Comment from:
Christopher
|
 |
Mikey and I were due to travel south to Latacunga yesterday but as
his back pain grew during Saturday night we spent Sunday trying to sort
him out. It turns out he has three hernias in his back and has to stay
in Quito for 2 weeks. I am therefore on my own. I set off reasonably
early, thinking i knew where i was going. I made it to the trolley bus
a few streets north of the hostel in no time at all, only to have to
wait for a space for me and my enormous bag. During the short journey
to the wrong stop I looked down at my pocket to see a mans hand halfway
in. To my surprise the man was respectably dresses and of perhaps 40
years of age. He didn't manage to take anything but it put my guard
up. I rode a few more stops to where I thought the bus terminal was but
got off just as I saw the bus river shaking his head - it was too late,
the bus had gone. I then had a struggled conversation in my best
Spanish with a lady at the bus stop who was really kind and put me on
the right bus.
I made it to the bus terminal and onto the bus bound for
Latacunga without any further problems.On our approach to Latacunga the
road was blocked by protesters so we had to turn around and take a
different route into town.
I gathered my belongings and headed for town and the cheapest hostel
listed in my trusty guide book. This was a mistake, it was the first
place I came to and only had single rooms, therefore I was unable to
meet anyone else and had a pretty lonely day. Not only that but the
room was tiny, the bed was hard, the shared bathroom only has cold taps
- oh how i looked forward to a hot shower - and there were loud bangs
which sounded like gunshots outside my room. Needless to say I didn't
venture out during the hours of darkness, and will not choose the first
place I come to next time.
I arrived at the hostel around 1pm so spent the afternoon walking
around town. There are some beautiful buildings, including the town
hall, but not many have survived the wrath of Cotopaxi, the highest
active volcano in the world. I walked a little further out of town to
the Casa de la Cultura, a museum (which was closed) built on the site
of a former Jesuit watermill known as "Molinos de Monserrat". I walked
among some of the former mill and down to the river where I sat and
watched some chickens graze as the sun began to set.
|
|
|
|
|
2009-10-21
|