Straddling the World

Ah, now I have some stuff to talk about.

Yesterday I took a tour, wasn´t worth it though because my guide spoke little english and I actually helped her with a few words. I did better reading the plaques (in spanish) when I walked the route through old town after the tour was over.

But I guess the biggest news is that my body reads like a checklist for altitude sickness. The headaches started yesterday morning, the dizziness kicked in and so on and on. I wasn´t sure so I opened my Lonely Planet and there were each of my symptoms in order that I noticed them. The only good news on that front is that I have managed to avoid vomiting (which is surprising after seeing the painting of Satan in a church vomiting over the denezins of hell). I slept it off part of the afternoon which was fine because it was pouring... which it is doing again now. Its about a 2-3 hour storm everyday at 3p.

I´ve learned that a menu is merely a suggestion. Last night they couldn´t serve 90% of the menu at a ¨nice¨ restaurant and this morning they couldnt make banana pancakes even though it was listed. Oh well, my stomach probably couldn´t have handled it anyway.

I just pulled back into town after several hours on a bus to the Mitad del Mundo... the center of the world. Yep, we were doing ¨the dozens, and someone said, you so fat, your butt cheeks are called northern and southern hemisphere¨ and it was true. I have a picture with a cheek in each hemisphere. Next door to the monument, is the REAL hemisphere and they show some experiments that are pretty cool. Like right over the equator, if you flushed, it just goes straight down, no swirl, but a few feet to either side and you have opposite swirls. Several college frat guys were getting frustrated straddling the equator and just couldn´t give their nerdy Quiteno guide a swirly.

On the way back, I was sitting next to an older woman on the bus and I couldn´t figure out if she smelled, I smelled, if it was the window or all of the above. I´m going with all of the above because I could choke a dog after he rolled in something dead with my stench.

And buses are an adventure, not like the Central American chicken buses but because there are no maps with stops etc. You wing it. I knew a stop on either extreme end and Thank God, I´m not too far from my place.

You would think the road where my hostel is would be quiet as it is out of the way, but I heard people and / or cars all night long... and I mean ALL night... I know because insomnia is a symptom of altitude sickness.

I leave for the galapagos tomorrow. I already met someone who is staying in Puerto Ayora where I´m staying. She is british and she is meeting up with her boyfriend and they are diving. I´m pretty sure I will bump into them again and maybe have someone to go to dinner with.

You all almost lost me yesterday (once the disappointment fades, i´ll continue) I was walking up the back stairs in the hostel to the rooftop to take night photos and made a wrong turn. A dog with black eyes nearly took my head off. He looked like a boxer and if he was, he was a Mike Tyson, and may have bitten my ear clean off.

I think I´m going to take a shower now.

Hasta la vista

Dave