Tyson Goes OutsideEverything outdoors and adventure!

Jan 6th A City On Fire

The streets were filled with smoke from the fires. The air was filled with the shouts of the crowds and the thunderous cracks in the sky. Broken glass lined the curbs. There was an unfamiliar chemical foam raining down, it was sticky and smelled like cleaner. It looked, sounded, and smelled like a city in the midst of a bombing raid. I can’t believe I paid money to be here, and I can’t believe I’m having this much fun. It was the wildest new years I have ever witnessed.

In Canada, at least for me, New Years eve celebrations are usually quite mild. They consist of spending time at a friends house and hiding from the usual cold weather that plagues us that time of year. They are typically a potluck and catch up with friends kind of an evening. Ecuador… is a different story.

Erin and I had decided that we were simply travelling too fast and it was starting to wear us down, so we rented an apartment in the town of Baños, Ecuador, for christmas and new years. It was wonderful to have our own space and be able to cook for ourselves. I even got to make two batches of cookies while we were there, those made me quite popular with our landlord and her young sons.

I Had To Use My Water Bottle To Measure Ingredients

The Apartment Had A Fireplace

While we were there our friend Rob, whom we had met in San Augustin, Colombia, had made his way down to Baños and met up with us for a few days, including new years. He was on his way through, biking from Bogota to Chile… and you thought I did crazy things. He has a blog about it here. He has done this in Asia too.

New Years eve, in the morning, Erin and I went to Casa Del Arbol. We decided to take the bus there and back, instead of a three hour walk each way. Mostly because she had to be back on time for her classes and also because I didn’t feel like walking three hours each way. We jumped on the bus and a friendly British couple began talking to us. For the remainder of the trip to Casa Del Arbol and back we were friends. Casa Del Arbol is an interesting place, it is a large tree house on the edge of a cliff and on each side of the tree house are large swings which throw you out over the edge of the cliff. Erin of course went on the swing, while I took pictures for her. I opted not to ride the swing for self-preservation reasons. I did however use the zip-line that ran about three feet off the ground and maybe 100 yards long. On the way back our new friends invited us to join them for dinner at Casa Hood, we were told to bring any friends we had.

Nope.

Extreme

Not Sure Why This Was There Or What Its Actually For

That night we met up with Rob at Cafe hood, and soon realized our confusion. Just as we were about to leave to go to the right restaurant we overheard a girl from New Zealand who had made the same mistake. We offered to keep her company and ordered some beers to help pass the time while she finished hers. While we were finishing our drinks two men dressed, badly, as women came running in. One began playing the guitar and singing while sitting on Rob’s lap and the other danced around. When they were all done, I gave them some spare change and they were off to find new victims. We had also noticed, on the street out front, young kids in what looked like Halloween costumes were stopping traffic and people in cars were giving them candy or spare change. Throughout the day we had also noticed many people making effigies out of paper māché, in all shapes and sizes.

We eventually made our way to the right restaurant, but had missed our friends. The New Zealander’s friends were there and she joined them. We had a wonderful dinner, just the three of us. After dinner we went out to walk around and see what the festivities looked like. The streets were packed with kids in costumes and young men dressed in drag. They were standing in intersections, stopping traffic, rubbing themselves against the cars, and harassing the drivers until they got money. There were vendors on the sides of the street selling all kinds of things; masks, wigs, cigarettes, fireworks etc. Erin decided to buy a pink wig to help get in the spirit of things. There were also a lot of people shooting fireworks into the sky and drinking heavily. This was already beyond anything I had seen back home. We dipped in and out of a few bars for a drink or two but the street was just too exciting to pass up. Plus there were several stages in the streets with live music. We eventually ran into the British couple… They weren’t too hard to spot since he is about six foot five and was dressed in drag. That sort of thing stands out to me.

As the evening got closer to midnight things really started to pick up. At about ten minutes to the stroke of midnight everyone started throwing their effigies into piles on the street and beating them senseless. There was kicking, throwing, shouting, and some full on body slams. Everyone was whipped into a frenzy and then the count down began. At the stroke of midnight everyone went wild, singing, yelling, hugging, and burning the piles. Once the fires started burning things got even crazier, people were jumping over the fires, myself included, and shooting off fireworks, myself included. Fatemah, the girl we had met earlier that day, ran out of the bar and started spraying party foam out of an aerosol can. She spayed into the crowd and really made a point of hosing down Rob. To me, it looked like big heavy wet snow falling to the ground. For a split second my mind wandered to an old memory of home when my friends and I were standing around a bonfire while the snow fell. I did my best to get some pictures of the riotous streets but there was just too much movement and action to get anything of quality. I think the blurry, crooked, and obscured photos are an accurate representation of the night anyway.

Effigies Piled And Beaten

Spray Foam

Tempting Fate

We then wandered up and down the streets and hit a few more bars. We stayed out far later than we should have, but so did everyone. We finally made it back to where we were staying at about three in the morning, at which point we video chatted with our friends back home. Between bad internet and late night excitement I don’t think I was able to properly convey what we had witnessed.

What we had witnessed, at least what I pieced together from the locals is: New Years is obviously a huge celebration in Ecuador, no one needed to explain that. They celebrate it by building and burning effigies, they can look like anything from a shoebox sized spongebob to a twelve foot tall batman. Most looked like people and varied wildly in size, they represent the previous year and anything bad that happened in that year, hence beating them senseless before burning them. The young men dressed in drag asking for money are pretending to be the widows of the effigies, who now need help providing for their family. The money, of course, is spent on beer later in the evening. Drinking in public is completely legal and I saw very young children buying and using fireworks. To me it was mardi gras, meets new years, meets a circus all without parental supervision.

Everyone Was Celebrating

There Were Lots Of Little Fires Down Every Street

When you travel you hope for adventure and excitement. You want to see other cultures and how they celebrate, you want to partake in festivities as the locals do. This, to me, was a traveler’s dream. We got to witness and experience a wild celebration with the locals, just as the locals do. To make it all better, it came as a complete surprise, until that day I had no idea other cultures took partying on New Years so seriously.

Dec 19th Tyson Goes To Scuba School

It seems that I’ve been facing a lot of fears these days. They are silly little fears, as most are, but they are dug in deep. For many years I’ve been afraid of swimming in large bodies of water, especially if I can’t see the bottom. I just don’t know what’s down there, and in my mind I am always just on the brink of some terrifying attack from a creature of the deep. Kayaking forced me to face these fears, scuba diving even more so. I don’t pretend that I don’t have these fears anymore, but its nice to know that I have survived facing them and I intend to face them again and again… and again if necessary.  

We arrived in Taganga after taking an all-night bus from San Gil to Santa Marta. We stayed in a hostel called Villa Mary, run by David, energetic and helpful man who spoke excellent english. His family lived at the hostel and he treated us more like welcome house guests than paying customers. We asked him for a recommendation for a scuba school, as I was interested in getting my Open Water certification, since Erin already has her Advanced Open Water. David recommended Reef Shepherd, so we walked over to inquire.

It turns out there are multiple courses for essentially the same certification all with varying focus on various aspects. The most common training is PADI, which is what Erin has. I opted to go for SDI because to me it appeared to show more how to dive with modern technology and had less theory and class room work. SDI was also the cheaper option. I did a lot of research between the two online and found that they are pretty similar and there is no right or wrong answer.

The dive shop gave me a USB stick of videos and a text book to take a look at and fill out. We went for a walk on the beach, it had rained very heavily two days before and it washed a lot of litter into the ocean which then washed up on the beach. It was sad to see all that garbage, but over the following days it was cleaned up by some sort of town employees.

Garbage Washed Up Along The Beach

The next morning I met my instructor, Fabio. He looked a lot like a stereotypical handsome scuba instructor in a Colombian beach town. After introductions he gave me a quick overview of the equipment, most of which I remembered from my two prior dives in Fiji, and all the info I had studied the day before. From there we jumped into an old Land Rover and headed to a nearby hotel to use their pool to go over basics and confirm the fact that I can swim.

We did a few laps around the pool, and I was shown how to clear water out of my mask, and what to do if a companions or my air quits flowing. I was also shown how to use a compass while diving. I already had a good idea as I know how to use a compass on land, but I didn’t mention it to him because its always good to refresh… and no one likes a wise ass.

The first day of training was done within a few short hours. Erin and I wandered around the beach a bit, got some lunch and relaxed in the hostel. That night, a woman came by and sold us fresh loaves of homemade bread, still warm from the oven. It was amazing. She came back every night, and every night I bought at least one little loaf to eat.

The next day I was ready to dive in the ocean. We did two dives in the morning. On the boat there was Fabio and I, as well as about four other Colombians who were going spear fishing with another dive master. At first, I was a little nervous to get out of the boat and into the ocean. Something about it being so big scares me.

I didn’t want to be embarrassed, so I swallowed my fears and tipped myself backwards off the side of the boat. Soon Fabio was in the water too, and he explained what we were going to do. I had to do a few tests, things like: taking my mask off and putting it back on while under water, sharing oxygen, and emergency surfacing.

After all that was done, we did our dive around an island with a lighthouse. I saw a very large eel and a barracuda, along with a variety of other small fish unknown to me.  We surfaced and loaded into the boat. The other group surfaced shortly after, and one of them was holding a trident with a lion fish on it.

They climbed in and we started chatting. It turns out lion fish are an invasive species in the Caribbean and they are edible. He told me they are a delicious white meat. To me, it sounded like they were similar to our Walleye.

The second dive started with more testing, mostly for my buoyancy. In this case I had to put my feet in the ocean floor and hold the rest of my body at a steady 45 degree angle. Easier said than done, but with careful, calm, shallow breathing I was able to do it.

We then swam along another coral reef to a sunken boat. It was a large piece of hull about ten meters across. I was told later that it sank and broke into three pieces which all found their way to different depths. As we were  looking at the hull I swam around the side and was startled by three scuba divers, one of which had a large trident with a lion fish on it. It was the other group of divers from the boat, but it sure surprised me when I came around the side.

The day wrapped up around noon, so Erin and I walked over a small ridge to another beach called Playa Grande, which was crowded with Colombian tourists enjoying the sand and sun. We sat in the sand and royally over paid for a juice and a coke, but I guess thats just the cost of travel sometimes.

Caribbean Sunset

When I awoke on the third and final day of my course, I wasn’t feeling too well. Erin had scheduled to dive with me for my final two dives. Luckily the dive shop was pretty easy going and let us reschedule to the afternoon. We relaxed all morning and walked around town a bit. In the afternoon we went to the shop and geared up, Erin refreshed her memory and we met another Canadian who would be joining us on the dive.

We loaded into the boat and there was another group on their second day of the same course I was taking. On our first dive I had to do one more test, a basic compass navigation. I had to set a heading on the compass and swim 12 fin cycles (leg kicks) then turn around and follow the opposite heading back with the same number of fin cycles, I was allowed a two meter window of error. I was quite nervous, but on the return trip I almost crashed into the instructor who was waiting at the endpoint, so maybe I just expected it being harder than it was.

We then began our dive. It was a nice dive along some corals. We saw a large green eel, some lobsters, and a very large eel with a sort of leopard print. At first we only saw its head sticking out of the sand but when it spooked and swam away, we saw six feet of body emerge from under the sand.

Erin and I

Leading The Pack

Lobster Love

We surfaced and  started heading to the beach for lunch. Suddenly the boat stopped and Fabio told me to jump in and swim to shore. Naturally I gave him a funny look and asked “Why am I the only one swimming to shore?” He replied “Oh its your final test, I need to see that you can swim two hundred meters and then float or tread water for ten minutes, these two are also going to do it.” The other students jumped in and started swimming.

I sat hesitantly for a moment. Swimming in the ocean is one of my bigger fears. The ocean is big and deep, and I can’t see whats under me. Again, I didn’t want to embarrass myself, so I swallowed my fear and started swimming. The boat motored around us to shore. When I got close they singled to stop and tread water. It was the longest ten minutes my memory can recall.

We had some sandwiches and iced tea on the shore, then went back out for our second dive. We dove another reef just off shore. As soon as we descended to the bottom, Fabio pointed out an octopus hiding behind a rock. We kept swimming and saw a variety of fish and swam through a tear in net. Just passed it I saw our guide pick up some litter and stuff it in his pocket. A little farther down he grabbed a broken water gun and started pointing it at us and waving it around. It’s nice to see people having fun at work.

Just before the end of our dive we spotted a lion fish resting in a nook in a rock. From there we began to surface. We did a safety stop, where we stopped at five meters for three minutes. It was during the safety stop that a school of silver fish swam by. One of them was very curious and swam several laps around and between us. It got close enough that I could have touched it were I brave enough. Erin, of course, was brave enough and did touch it.

I Don’t Know The Name Of This Species

Say “Bllblblblbble!”

Handsome Bunch

The next morning I went back to the dive shop and they printed my new certification card. I chatted with the owner of the dive shop about his Land Rover, of which I am a fan. He was also kind enough to tell me all about lion fish which are and invasive species in the Caribbean, originally from the Pacific ocean. Heres what I learned:

He said he first reported them in the area about seven years ago, and as best he could tell they came from Florida. They are an expensive and prized aquarium fish. It appears that some got out either by accident, sloppy tank draining procedures, or possibly poor weather, such as hurricane Katrina breaking open houses and aquariums. He also said that for many years they weren’t found south of the amazon river as it drains into the ocean with too much force.

Unfortunately one year, with El Niño, they were able to cross the weakend river drainage. There have been reports of them south of the Amazon for the last three years. He also told me that they hold competitions to see who can spear fish the most and the largest lion fish. Sadly, though, it does not appear that they will ever be able to get rid of them entirely, the ocean is just too big and they reproduce too fast. Further research here and here showed me that they are believe to have a founding population of only a handful of individual lion fish.

Nov 5th Home Invasion In Ecuador

Its amazing how the mind functions in high stress situations. I remember looking and thinking “That looks like it might be a Sig. Where did he get a Sig?” I guess I was looking too closely as I then felt the tread of a boot gently tap the back of my head causing my chin to hit the hardwood and clap my teeth together… hard. And to think, the day was going so well up to this point.

We left Quito late in the morning and drove to Otavalo to see their famous market. It was Liz’s birthday so we thought a short trip would be nice. There were seven of us split between two cars: Erin and I, Liz and her two sons and friend of the family Rafael and his niece. Erin and I rode with the boys while Liz rode with Rafael and his niece. Along the way we stopped at Lago San Pablo. We did a short boat tour, where Erin and I began chatting with some older ladies after I smiled really wide in the background of their selfie. I always seem to make friends with people old enough to be my parents, or grand parents. We then had a delicious lunch in the restaurant that had an amazing view of the lake.

Cruisin’ Around The Lake

They Also Had Llamas

We wandered up and down the narrow pathways between the booths looking at all the amazing hand crafted wool items. Among the many great things were wool ponchos. Naturally I had to buy one. Paulo was kind enough to translate for me in the bartering process. The initial price was $22 and we haggled, dickered and ground her down to… $18. Not my finest work but it was a nice poncho. We then loaded up and headed home.

Soft and Cozy Alpaca Wool

We arrived back at the house after dark, around 8:30 pm. We were just relaxing, looking on our phones, and slowly making a plan for dinner. Then Rafael’s car alarm went off, I didn’t think much of it as there are always car alarms going off here. Much like at home, its usually over nothing. Rafael was quick to his feet and ran out the door to check it out. I heard a scuffle at the door, and Mateo, in some of the quickest thinking I have ever witnessed, told us to hide our phones. Confused, I stood up and put it in my pocket, then immediately realized the we were being robbed and the scuffle was Rafael exhibiting great bravery by trying to pull the door shut while people tried to get in. I quickly pulled my phone out of my pocket and tossed it under the couch I was sitting on. In almost the same second, Rafael came around the corner into the living room and was pushed to the ground by a man with a pistol. It looked like a silver Sig 226. I got on the ground, following Mateo’s lead, as a second man entered holding a flat head screw driver. They both had an interest in making sure I stayed on the ground, as I was about 8 inches taller than both of them. I was looking closely at the man with the gun while the man with the screw driver stood over me. I remember the gunman was wearing a red bandana that had just slipped off his nose. It was at this point that his companion stepped on the back of my head, as a reminder to keep it down. He then started asking for phones, Erin and I both said “No telephono” so he patted us both down. He took from me my wallet and my pocket knife, he then motioned at my watch. I slipped it off and handed it to him.

When the men first came through the door, Liz and Rafael’s niece ran onto the balcony and closed the door behind them. The gunman never found them, or bothered to go get them. Paulo was in the washroom and quickly shut off the light when he realized what was happening but it was too late, as the gunman saw the light flip off. He kicked the door in and took Paulos cell phone and then proceeded to take Erin’s and my day packs along with Liz’s computer and camera.

I didn’t really hear it at the time, but Liz’s brother, Miguel, who lives in the apartment above her, heard the yelling and stomping of Rafael trying to close the door on the men. He sounded the alarm in his house which made the thieves hurry as they knew police were on the way. My adrenaline was pumping so hard, in my mind I thought it was the car alarm, in hind sight it was so loud, in other circumstances one might call it deafening. The whole thing was over in under two minutes. As the men ran out of the house, Paulo in a fit of quick thinking and bravery, ran out to catch a glimpse of the car and try to get the plate number, they were too fast for him to get the plate but he did see the car. The police arrived within minutes of the ordeal ending, their response time was impressive but unfortunately there just isn’t a lot they can do, or perhaps are willing to do, in these scenarios.

We told the police everything we could, which wasn’t a lot since it was so fast. We then went back in the house and did a quick inventory. Luckily our passports were untouched and they had missed Erin’s purse, but they did take her backpack which had a photocopy of her passport. My pack that was stolen didn’t have much of value, an old sweater, a water bottle, some toilet paper…they are going to be seriously sad when they open my pack and cashless wallet. Erin’s pack had her rain coat and, sadly, our flashy new camera lens as well as $60 cash. Luckily our camera was somehow left behind in Erin’s purse on the bed.

After the police left, we all kind of sat around and discussed where each one of us was, I also made a point of thanking Mateo for his quick thinking to hide the phones, Rafael for doing his best to stop them or at least delay them, and Miguel for sounding the alarm. Considering what happened and how things COULD have gone, we all got lucky. We did our best to fix the kicked in bathroom door, called friends just so we could tell someone. Erin and I agreed we would wait till the morning to tell our parents, f0r sanity’s sake.

The rest of the night and into the following day, I couldn’t help but wonder what I could have done differently. It was almost like a survivors guilt. Would it have helped if I charged at the gunman? I’m sure if I grabbed his gun with my left hand and his throat with my right I could have shoved him right out the door, along with his friend. While we were laying on the ground I could have simply grabbed the screw driver wielders boot flipped him and over powered him, but that still left an armed gunman in the back of the house. I know I did the right thing by shutting up and cooperating, but it still feels wrong. I think the worst injury or loss was my pride, it hurts to stand down, even if by all measures it was the right thing to do. Playing hero could have gotten people killed.

My guess is that the two men were simply trying to rob the car and saw a golden opportunity for a home robbery. I base this on the damage to the locks on Rafael’s car and the fact that one of the men had a screw driver. Had they wanted to do a home invasion it would have made more sense to bring the gun and a knife, simply kick the car to sound the alarm and then wait for someone to run out.

The next day, Erin and I went to the shop, and began replacing our stolen items. A cheap backpack and some headphones, and a pair of sunglasses later, we are almost back to normal. They stole my sweater too, but luckily for me they left my new poncho. When we got home from our shopping trip, we realized that on their way out, the thieves had also made off with Erin’s hiking boots that had been sitting by the door, which to her, was the most personal insult. Its a day I won’t soon forget, and I can still feel the indignity of that boot on the back of my head and the pain of my teeth grinding together. I feel the worst for Liz, she had a lot of important things on that computer, and her birthday was going so well before the break in.

Erin’s perspective:

At first I didn’t know what was going on. Mateo told me to hide my phone, so I did. Then a guy walked in with a gun and pointed it at me, motioning for me to get on the ground. It was surreal. I thought to myself “There is a gun pointing at me, I should lie down”. When he began yelling “TELEFONO TELEFONO” I thought to my phone lying inches away under the sofa and replied “No telefono, lo siento, lo siento”. He patted me down, and checked all my pockets, and I remember hoping he didn’t get too handsy. He didn’t.

After it was over, I felt very calm. It seemed totally unreal to me. I hovered awkwardly while the boys talked to the police in Spanish, and Tyson showed them pictures of the type of gun he thought it was. I caught the eye of Rafael’s niece, who ran into my arms for a hug. She was shaking like a leaf, and I’m an awkward person, so my first thought was to make her some tea. I think I just needed something to focus on, and she was it. I was really okay with the whole situation. I just felt so lucky that they didn’t get my camera, my iPad, my phone, my computer, my passport, my bankcards, or the big stash of cash we had in our room. I was totally zen about it until the next afternoon when I realized they had taken my hiking boots on the way out the door and I immediately burst into hot angry tears. Apparently that is my line, and they crossed it.

Oct 29th Ecuador: Spanish Lessons and Fighting Roosters

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to” – Bilbo Baggins

How on earth, did I end up at an Ecuadorian cock fighters training grounds? It was an amazing sight to see, but I thought it was illegal everywhere… actually come to think of it, the whole place did seem kind of clandestine and had a certain “this isn’t technically legal” feel about it, nobody offered a straight answer when I asked, so I wasn’t going to ask again. I didn’t know people still bet on fighting chickens, nor did I realize they took it so seriously. Lets recap how I got here.

Our flight left New York early in the morning of the 16th, a Friday. It landed late in the day in Quito, Ecuador. I was tired, confused, and a little hungry. It was at this point I started to realize just how hard it might be to travel in a Spanish speaking country. Luckily airports are well labelled with pictures and multiple languages. We essentially walked through customs, which was strange, I half expected a tricky line of questioning and a search. I guess trust is an advantage given to Canadian travellers, because I have never had more than about two questions asked while crossing a border. We were told that a long time friend of Erin’s aunt would pick us up at the airport and we would stay with her in Quito while we took Spanish lessons.

We walked out of the customs area to find that there was no one waiting for us. My initial instinct was to worry, but I figured she was just running a few minutes late. I used the bathroom while Erin watched the luggage and then we switched. While I was watching the luggage I saw a woman and a young man point at me and wave, Erin’s aunt had sent them a picture and I guess I wasn’t too hard to spot. They came over just as Erin came back. We did some introductions, their names were Liz and Paulo,  and we chatted for a moment. Their english was very impressive. We loaded our gear into their car and made the lengthy but scenic drive from the airport to their home. Shortly after we arrived at the house, I went with Paulo in the car to get some chicken and pizza. The chicken was delicious and I believe the pizza was better than what I had in New York. Erin maintains the New York Pizza is superior, but honestly, who are you going to believe? I finally pulled my shoes off at 10 pm, and it felt great. It was time to get some sleep, I had a feeling Saturday was likely to be something exciting.

View of Quito From Our Balcony

My initial thoughts on Quito is that it is an old city (ok thats more fact than thought) with narrow streets, and the driving system is essentially chaos. The driving on the road is much like a mix of fish swimming in a stream and people walking on a sidewalk, there are no real rules and everyone is just watching for everyone else and doing their own thing. Its surprisingly efficient and after two weeks, I am yet to see any kind of accident.

The next morning began for me at about 9:30, I got out of bed and had a quick shower, which is about the best thing you can have after a long flight. I then had a chat with Liz about anthropology, as she works as an anthropologist and I have an anthro degree. Her younger son Mateo, 18, made us breakfast and chatted for a bit. He explained that he might want to train to be a chef, based on his breakfast, I’d say he could pull it off. Over breakfast we also discussed options for what to do for the day. Eventually it was decided the we should take a bus to the older part of Quito, known in english as “Old Town” and in spanish as “Ciudad Antiguo”. It was amazing to see the architecture of the various churches and museums in the area along with all the unique shops. Towards the end of the day we decided that we should take a taxi home. We flagged one down, hopped in, and then I realized there was no seatbelt on my side. The taxi took off and began weaving through traffic, running red lights and passing cars on a solid line. I watched in amazement that we hadn’t gotten into an accident. When we arrived back at the house, I unlatched my hand from the handle on the roof and we got out. I looked at Erin and said “Quite a ride hey?” to which she replied “Oh I didn’t notice, I fell asleep”.

Old Town Quito

You Can Buy All Kinds Of Great Things In The Shops

The next day, Sunday, we figured it would be a good idea to walk to our chosen Spanish school to verify its location and existence, as we would be starting lessons the next morning. Paulo offered to chaperone for us while Liz stayed at the house and took care of some things for work. We walked down the street it was supposed to be on and couldn’t find it, so we walked up and down some of the neighbouring streets in case there was a slight typo or it moved. We couldn’t seem to find it, so we walked back to the house to email the school and ask if they had moved.

When we got back to the house, Liz offered to drive us and have another look. She said she was procrastinating her work and wanted us to enable her, being a former student I was happy to oblige. We drove to the address, where upon we realized that the sign and entrance for the school could only be seen from the west side. We had walked we walked from the east.. oops.

Liz then offered to take us to a book store as I had previously mentioned that I had finished my book while on the plane from New York. We went, and luckily the book store had an english section. Sadly its selection resembled that of a grocery store book section. I finally found something that wasn’t a bad romance, “Call of the Wild” by Jack London, I had never read it before and it looked good. Erin and I also grabbed a children’s book in Spanish to attempt to read later.

The following Monday to Friday we had school from 8:30 to 12:30. Heres a quick recap. Monday morning when I first woke up Liz told me to go on the balcony to see Cotopaxi. I ran up and saw in the distance a volcano billowing smoke. I immediately ran to the bedroom and grabbed the camera to get some pictures. I was assured that it had been doing this for months already and that we were well out of the danger zone. After class we went for lunch where I accidentally mistook hot sauce for ketchup, which thoroughly unpleasant. After dinner Mateo showed me some yoga, he is very into it and wanted to show me some techniques that might help with my stomach aches. It was a pleasant experience and I see why so many of my friends back home do it. I also had to chuckle because I wonder how many of them would be jealous of me having a handsome young man with a Spanish accent as an instructor. After yoga we realized that everyone else in the house had gone to bed and the car was still on the street. I guess its not safe to leave a car on the street over night in Quito. Mateo asked me to drive the car for him to the garage they were renting a few blocks away. I jumped at the chance to say I have driven in another country. Its just a good thing I can drive manual.

Cotopaxi (Photo From Our Balcony)

After school on the second day we walked to the local museum and then relaxed. Third day, Wednesday, after class we went to a post office and sent a few post cards as thank yous from our wedding. We then headed back to the house and had some lunch. Erin went back to the school to meet up with classmates and take a city bus tour, I got some rest and watched a movie. Fourth day, Thursday, we had a school field trip to a cultural museum just north of Quito. Along the way we stopped and did a hike to some waterfalls. The bus ride was amazing, it was all roads on the edge of steep mountains, we made one corner and the landscape went from what looked like the Alberta badlands to lush jungle. The museum wasn’t too great as my Spanish is too limited to understand it.

Erin and me Beside a Waterfall

On the Friday, we met up with a friend from school and had a few drinks in some bars in an area of the city known as Mariscal. Its the main area for things like hostels and bars. I had 2.5 oversized Ecuadorian pilsners and bored our English friend with stories about hunting, oil rigging, and maple syrup. He seemed interested, but maybe he was just being polite. He also informed me that I fit nearly every Canadian stereotype he knew… not sure how I feel about that… flattered? We took a cab home from the bar, despite home only being a few blocks away we were told several times that walking home at night is a sure-fire way to get robbed.

At 6:15 my alarm began screeching at me. I stood up and was immediately reminded why I drink so rarely, I also learned that drinking at a high altitude increases the effects of alcohol both in the fun stage and the recovery stage. Why on earth were we up this early on a Saturday after a night out? Well, we were headed to Mindo. Liz has a friend who owns a farm out there and we were invited to visit. We were told we would be leaving at around 7 am, and until about 6:55 am, we were under the impression that it was only for the day. When we found we were staying overnight, Erin and I scrambled to pack tooth brushes and a change of clothes. The two hour drive through the mountains would have been amazing had I not been hungover, in a country short on public toilets. Luckily that didn’t turn into a story in itself.

We arrived at the farm and were both amazed at how beautiful it was. It consisted of multiple buildings: a main house, the workers house, a kitchen, dining hall, several cabins, and a swimming pool. We later found out that the original plan had been to convert the farm to a resort but the idea never got off the ground. We were given a quick tour and shown the three Tilapia ponds, suspension bridge, and banana orchard. I went for a quick dip in the pool with Paulo and Mateo. Afterwards, I went for a short walk and was able to get some photos of Toucans. We had a big lunch at about 3:30 served on a large table set up on the lawn. It reminded me of the big farm lunches you see Amish people have in movies.

Main house (Pink) Care Taker’s house (Blue)

Tilapia Pond and Duck House

A Water System That Runs From a Stream in The Mountains Right Through The Yard

Praying Mantis

Suspension Bridge

Toucan

Toucan

During lunch, it was mentioned that the care taker for the property also made money in rooster fighting. He raised and trained fighting roosters. After lunch we were asked if we wanted to see the roosters. I said sure, assuming they were somewhere on the property. I was mistaken. We loaded into two vehicles and drove through town and then to another farm where the care taker and his business partner raised the roosters. On the drive I asked, off handedly, if rooster fighting was legal in Ecuador. I couldn’t get a definitive answer. As best I can tell, its not illegal, but only because people know a ban on it wouldn’t work. The man showed us all of his various roosters, about a dozen, and proudly explained little details. They remove the feathers form the roosters legs to increase speed and mobility. When they roost, they do  so on a soft rubber hose suspended a foot or two off the ground, so that they strengthen their legs and increase their balance. Spikes are attached on the backs of the legs during fights (I’m told in Peru they attach blades). There are also different hair styles for the fights, for example sometimes they shave a strip of feathers off of the roosters back, purely for aesthetic purposes. Some of the roosters even had microchip trackers on them because they were worth so much. I would later find out that a champion rooster is worth up to $10,000 USD. On our way out of the rooster farm we came across another rare sight, a blind snake (imagine a two foot long earth worm, with a snakes head devoid of eyes) eating an earthworm. We took some pictures but none of us were brave enough to touch it.

Champion Rooster

Champion Rooster

Roosting On Rubber Hose

Blind Snake Eating An Earthworm

Later that night at supper we were still discussing the finer details of cock fighting. I learned that the owner of a winning rooster could make up to $5000 USD in a fight. After dinner, the caretakers wife, who also lived and worked on the farm, ran to their truck and grabbed the spikes to show me. They had a silver base, and a long curved spike, a little thicker than a tooth pick, and about the length of my pinky finger, I was told it was made out of tortoise or turtle shell (there was a bit of a language barrier).

New Spikes

Very Sharp Tips

They Are Resharpened and Reused

The following morning we had a large traditional breakfast. It was eggs, cheese, and onion all fried with “verde” a type of green banana. It tasted like really good scrambled eggs. Erin and I went for another quick walk up a nearby mountain, and then we all hit the road and headed home to Quito.

We Hiked A Short Way Up The Nearby Mountain And Took This Photo of The Farm

Found this Cuddly Fellow on The Blinds In The Morning

En route to the city, we stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant. The owner clearly knew our companions. He greeted us all with a big smile and a hearty handshake, hug, or kiss on the cheek, depending on who you were. I only got a handshake. The food was good but more interestingly, there were about ten bird feeders surrounded by humming birds, and they weren’t afraid of people. We walked right up and watched them, after a while I stuck my hand out and got one to land on my finger, but only for a moment. All in all, it was quite a week. My Spanish has only improved slightly, but I now know a lot about Ecuadorian Cock Fighting. Hopefully that information will never be useful to me.

There Were At Least A Dozen Species

I Was Able To Get Close Enough to Touch Some

One of Many Beautiful Birds

I do not support forcing animals to fight each other and I have even less interest in betting on it. That said, I was surprised to learn how important and useful it is to the local culture. I was told that it is a great way for men to make money, but more importantly it prevents a lot of violence. It supposedly does this two ways. First, it gives men an excuse to get together and discuss their problems, instead resorting to violence. Secondly, in some instances, they will let their roosters do the fighting for them. The most important thing to remember, and I have to remind myself of this sometimes, is that I am simply an observer, my role is to watch and learn and I have to do my best not to judge, or worse, speak, through the lens that my society has given me. 

Oct 19th A New York start to our New Adventure

“I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” – Blanche DuBois, Streetcar Named Desire

We flew from Edmonton to New York via Toronto ten days after our wedding. We left our friends, families, jobs and home behind in the early morning twilight hours. We arrived in New York at 8:30 pm. From the airplane window, the city appeared to be an endless blanket of lights.  I don’t know that I have ever seen anything so big, so intimidating.

New York at Night

We struggled to get directions to our hotel, but luckily New Yorkers are far nicer than their reputation would have you believe. It should have been a shuttle to a subway, to another subway, then a walk up the stairs to our hotel. Everything was fine until I decided we were on the wrong train. We jumped off at the Aqueduct Racetrack and debated our options until I realized I was an idiot and we had actually been on the right train all along. So we waited twenty embarrassing minutes for the next one to come along. We eventually found our way to the hotel and checked in without issue. After walking a few blocks in each direction looking for a place to grab some food, we finally settled on pizza. It was Broadway Pizza and Brooklyn beer, a highly recommendable combination after a long day of traveling. Or anytime really.

Supper Fit For a King

Day two began with Erin waking me up at 10 am saying she had already gotten coffee, called her mom, and bought us tickets to a broadway show. It was a lot to wake up to. We grabbed bagels for breakfast (because, New York), then walked south along the west edge of central park to the American Museum of Natural History (cue girlish sqeal).

Working on my New York modelling. #babesofnewyork

Getting this close to a live one is not recommended. (Alternate caption: A Tyson in its natural habitat)

The park was nice and the museum was huge. I could have spent days there if Erin would let me. We then walked down Broadway to Times Square. We briefly wandered into Macy’s, the worlds largest store (not fact checked), and it was terrifying. After Erin saw the line for the women washroom, we decided to exit Macy’s post haste. We then went to check out the Empire State Building, from the bottom and lobby only, since a ride to the top will set you back $32.

My face should tell you what I think of this store

Time Square at night

That evening, we grabbed some dinner from a street vendor, and headed off to see the Broadway show that Erin had bought tickets for that morning. The show was titled “Wicked” and based on the “Wizard of Oz”, mostly the relationship between Alphaba, the “wicked” witch of the north and Glinda the Good, witch of the west. It blew our minds. Highly recommended. We then walked the 50 ish blocks (yes) back to our hotel, stopping at a diner for a much needed late night meal.

Bilboard for “Wicked” in Times Square

On day three, we had bagels again and took the subway south to the Staten Island Ferry.  The ferry is free and provides an excellent view of the city skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Many tourists take the ferry to Staten Island, then turn around and get on the next ferry back to Manhattan. We wandered around Staten Island for a while before heading back to Lower Manhattan to see Wall Street.

Lady Liberty

It amazed me how tall and close together the buildings were. At the end of wall street was Trinity church, complete with its weathered grave stones. From there it was a short walk to the 9/11 memorial. We then walked back to Times Square and grabbed some food from a street vendor. Erin needed it. She was losing steam fast. Next, on a whim, we walked to the Rockefellar centre, which took us right past the Time and Life building where they filmed for “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, a personal favourite of mine. Rockefellar turned out to be quite a sight to see, complete with statues and a skating rink. We walked back to central park so I could search a candy shop for coconut M&Ms (no luck) and then to Best Buy for an external hard drive for all the pictures on our trip. From there it was a short subway ride back to our hotel, some more pizza while we got organized for our early morning departure.

View of the new One World Trade Centre from the base of the Twin Towers memorial

Like a kid in a candy store

Day four began at about five am when I rolled out of bed and laced on my shoes. Erin had mapped a 66 minute route to the airport via the subway and an express train. I failed to realize that the express train and the E train were two different trains, going to the same location at very different speeds. My foolishness added a half of an hour of travel via a very crowded subway. I’m talking New York Subway during morning rush hour crowded. We finally made it to the airport, but our problems weren’t entirely over yet. While checking in for our flight, we were informed that we needed proof that we intended to leave Ecuador before they would let us on the plane. Erin and I had not planned a return flight or a bus out, planning to travel on a more open ended trip. The Ecuadorian government, understandably, doesn’t care for this particular approach. Luckily, the airline bookings counter let us use their computer to book a bus ticket, talk about supporting the competition, and the lady at the airline check in let us use her personal phone to retrieve the confirmation from Erin’s email. We were finally on the plane and airborne, Ecuador bound… But thats another story for another week.

We walked passed Trump Tower, and I could. not. resist.

Mar 5th Cape Reinga Road Trip: Part 2 (Dunes, Trees, and Fuel Lights)

This, as I am sure you have guessed, is part two of a two part series. I recommend you go back and begin at the beginning and read part one. If thats just not your style, allow me to bring you up to speed. Erin and I had just rented a camper van from an agency in Auckland, New Zealand and driven it to Cape Reinga. We had just seen The Cape and started heading back to Auckland to see the sights along the way and eventually return the van. Now, let us resume.

We now began our scenic drive home. On the way to Cape Reinga we had seen signs for the sand dunes, after some quick research in the guide book, we decided we had better stop and see them on the way back. We pulled into a little parking lot at the edge of where the lush green trees met the golden brown sands. From a distance it reminded me of home, it looked like at the edge of a field where the green spruce stopped on a razors edge and was replaced with golden wheat. I grabbed my water bottle filled with the previously boiled water. It was now still kinda hot, like bad tea, ideally it would have been cold.

We jumped out of the van and wandered into the dunes. A few hundred yards from the parking lot, across the dunes, there was a small patch of trees.  Erin and I walked toward it, the whole time joking about it probably being a mirage. We made it to the oasis then wandered up the side of a tall dune and surveyed the area, the dunes went a lot farther than I would have expected, we were also very close to the ocean, so we decided to head that way. We climbed down the dune to a rather well traveled trail to the ocean. My water bottle kept falling out of the cargo pocket on my shorts so I decided to just leave it beside a unique rock and grab it on my way back. In hindsight that was a bad idea.

We walked toward the ocean on the sandy trail which eventually turned into a flowing stream about five inches deep and twelve feet wide. I like a nice wide shallow stream, its just so pleasant to walk in. Suddenly coming upstream towards us was a bus. A greyhound style bus, right through the stream, spraying water out each side. It was cool to see, and a little surprising. I was obviously a little confused. It stopped a few hundred feet in front of us and a bunch of people got off holding body boards, then it all made sense. It was a tour company doing sand boarding, it looked like a lot of fun. Erin and I watched for a bit and then continued our trek to the sea. We eventually made it, and went for a swim. Actually Erin swam, I’m kind of afraid of the ocean so I just waded in about waist deep.

Climbing The Dunes Is hard Work

Getting Down From The Dunes Is Quite Easy

We started heading back, the heat and salt water were starting to get to me and I was really wishing I hadn’t set down my water bottle. I eventually made it back to my water, which I had left in the sun for a few hours. I drank the nearly boiling water while we headed back to our van. Since then I have instituted a personal policy of never leaving equipment behind on a trail, either I bring it all the way or not at all.

After our sand dune excitement we headed to our campsite. It was basically a few grass parking spaces surrounded by trees, just off the main road. We had some dinner and went to bed.

The next day we had two things on the agenda, see the Kauri trees and return the van to the rental office in Auckland. We first went to Kauri Kingdom to learn about the trees and their history. The Kauri tree grows large enough that they were able to carve a spiral staircase inside of one, just to give you and idea. From there we went to a nearby Kauri forest, to see some live ones.

Giant Trees Have Always Fascinated Me

Last thing on the docket was to get the van back to the rental agency before 5pm. We pulled into Auckland at about 4:45 and I realized that I had no idea where the rental agency was. We were  very low on gas, my intention was to return the van with as little fuel as possible since we pre-purchased the last tank of gas. It was also rush hour. My heart was racing, and my knuckles were white. We didn’t have any form of GPS so Erin was searching through the map trying to figure out where we were and where the agency was. Then the low fuel light came on, I was stressed and about to have a stroke.  It was now 4:58 and I had admitted defeat and came to terms with us renting the van for another expensive day and needing to put fuel in it. It was now a search fro the nearest fuel station and a way to get out of the traffic. Suddenly Erin spotted a grocery store that she remembered was across the street from the rental agency. I made a quick right, and sure enough, there was the agency. I zipped into garage as an employee was starting to close the big overhead shop door. I pulled into the stall and yanked the parking brake as the clock on the dash rolled to 5:00. We were safe, although it was kind of a jerk move to come in that late when the employees are supposed to be done at 5. I apologized for cutting it so close and explained the situation to the rental agent. He thought it was kinda funny, though I’m sure by now he was tired of the usual “I’m not from here and I dont know my way around” excuse. We unloaded our gear, and out of the corner of my eye I spotted a lighter tucked away in a little cubby hole beside the stove… that was upsetting. Oh well, it was time for the next adventure.

Feb 26th Cape Reinga Road Trip: Part 1 (Too big for this rig)

Lately I’ve been day dreaming about a good road trip. There’s something enticing about jumping in a car with a friend or two and letting the scenery roll by at the pace you want it to. My last road trip was with Erin to her cousin’s wedding in the Okanagan. It was a great trip, and I wrote about it,  but I do believe one of my most memorable road trips was to Cape Reinga in New Zealand.

I landed in Auckland, New Zealand at about 10 am local time and Erin met me at the air port. We then went to the hostel and checked my luggage into their little storage closet. I was exhausted but we couldn’t check into our room until about 3 pm. Currently, I hadn’t slept for about 24 hours, which was also somehow 3 days ago thanks to the time zones that I still cant do the math on. Despite being exhausted, we decided to burn up the hours before my afternoon nap by going for a scenic walk around the city and checking out the museum, I highly recommend both of these things. Afterward I finally got to go to bed, and it was everything I hoped it would be. The next morning I woke up early, because sleeping patterns dont travel with you I find.

Once Erin and I had some breakfast we decided that the first thing we should do on our trip is go to Cape Reinga, the northern most tip of New Zealand. We weighed the pros and cons of taking a bus vs renting a vehicle and staying in hostels vs renting a camper van. It was a quick and easy decision. I really wanted to try driving on the left side of the road, because I’m a man child, also Erin and I both enjoy camping. Camper van it is! We called the rental agency and asked if we met the age and licence requirements to rent a camper van. They said we had to be 18… Check! The driver also had to have a standard drivers licence… kinda check, maybe.. Erin and I at the time both had what is known as a GDL (graduated drivers licence) which meant that we had completed the road test, the only difference between it and the full licence is that with a GDL there’s half the demerits allowed, you can’t teach someone to drive, and there’s zero alcohol tolerance. I wasn’t sure if it was acceptable, which meant I wasn’t sure they would let us rent a camper van. This left me in a weird way, I didn’t want to ask and point it out but I also didn’t want to break the rules. I thought about it a bit and realized that I was comfortable bending the rules a bit if it was for the sake of adventure.

The following morning we walked into the rental facility, picked out the sweet van we were going to rent and filled out the paperwork. The entire time I was sweaty and nervous, it probably looked mighty suspicious. Eventually they gave us the keys and sent us on our way. We had gotten the van for just a few days, and pre-purchased  the last tank of gas. Basically we didn’t have to refill it before we returned it, it ended up saving us money if we returned it with less than half a tank of gas… supposedly. I carefully climbed into the ultra compact van, first I sat sideways on the seat then spun around and carefully wedged my left leg under the steering wheel and against the dash, then rammed my right knee into the corner of the door and the dash. Over the next few days I would learn to do this at a much faster rate. This van clearly wasn’t built for a man of my height and throughout the entire trip I had this fear of getting in a slight fender bender and breaking both my legs. Luckily that never happened. After my contortionist routine, we pulled out of the garage went a block east and then headed north on the freeway.

Its A Little Less Roomy Than It Looks

Let me just make a side note here and talk about driving on the opposite side of the road you are used to. Most vehicles in New Zealand have a manual transmission, which is fine, I actually prefer a manual. The part that fouled me up was that I was shifting with my left hand, it just felt unnatural. They also have the wiper switch and the signal switch on opposite sides that I’m used to, every time I pulled up to an intersection I turned the windshield wipers on. You’d think that eventually it would stop startling me, but you’d be wrong. Driving on the opposite side isn’t too bad because all of the traffic is doing it so it feels a little less weird. The real problem I had was in parking lots when passing oncoming traffic my instinct is to pass on the right hand side, naturally I got some funny looks until they saw the side of the van displaying the fact that I was a tourist. Also coming out of lots onto the road, I tended to hug the right side of the entrance/exit which again led to strange looks. Lucky for me New Zealanders tend to be a friendly people with a sense of humor.

Shortly after escaping the city we crossed a bridge with a beautiful river underneath it. I decided I wanted to get a few pictures so I pulled the van over onto the shoulder and climbed out. Erin and I each grabbed some nice photos and jumped back into the van. I went to take off and the tires just spun on the wet grass I had parked on. Immediately I started to worry and wonder how the hell I was going to explain to the rental company that I got their van stuck. Luckily, as I am a pretty typical Canadian, I know a thing or two about driving on slick surfaces. I put the van into reverse and was able to get enough traction to back up a few inches. I then was able to get a bit of forward momentum to get me a few more inches forward. I eventually rocked the van back and forth and eventually off of the slippery grass. My blood pressure dropped dramatically once all the wheels were back on pavement. Erin of course thought it was all kinda funny, she doesn’t seem to worry quite as easily as I do.

Late that day we made it to Cape Reinga. We had done the drive from Auckland to the cape in one day. Normally its only a five and half hour drive, but I might have gotten lost a few times. Luckily I’m the one telling the story so I can leave stuff like that out.

I parked the van in what was maybe a camping spot, either way it was relatively level and under a nice tree so it worked for me. We then ran down to the beach just in time to see the sunset.

A Lovely New Zealand Sunset

Once it was dark out we headed back to the camper and had some ham sandwiches. We then went and got some water. There was a lovely sign hanging saying something along the lines of  “boil water before consuming”. We headed back to the camper and pulled out the little stove and pot that came with it to prepare our drinking water. For the life of me I could not find anything to light that stove with. We tore the van apart looking for matches or a lighter. Erin and I were debating what the risks were of drinking the water as is vs not having any water when two guys walked passed our camper. I walked up and started a conversation, in my usual friendly way. Turns out they were also Canadian and more important to the story, they had a lighter they were willing to lend us. We boiled a bunch of water and put it in my, then new, stainless steel water bottle and left it to cool.

The next morning we actually got to see Cape Reinga. The main attraction was a beautiful lighthouse that overlooked where the Tasman sea and the Pacific ocean mixed. It was very scenic, but also very windy.

View From The Lighthouse

The Ocean and The Sea Mixing

We then hopped back into the little van for the trip home. It ended up being far more noteworthy than the ride there, which was mainly used to determine where we wanted to stop on the way back. But this story’s getting a little long, I’ll tell you the rest next week.