.  There, we waited in a long line that seemed to never move and we were the minorities.  It appeared that they were having trouble with their computers?  When it was our turn it took FOREVER, of course they spoke Spanish so we really didn't know what they were saying.  We thought there was something wrong with one of the passports but they assured us it had to do with keeping our party together for the next flight.  Which didn't really matter to us honestly.

Once we got our boarding passes (to Columbia and Ecuador) we walked back outside and followed the red line to the International Departures building.  There were a lot of Asians. We followed directions to where our information got checked, we were screened by a dog and waited to go through security.  Once we got through security it is way different than domestic flights inside the US.  Your shoes stay on and nothing gets taken out of your bags to be checked further.  All of your belts, pocket contents and cell phone went into your bags.  The only thing you couldn't take with you was beverage liquids but food was okay.

After we got through security, we walked to our gate.  Our flight was running behind so we had to wait a while, plus we were in group E, so we weren't going to be boarding for a while.  We used the restroom, bought some water and snacks since we haven't had dinner yet. 

I was banking on getting some food served to us once we got on the flight.  Our flight was going to be very full and since we were the last group on we really hoped there was room for our bags near our seats. 

When we did get to board, we boarded Avianca, a flight I've never heard of, I found my seat, which was on the left side of the plane next to a teenage Asian girl, I stuffed my bag into the overhead storage bin which was near my seat and got situated.  I turned my phone onto airplane mode which it will remain until I entered the US again on September 25th.  I was the only seat in the area that did not have a blanket. 

After the flight took off I asked the flight attendant if I could get a blanket and she said sorry and that they didn't have any extra and about 90% of the flight got one.  I was so upset!  There was nothing I could do so I sat there trying to figure out how I am going to stay warm and comfortable for a 7 hour flight in the middle of the night.  I thought to myself I should have brought a blanket and one of those travel neck pillows and I now know better for next time.

Day 2: The Red Eye Plane Ride, Our Layover in Colombia and A Night Adventure in Guayaquil