I awoke after the thunder and lightning storm to a completely soaked camp. The rain had just let up right as we were waking up. We ate a basic breakfast of sliced fruit and moldy bread. We gathered up the few belongings we had at the village and we ready to go. On our way out, we had one of the villagers show off his pet boa constrictor. I was a little uneasy that when he went to go retrieve it, he didn’t walk very far. I probably wouldn’t have slept so well knowing a boa constrictor was so close to my cot.
We walked out of camp and hiked back to the bus. Walking over the large bridge was easier this time. I made it once, I can make it again, right? We made it over the bridge and the bus was awaiting. We boarded the bus, and were supposed to go straight to Quito, as our bags were in the bus. Our guide Norby informed us that we needed to go back to beautiful Tena to retrieve his bag. Que? Did he miss this memo as well? Alas, it was one more chance to go back to Tena, jewel of the Amazon. I thought this was a good opportunity to find a good souvenir shop to find a shirt, “Happiness is Tena.” No such luck unfortunately. By the way, we decided that our guide Norby and our slick driver Jose were actually running drugs to Quito via a tour bus filled with Americans, thus the ‘pick up’ of bags at the hotel in Tena. There’s always an angle.
The day was bright and sunny, quite a contrast from our trip in. As we left, we were treated with magnificent views of the surrounding peaks and the seemingly infinite jungle. We were a bit under a time constraint, as we needed to be near Quito at a flower producer’s facility by 12:30. Our bus driver didn’t get this memo as well. He took his sweet time, stopped to get gas as soon as we left Tena (why he didn’t fill up in the morning before he picked us up I have no idea). He did try to make up some time by passing even slower vehicles (there were a few) on blind corners. At one point, we turned a blind corner and some large flatbed truck was making a U-turn in the middle of the road. Jose slammed on his brakes and we nearly t-boned the guy.
Another interesting aspect of our trip was the condition of the bus. Once we got to the Andes and started climbing, a smoky smell started to seep throughout the bus. Upon further inspection, our transmission appeared to be smoking. When asked, Jose the driver said that it was normal in these higher conditions. Yeah, right. We were finally getting acclimated to the crazy driving and the lack of attention to his vehicle when suddenly the bus pulled to a stop in the middle of the road. What are we doing? Jose said he needed to check the tire pressure with a smile. Great, he’s taking care of his rig. I watched Jose go back behind the bus and relieve a little pressure of his own near a tree. Nice. His tip is getting diminished rather quickly.
Running very late, we finally arrived at a gas station near Quito to meet our next hosts. We were only two hours late, yet they still were very glad to see us (or were very good actors). We followed them towards their greenhouse facility, where they realized that our large bus would not make the very rough road. The people were driving a small compact four-door Chevy truck, with five occupants already in it. We parked our bus and started to shuttle our group up to the greenhouses. We were able to fit nine people in the first load, and with five in the cab- a grand total of 14 people in that truck. I commented that our program director who is typically overly concerned with our safety would crap a brick if he saw us. I couldn’t reach my camera let alone snap a photo of the situation. We safely (barely) arrived without the tailgate flopping open to the greenhouses. We were greeted and shown around the facilities.
We soon were walking in a sea of roses of every color imaginable. There were approximately 35 acres under glass in predominantly in rose production. The main markets were the United States and Russia. We walked into the packing facility and saw how they sorted and boxed the flowers.
The class was in and out quickly. We sauntered down the road to the bus and made it back in to Quito during rush hour traffic. Slow as molasses down the main roads into town we finally reached our end destination- the lovely Hotel Quito. Civilization at last! We quickly made our way inside, checked in and hit the showers to wash off the jungle grime.
A select group of adventurous types met up for a highly recommended place in downtown Quito- ZaZu. The cuisine was amazing and affordable. We enjoyed some South American wine (recommended by none other than the Peterangelo Vallis). After some varied appetizers of ceviche, fried calamari and oxtail ravioli, we were set for the main course. I opted for the salmon- which turned out to be a wise choice. After dinner an even smaller group of us took the taxi back to the hotel. Across the street was a nightclub called Flashback- an 80’s retro place with some very loud 80’s music. When we arrived, the dance floor was empty. Cara from Morro Bay was the first to get out and shake her tail. After her lead, the dance floor was soon throbbing with people dancing to Billy Idol and Michael Jackson. We ended the night and ventured back across the street- we had a long day the next day in Otovalo and needed all the rest we could get.
Buenos Noches Quito!
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