ECUADOR - My June/July 2003 Trip Journal -- by Donna R. Carter
Page Two
~^~ In and Around Quito ~^~ Thursday ~^~ June 26, 2003
This was a long day, but a good one - even if it didn't start out that way. I didn't sleep very well during night. I kept waking up. And the bad sunburn I got the day before? It swelled up my face. Ouch. At about 4:00 in the morning I finally got up and draped a cold, wet washcloth on my face for a bit and then went back to bed and tossed and turned until about 6:15, when I got up with a whopping headache. I just took a long hot shower ...and some Excedrin. It helped. Thank heaven.
I went out to have my bacon and eggs, logged onto the computer and sent the first weblog of the day through email, and emailed Jeff and Melissa. But, I wanted to get down to the mall. I didn't really have a reason to go, but I used to walk down there all the time when I was a kid, so I figured I should do it. The weather was fabulous: Partly cloudy but beautiful, and the temperature was very comfortable, as usual.
About 9:30 in the morning, I walked out the door and headed down to the mall. Of course, the route has changed dramatically in 23 years since I walked it in high school. Now the field has been taken over by new streets and buildings - even the Federal Courthouse! I just kept walking and finally got there, wandered around... It's still just as hot downstairs as it used to be. They never had very good circulation downstairs in that mall.
I picked up some stuff at the SuperMaxi grocery store, and some Ecuadorian stickers at a banner store - and then I left the mall, and crossed the street to the bank. I left the bank and walked into a travel agency - but I couldn't get my tickets to Guayaquil there. I had to go back to the agency in the mall that dealt with national tickets. I went back and got my tickets for the middle of the next month.
My feet were quite tired. I hadn't walked that much since foot surgery last year. But I refused to take a taxi back to the guest house. I walked up the street to the mission to pick up some humitas that were specially made for me, stopping on the way at Q'Mas where I bought a couple of bottles of Fioravanti Light to drink with them.
When I got to the gatehouse where they were going to bring the humitas, they weren't there yet (which only meant that they were going to be very very fresh and warm and tasty, so I was not in the least upset). I went over to the post office steps and sat there to wait.
While waiting, the Baxter's meandered by, and Anne-Marie walked up and the Ozaki's came by and Anne-Marie asked me if I'd like to go to lunch with them at the BonCafe (a small restaurant on Villalengua up the street from HCJB, toward Ave. America -- the current "favorite haunt" for lunch.) Since I was told the humitas wouldn't be ready for another hour, I didn't see a problem with going to lunch and having humitas for supper instead.
We all walked up to BonCafe and got a table in the back. The Ozakis and Baxters were here when I lived here. Both of them had kids who were in my class in school and we were together all the way from elementary through high school graduation together. It was like being with family. When we were getting ready to leave, I was going to pay for my share and Joe Baxter reached over and put his hand on my knee, saying, "No! You think I'm going to let my daughter pay? You're like a daughter to us! This one's on us." They paid for my meal. I just got all choked up.
Anne-Marie and I waited for Michio to get up there for lunch but everyone else had left, and then after Michio came and ate, we left and I picked up the humitas. I went with Anne-Marie to the Ozaki's house (Anne-Marie and Michio's parents) and helped them finish up emptying their apartment, after which we stopped at the mission to attend the goodbye send-off for the Baxters. It was like old times, but it was also sad to say "Goodbye." The Ozakis and the Baxters are two of the last families that were there when I grew up.
After the goodbye party, Anne-Marie and I went back to the Ozaki's apartment, I picked up the rest of the humitas and stuff I'd left there before the party, and came back to the guest house. My uncle had called to let me know that he's coming in tonight from the jungle. We'd have supper at my cousin's house the next night.
(and Oh yes! The humitas were delicious!!!!)
Current Temperature: 57 ° F Wind Speed: N/R 5 mph
Feels Like: 57° F Visibility: N/R mi
Current Conditions: Partly Cloudy PM Barometer: 30.27 in. F
Humidity: 82% Sunrise: 6:13 am
Sunset: 6:20 pm
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