Last day in Quito

1/19/08

“Oy, I’ve done it again!” That has become my habitual morning expression after I’ve just realized I’ve used tap water to brush my teeth and not the filtered water sitting in the bottle to the left of the sink. Usually by evening it sinks in and then we start all over again in the morning. I can feel the Ecuadorian parasites coursing through my body at this very moment.

Traveled down to the new town by bus with the Austrailian physio Serene to check out prices for Galapagos tours. Looks like they range from $1,000 to $1,700 to travel aboard a boat or yacht with from 12 to 16 people for 8 days Tourist Superior class. This would include all airfare roundtrip from Quito to the islands, all meals, the guide, and in most cases snorkeling equipment. There is plenty of room, but it should be booked about 4 months in advance.

I leave for Shell tomorrow at 9:15am by bus for the 5 to 6 hr journey from Quito. I am traveling with Denise and two Swedish women who will be working there as well. We will be passing through Banos where the cranky volcan Tungarahua is so I’ll try to get some shots of spewing volcanic debris. To appease you in the meantime you can check out www.lgepn.edu.ec for the most recent photos of tungarahua, other volcanoes in Ecuador, and the rest of the world.