June 5th, 2011 - 11:36am
Fast Fact! - So, I’ve learned I’ve been saying Quito all wrong. The Qui makes the sound of the word Key. So it’s actually said like Keyto.
Last time I wrote, I was flying over Florida and Key West. Not long after, about when we were flying over Cuba, we had dinner on the plane. The food on the plane was actually not as terrible as most plane food. We had the choice of Chicken or Pasta. I chose the Pasta, which was a type of Mediterranean Tortellini with a basil and garlic-butter sauce. It was pretty good. It came with Salad, a Roll (that was as hard as a rock), Cheese and Crackers, and a Chocolate Chip Blondie (that was too sweet for me to eat). Overall, it was good enough, to keep me over till I got here.
My flight mates were pretty nice. I sat in the same row as two of my fellow young travelers who I mentioned last post. I learned that the girl I mentioned doing a language internship was named Jennifer and that her mother is from Mexico and her father is from Japan. I also learned that she was coming all the way from Tucson, Arizona and that her first language was Spanish. She is also on her first solo trip by herself.
I sat next to mid-thirties divorce’ who was flying the whole way to Quito to meet someone he had been speaking to on the phone for 5 months. I guess the city of Quito brings people of all purposes.
The flight landed at about 10pm and it took about an hour to get through Migration and Customs. My bag was found within minutes of getting to baggage claim, much to my relief. AND none of my straps got chewed up on the machine.
It seems the Quito airport is pretty organized as far as taxi service. As soon as my bag got through customs, I went straight to Ground Transportation and within about 3 seconds, a nice Ecuadorian man asked me, “Taxi” and I said, “Si”. He then said, “Un momento.” and pointed to the open window where I could show my hotel reservations and they would call my hotel to tell them I’d arrived and was on the way. For a cool $10, I got an entire passenger van to myself. Just my rucksack, backpack, and I.
Now, the drive to the hotel was a completely different story. Ecuadorians drive like crazy people. I swore my van driver almost hit about 13 taxis and almost ran over 3 pedestrians. Quito is definitely Ecuador’s NYC.
I felt much safer once I got to my hotel and the hotel staff has been very helpful in both speaking as much English as possible and helping me use the phone to call the US. Getting to my room, I was excited to order some food, get a shower, and get to bed.
I ordered Lasana de Carne from room service and it was pretty delicious. The Carne was spicy and the Queso was very fresh. It was great. It came with a side salad which included julienned peppers and a small amount of lettuce and cheese. Delicious.
After that I had a shower in my gargantuan bathroom and then I had a wonderful nights rest in a very comfy bed with breakfast delivered this morning at 10:45am. I had a small stack of pancakes (with syrup that was far too thick and sweet for me) and a fruit plate with papaya, pineapple, melon, and watermelon. Again, quite good.
I then spent a moment on my balcony, looking out at Quito. I was suprised by how cool the weather is here. There is so much wind here that whips over the mountains. It's quite beautifuul and honestly, it reminds me very much of home in Shippensburg. <3
I better be careful! This is starting to feel like vacation! I have to remember I’m here on a mission. Haha.
Love and Andean Bears,
Ashley
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