Friday, Apr 21, 2017
Trek to Bahia de Caraquez
Heidi and I made the trek to Bahia on Saturday by bus starting from Montanita. We thought we might get better seats on the Manglaralto (the Green Bus) beginning from there. On the way from our house to Montanita our taxi driver told us there is a Manglaralto ticket window at the main intersection off the Ruta Spondylus in Montanita. This was new info for us.
I discovered the “direct” Manglaralto bus leaves at 5 am, 10:30am, and 3 pm. Since it was only 9 am we went and had breakfast. On the 10:30am bus, the ride to Manta was comfortable and it took 3 hours, which I felt was kind of long for a “direct” bus.
Travel Challenges
In Manta we got on a bus…the wrong bus…that headed to Portoveijo before Bahia (or San Clemente where we were actually staying). This added an extra hour to our trip. When we arrived in Portoviejo Heidi and I had it with buses, so we hired a taxi to take us the rest of the way. It was $20 for the 40 minute ride and so worth it! In no time we were with our friends, Roy and Melody, who were kind enough to put us up for the weekend.
Roy and Melody
Chase and Easton had friends visiting from Cuenca when we left town, so they didn’t head out until Sunday morning. Their trip entailed walking out our front gate, within minutes catching a passing Manglaralto bus, arriving in Manta 2 1/2 hours later, and catching a cab from Manta to the farm. They arrived before lunch was even ready. It seems like their loose plan worked better than our “well thought out” plan did. Go figure.
Porch Dwellers Reunion
The Porch Dwellers
A year ago on April 16th, we ended up at Don and Donna’s farm as survivors of a 7.8M earthquake. Heidi, Easton, and I, with Don and Donna and other friends, lived on the farm porch for 10 days. Today, on April 16, 2017 the “porch dwellers” and other friends who were in, or connected, to the earthquake in Bahia one year ago got together to connect and count our many blessings.
Change Happens
In some ways it doesn’t feel like a year has gone by since the earthquake, and in other ways it seems like a lot has happened. What I do know is that this was an event that created many different and unexpected trajectories in the lives of those affected. Change happens whether invited or not, and in this case it was plainly forced on a whole lot of people.
Sometimes change is slow and it is hard to see, other times it is sudden and startling. In either case developing a strong “change muscle” only adds to one’s ability to successfully navigate life. How strong is your “change muscle”? Does it flex big? Can it stretch long? What decisions have you made in the last year that have strengthened or weakened it?
Living in Ecuador has a lot of challenges and requires a strong change muscle. No matter how great the beach is, or how wonderful dining out with friends can be, living here has required I deal with a lot of change. For example, one change I encountered immediately was living without a car.
Getting from point A to point B now requires greater planning and involves more time. These aren’t “bad” things, but a change I have to deal with constantly. Think about what it is like to travel by bus or taxi or private car to a “real” grocery store 1 &1/2 hours away from where I live.
What kind of planning is involved to get my meat and dairy items home without them getting too warm? What restrictions does that create on what else I can do while I’m in “the city?” Moving here and choosing to not have a car requires me to deal with change in how I do a lot of things. Most days it is great, and some days it’s a royal pain in the ass. Such is how it goes.
Trashed Our Beach
On our way back from Bahia, at Manta bus terminal.
When we got back from Bahia, after a holiday Easter weekend in Ecuador, I was shocked to see the condition of our beach. Trash had been washed up all along the shore line for miles. The currents must have moved large amounts of this trash from other areas along the coast because we did not have the volume of tourists near us to create this mess.
Awareness and personal responsibility of proper waste disposal is a missing part of Ecuador’s development right now. Until this change happens, the beauty and wildlife of this country is at risk. This Blue Footed Booby’s death is most likely a result of eating some trash that it choked on. Very sad.
Trash and Consequences
Northward Bound…Kinda
Easton left for Alaska via a stop in Salt Lake City this week. Unfortunately the day he left it was raining torrents.
His bus ride from Olon into Guayaquil went well despite the heavy flooding in some spots along the way. His flight to Quito from Guayaquil on Tame however was 3 hours late, which caused him to miss the midnight flight out of Quito to Fort Lauderdale on Jet Blue.
Missed Flight
He only missed it by 10 minutes, and only because it took so long to get his backpack from luggage. It was close but no cigar…or should I say “no seat” for Easton. It also meant he missed his Delta connection in the States.
He got to spend the next 24 hours in the Quito airport waiting for the next midnight flight out as a standby passenger. Change happens sometimes even with the best made plans.
Thankfully all went well and he has made it to the States! At his layover in Atlanta he had an opportunity to voluntarily get bumped and receive an $800 travel voucher for it. He had no interest. All I can say is that he sounded tired and cranky, and hopefully he isn’t the one randomly selected to be involuntarily removed from his seat. 😉
Always Learning Something New
I learned something through his experience. I have never been one to use travel insurance for my flights. Only on a couple of occasions in my life have I missed a flight, and it usually has worked out without a problem.
Because Easton was flying three different airlines, requiring he handle and move his luggage for each leg, his risks of potential problems increased. Because his trip involved different airlines, no one airline has a responsibility to make “right” a delay caused from another airline. This is a situation when travel insurance makes sense! Lesson duly noted.
Workout Window
This morning Chase, Heidi and I continued our 7 am workout routine on the terrace. I am in awe of the beauty I get to enjoy while working out. Initially I have resistance to the workout, then looking at this view, all I can do is smile…and sweat.
Chau.
So sorry to hear about Easton’s travel disaster – such a hassle waiting for flights, being at the mercy of the airlines! We also had problems taking buses from Puerto Cayo and never did find the “direct” bus, so we started taking cabs!!! More money but much more direct! Then we bought our vehicle and that’s a whole other story. Cabs are less money in the long run! 🙂
Lol. The “car” stories I hear regarding the hassles of service, difficulty in finding parts, the roadside inspections, the tickets, the payoffs…honestly I don’t know how people manage it. I’ll still deal with buses and taxis for now, but how many times I miss the convenience of a car!
I just read your reply regarding car ownership – hmm. We are so used to owning a car here in the States it is a bit off setting to think of not having one. We are thinking about living in Ecuador for a few years to have money to travel with. I enjoy the candor of your blog and I thank you for writing it.
Why is owning a car less desirable then taking buses/cabs? 🙂
Hi Catherine,
First, I have lots of friends here who own vehicles and they seem to do just fine. So if you want a vehicle it can be done.
That being said there are realities you have to be willing to deal with. I guess the first is that “driving rules” aren’t rules; they are suggestions and lightly followed. Three vehicles next to each other spread across the a two lane road is common, four across does occur occasionally. I still experience this as a passenger on a bus or in a taxi, but I’m no longer the responsible party for killing someone else or myself in an accident. 😉
Incidentally, if an accident, even a fender bender occurs and the police are involved, agreement (meaning payment) on any damage needs to be made at the scene. If the parties involved cannot come to an acceptable agreement, the police put both parties in jail.
Depending on where you live, maintenance is done by dealerships that are only located in the big cities, so it can be a hassle to get there. Local mechanics can do some things…but you get what you get. From my observations buying a new vehicle here will cost 2-3 times what you pay in the US. Used vehicles are cheaper but still much more than you pay in the US.
The police routinely have check stops along the roads, and they can cite you for anything they want, real or made up. Fines are expensive and you don’t have to pay them, until you want to register your car for the coming year. No payment=no registration, and the tickets are in the hundreds of dollars range. This is on top of normal car registration which can easily be over $1000 per year.
Of course you can avoid the ticket in the first place by paying the cop off anywhere from $5- $40 dollars. How good of a negotiator are you? 😉
These are some things car owners have told me, or things from my own direct observations. It’s also important to note that the taxis are cheap in Ecuador. $1.50-$3 will get you most anywhere you want to go around town. The bus system is extensive and you can travel across the entire country for $24.
So it really becomes which things you want to deal with as to which way you go. Hope this helps!
Todd
Thank you so much for your detailed reply. We will be in Ecuador for 3 months and being a spoiled American I thought we could rent a car when we wanted to travel from Cuenca to the coast etc but maybe we better check bus schedules! I enjoy reading your blogs 🙂
You are welcome Catherine. Thanks for reading!