Galapagos to Quito: Cold Weather is Toxic to My Skin
Galapagos to Quito: Cold Weather is Toxic to My Skin.
June 26.
On the bus ride to the airport for my Galapagos to Quito flight, there were no seats left. The bus was actually leaving about 15 minutes early because it was already full and the only place to sit was on the bus step next to the chubby mid-50’s Ecuadorian bus-ticket lady who was the wife of the driver. As the bus pulled away to get to the airport for my Galapagos to Quito flight, I put my arm around her since we were already sitting so closely together. The bus driver shook his fist at me. The whole bus laughed. It was awesome.
My backpack is 11.85kg. After I checked it in at the airport I made friends with Andreas, an Ecuadorian guy who works as a freelance tour-guide on the islands. He told me that a freelance tour-guide makes anywhere from $4,000-8,000 USD a month. That is a lot of Ecuadorian money. He said that he actually makes more money than the president of the country. Crazy. But, they say money does not buy happiness and Andreas was on his way to Colombia, flying there to determine the end of three year relationship that he was distraught over. His story was eerily similar to a break-up story that I have from three years ago, so I became his counselor. It is amazing how well I can see analyze someone else’s relationship perfectly but never have any idea what to do in my own. Outside resources are valuable. I drank three beer with him while he told me his story and I told him the grim news of what was going to have to do.
The plane left the Isla Baltra from, Galapagos to Quito. Quito looks like Vancouver meets green Ireland-paddocks from above. It is gorgeous from the air. But as I got of my Galapagos to Quito plane, a cool mountain breeze nailed my shorted legs and I realized jeans were a necessity. Jeans! A sweater! This is bullshit! I will not last long here.
I am not religious, but I have found out what hell is. Hell is getting caught in a traffic jam on a bus in downtown Quito while the bus driver blasts Abba’s ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’ at a volume my mother and I am sure even most Abba fans would be sure to complain about. It was terrible.
Mariscal Foch is a pretty cool and seedy area of the city, but there are a lot of bars and pubs around. As soon as I got out of my taxi, two shady looking dudes on the street corner whistled to get my attention so that they could offer, “Weed? Coke?” Scumbags. I am not sure why drug dealers thing that the only reason gringos travel the world is to smoke weed and snort coke in their countries. I would like to exterminate those people. I walked past Sade Metal, and the music drew me in. The bartender owner told me that it is the best metal bar in town. I hung out with him made friend, talked music for a couple of hours and showed him the metaltravelguide.com where he needs to list his bar so that dudes like me can find it when we arrive in town. The world needs more exposure to metal and less exposure to the garbage that people are spoon-fed on the radio which they are taught is cool and fashionable so that they do not have to think. Katy Perry is fucking terrible.
$188 – Flight from Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos to Quito.
$2 – Bus from Puerto Ayora, Isla Santa Cruz to the airport.
$2 – Bus ride from Quito airport to Rio Cocoa Bus Terminal.
$5 – Taxi to the hostel.
$9 – Vibes Hostel in Quito.
$2.50 – Set menu meal in a restaurant.
- Tour Agencies in the Galapagos
- My pretend girlfriend.
- Isla Baltra, Galapagos.
- Amazing color.
- Airport ticket check.
- Leaving the Galapagos.
- The last I seen of the Galapagos Islands
- Arriving in Quito, sort of Vancouver’s mountains meet green Ireland.
- Things you can not bring on this bus – cigarettes, trash, food, dog shit.