Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Ecuador in a nutshell.

I am back in Cusco, Peru for a few days. So I figured I would give you a wrap up on Ecuador…

Ecuador in a nut shell… Go. Simple as that. Ecuador is great, it has everything you could want to see or do, and it’s small. So if you only have a few weeks to travel, and you don't want to waste half you time and money getting around, it perfect.

A few things I forgot to mention…

A) Don’t drink Ecuadorian fire water. I don’t know what it is really called, but I call it fire water. At around 80% and 15 cents US a shoot, it is lethal. The old man who sold it to us poured some on the floor and lit it up. It burned for ages! Lethal.

B) When your guide book or whatever recommends not walking in a certain area in the afternoon as there maybe drunks about. Heed the advice. I didn’t. I went for a walk through the old part of Quito at about 4.30 on a Friday afternoon. Not the nicest part of town at that time of day...

C) If the bus seems too cheap. It is too cheap! Don’t take it. You are not getting a good deal; you are getting a crap bus.

I am sure there should be a few other things on this list, but I am kind of out of it. I have just arrived in Cusco after spending 40 odd hours in transit, 3 different busses and a plane. After 2 nights and a day on busses I couldn’t face the thought of spending another 25 hours on a bus to get from Lima to Cusco, so I took the soft option and flew. My spine is fussed together, my knees are aching, and I smelt rank (not any more, thank you). Riobamba (Ecuador) to Cusco (Peru) in just under 48hours. My advice, don’t do it.

I am going to bed.
Zac