Ecuador, did you know the Amazon encompassed this country as well? I had no idea, as a matter of fact, I knew nothing about Ecuador, excepted the name of its capital, Quito. And of course I had deduced that the actual equator line dividing the world in 2 hemispheres must be somewhere in this country. I knew this since grammar school, and I pride myself to know most of the world’s capital cities since, but I may be wrong.  Well, the Amazon is big, and wet, they don’t call them rainforest for the sun… Here I am again, taking refuge from the diluvian rains. I thought myself lucky to have avoided the wet stuff for over a month and a half, it didn’t rain on me in Mexico, Guatemala but a few drops, El Salvador, Honduras Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama. I first was drenched on the beautiful Columbian roads going through the Andes. Being the eternal optimist, I had put my rain gear/riding gear away and was just enjoying jeans and T-shirt attire but then I crossed into Ecuador. 

I’m not sure if this is the rainy season or what, but damn! It did rain on me quite a bit on my second day in this big country. At one point I had to seek refuge under an overhang roof as it was impossible to ride, couldn’t see a damn thing, the raindrops were so thick! When I finally stopped for the night in this undescriptive little town of Nuevo Loja, I was dripping like a sundae on a hot Sunday. The next day, again, the rain gods were furious and to top it all, I wasted this entire day of riding in the rain when my carefully planned itinerary crashed and burned all of the sudden! The main road to Quito, this major highway,  was totally destroyed and cut off to any vehicle, for at least a few months. Yes, an entire bridge fell off into a deep canyon and another tributary road nearby was totally washed out, plunging into the abyss, gone, its remnants hundreds of meters high above a furious river… Holy cow I explained to the amusement of the dispatched road workers explaining this happened last week! Nobody told me I protested, they laughed… Fortunately a nearby and charming hotel provided warmth and solace to my wet soul.  The next morning, I realized that I had to make my way back, going all the way to the previous halt, famous Nueva Loja, the starting point of a road going south, eventually leading to Peru.. I unfortunately had to bypass Quito to the west, I had no choice… Just after saddling America with all the bags, boom! Another storm came by! This time I was prepared though, I had put back on my riding gear. There are waterproof liners under the thick, coarse and bulky pants and jacket set. I felt like a dry Michelin guy. 

Here we go, but the roads are so slick, like mini rivers, inches of water above the asphalt, great aqua planning. I promised myself to be a careful driver for a change, didn’t want to take any chances and slip and fall, that would be bad, don’t need that. A hangar provided shelter only a few miles from the hotel in a little pueblo. The painted lines on the cement indicated that this hangar served as a basketball and soccer courts and because of the few pews aligned under the corrugated metal I deducted it also functions as an open church, too bad it wasn’t Sunday Sherlock. America and I had been waiting for the rain to stop for about an hour when just miraculously, church location, as soon as it started, it just stopped… I took advantage of this clearing, reached the wanted crossroad at lunch time, another change of gloves and a little rest from the heavenly waters, and I made another hundred miles towards the south of 
Ecuador. Was it a wasted day? Well it definitely altered the itinerary, more jungle topography, a different border crossing to study. But I like to think that it will be for the best, maybe I avoided a horrific accident, or a lightning strike, yeah, that’s the spirit! I’m so lucky that bridge collapsed. I’ll meet new and more interesting people that way. Gratefully I didn’t have to seek refuge again that day.

The problem with the rainforest is that it goes on forever, you never know where the next town is going to be, unless of course you stop and question your phone map, but who’s got time for that? Sure there are some hamlets here and there, poorly constructed wooden houses, huts on the side of the small 2 lane road selling some kind of red fruits, but not big enough to offer lodging choices. I drove into the night, scary forest, so dark… And yes, a city appeared, I had pushed all the way, almost 300 kilometers in the righteous southern direction. Chance directed me to this cool hotel, the owner, a genial chain smoking and uber friendly octogenarian offered me to use his dryer. True, I was a mess, dripping wet in his lobby! Jacket, pants, undergarments, socks, 4 pairs of gloves, all the clothes from yesterday were washed and dried at no cost, you gotta love these Ecuadorians! A fun and nourishing 3 dollars meal, right on the sidewalk, with musical entertainment provided by an electric and eclectic street musician, completed this unforgettable day. I’m not complaining too much about the rain, am I? After all, I figured this was bound to happen during The Trip, I knew this when I signed up for this, so I’ll just shut up about it from now on. But to my defense, this San Diego boy doesn’t ride in the rain very often, if ever, at home…

We’ve arrived at today, caught up with the diary! Jungle, green green green, incredibly lush vegetation, high mountains on both sides, raging torrents under narrow bridges, poor curvy and steep roads, potholes galore, ideal conditions then! Found a cute restaurant on the side of the road to take shelter and rest a bit from the crying clouds, and damn! Was that fortuitous or what? Every little place serving me food everywhere in Central and South America offer wifi! It’s amazing, take note America! I’m running a business still, believe it or not, I’m working here! An urgent work email required my immediate attention and I ended up negotiating like crazy between suppliers in Vegas and clients in Chile, for a whole goddam afternoon! Well, this is the last working day before the weekend when my group arrives in the US, had to do it today. Don’t you hate it when you need to eventually make money? I thought I was out, but they pulled me back in, I said that before no? It’s okay, same feeling! Because of my career choice and obligations, I only was able to make 125 kilometers today, Arghh! I’m still 770 km away from crossing into Peru…

I’m slowly starting to envision the eventual end of The Trip. I’m missing my lovely wife more and more each day, we talk daily but where is the human touch? I’m missing my cute doggie, I crave home cooked good meals… Writing do me some good, as I am living from hotel room to hotel room. I’m sharing in words and feelings what I see, as an aging adventurer still eager to experience more of this world, but this is a solo endeavor. Maybe the last time I’m let free to wander, the lovely wife warned me… As I am rushing by myself to the end of the world, well Brazil for now, I’m already fantasizing about future trips we’ll take together…

Today, a couple seated behind me at the restaurant where I stopped was spying on me. The guy is American and was listening in on my conversation with my Vegas transportation guy, he introduces himself, happy to speak english again, true, nobody speaks any english anywhere. His female companion is Ecuadorian, his girlfriend, wife, who knows, who cares? Anyway, small talk ensues and somehow Tibet comes into the conversation. Yes, that’s on the bucket list, he recommends it, he’s been there. Chuck, not his real name, but close, told me he sold his house and he’s traveling the world for a year, must have been a small house. I retorted that the lovely wife wants to go to Bhutan, so Tibet and Bhutan could be of the same voyage maybe… Well let’s go for it then! I like to have travel plans for the future, not necessarily the immediate future, but I want to reassure myself that I’ll still be moving again. When this journey will be over, there will be another one and another etc… I’ve been planning routes and destinations all my life, I guess I’m an addict. 

I don’t think I’ll continue to write about my future travels though, but if I do do pursue writing, it will be about past adventures and recollections of a crazy well lived life. It won’t be necessarily all true, I may take creative liberty on some events, and definitely will protect identities, embellish some stuff and omit some sins. But this chronically retelling of a real life story, these happenings of a road trip viewed on a third person style, sorta gives me some sort of a purpose. I’ve become a story teller and I know I can share some stories. Well, as I always say with a twinkle, we’ll see…