NY...Sanity...Quito, Ecuador

Been on the road a few weeks, time for an update. I was in New York for a bit, to see the relatives and daughter Emily, who will be there for the next few months. Got to see Reva and Barbara (sushi) and brother-in-law Alex for his birthday (sushi). No opera this time, but lots of pizza and falafels. Emily and I spent the day at the NYC Marathon. What a hoot.

Made it down to Washington for the Restore Sanity rally. Made me very happy. Lots of funky signs, 200,000+ people, all in a good mood. One of the best days of the year. Even found a cheap, direct bus back to NYC for $15 (MegaBus). Made a few museums and memorials (Holocaust, Amer. Indian, Korean and Vietnam memorial)

Next stop was Quito, a place I have dreamed of since I was a teenager. I had this big, old tube radio, with an antennae wire strung around a few neighbours backyards..and I could pickup up Quito on the shortwave. It was my farthest place to acquire. So cool to be here.

Quito is in the Andes, so you land at almost 10,000 feet. It is noticeable, but not too draining. Takes a few days to adjust. Did a little run today and had to stop every few minutes. It is a big, messy, dirty city, but not too noisy. Few people honk horns or scream and yell at other drivers. Most people you meet are quite friendly and honest. If you give the banos attendants .25 to use the loo, they will always hand you back the change as you exit. The bus system is cheap and extensive with a number of lines that have their own lanes. The city runs in a valley North and South, so you can get from one place to another quite quickly. The buses are crowded and someone from my hostel almost lost a camera on the bus (the person was caught, quite an uproar from the other passengers). As well, someone was mugged just outside the hostel. While these events are not that common, it helped me change my setup to handle a basic mugging ($10 or so plus change in my front pocket... everything else locked in various pockets)

The food situation here is ... abundant. Food, of all sorts...everywhere. I do groceries for breakfast, street for mid-day and cheap restaurant for supper. I've kept my suppers at $2-3, so am not making my own. Have eaten in a few hole-in-the-wall places. Roast pork yesterday was delicioso.

People selling everything in the streets, incense burns in many places, hustlers are the politest I've ever dealt with. Only 1 or 2 persistent ones so far. So refreshing.

Been all over the city, great parks, funky old town, caught a few museums and the Botanical Gardens. Time to head out. Off to the coast to a little surfing town (Canoa) then back inland for a volcano hike that runs a loop around 5-6 towns and is about 150 kms. Will do some walking and hitch-hiking if at all possible.

Note the sign below, a warning about robbery on a hike up to the Panecella statue. I got about 1/2 way up and realized i had a camera, passport, bank card $300 and a Visa with me...will return later in the trip and just go with mugger $$$. A taxi up the hill costs $2-3...but I hate taking taxis, especially up hills.