Greetings from Quito
Quito, Ecuador

It hasn't taken long for us to fill up our itinerary for the next two weeks in Ecuador. There is a plethora of activities to do and sights to visit; we're just going to have to be satisfied with a small sample of them.

I must admit, we've been in cruise control a bit for the past couple of weeks, with little to challenge us in terms of culture difference, as you'd expect in Australia and New Zealand. And the wonderful week in Fiji was all pretty much planned by Evelyn; we just had to tag along and... well, tan, I guess.

But not knowing much more than a few basic words of Spanish has definitely got us scrambling a few times here, to the amusement of patient but entertained locals. They're probably laughing at these two Asian Gringos with their awful Spanish pronounciation! It has only been two days, and we already have the distinct impression that we are in a very different country, which has stimulated our travel excitement once again.

So with this latest travel buzz, we have just booked ourselves on a number of day trips, including the must-do visits to the Otavalo and Saquisilí markets, city tour, Cotopaxi (highest active volcano in the world), and most excitingly, the Galapagos Islands, which we had already pre-booked with GAP tours. Our friends Scott and Rochelle are joining us next week just before we leave for the Galapagos; they'll be continuing with us down to Peru and Macchu Pichu.

Thanks to Anne Prestamo for all your Ecuador recommendations (the ceviche de camaronnes is amazing), and to Eileen and Bob for putting us in contact with Ossy and Amber; I hope we can meet up!

We're looking forward to a couple of neat things, like shooting boobies (that's photographing Galapagos' endemic birds you dirty-minded people), and MAYBE trying cuy or tronquito (roasted guinea pig or bull penis soup). One thing I'd like to avoid while diving/snorkelling though, is the tiny candiru catfish - a little charmer who swims up the human urethra and lodges itself in place with the help of its sharp spines. Pleasant, eh?

The adventures continue, see you in a few days!

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Getting Down to Lima
Lima, Lima

We ended up with an extra day in California as our flight to Sao Paulo was cancelled that Sunday. It was the first flight snafu for us, but certainly one we did not mind. With the extra time, we were able to join in Betsy's family's mothers day brunch, and enjoyed the evening with my uncle, aunt and cousin in Huntington Beach.

Flying to Lima via Sao Paulo is probably one of the most indirect way of travelling. Not only did we go two time zones to the east, we also went further south. Unfortunately for us, our flight to Lima out of Sao Paulo was also delayed due to 'weather', so all in all, we were 'in transit' for about 24 hours.

We took a shuttle into the Miroflores area, where we were dropped off at the Marriott. We were able to use some of Winston's Marriott Rewards Points to enjoy two nights here. Though we are right by the waterfront, we've only actually seen the view for a few hours today as the entire city was covered in fog since we've arrived.

The drive from the airport to the hotel was interesting. We drove through the old city first before heading for Miroflores, the more affluent residential area. There are some beautiful colonial buildings here, though most of the structures are covered with dark stains, probably due to pollution. There are many small shops and restaurants tucked within the buildings. Most of the vehicles on the road are for public transportation; large buses, minibus, auto rickshaws (three wheelers like the ones we saw in India), taxis of different sizes and colours. Apparently Winston read somewhere that it is easy to buy the plastic taxi sign, and attach it to any privately owned car, and voila, you're now a taxi driver.

I will have to admit that we haven't really made any effort to the city yet. We will be back here in mid June, so we will be exploring more of the city, and country then. Tomorrow morning, we are off to Quito, where we will have a week travelling around Ecuador, before meeting up with Scott and Rochelle, our friends from Seattle.

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Last Major Transition
Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean

Well, this blog entry is being written in the air, somewhere over the Pacific Ocean between Fiji and Los Angeles. After we land, we’re spending a night in San Diego before returning to LAX for our 20 hour flight to Lima, Peru. We kind of have to go a bit out of the way, transiting through Sao Paulo in Brazil, since the Star Alliance doesn’t have any direct flights to Lima. It’s a bit of a shame, seeing as Fiji is already in the Southern Hemisphere, and a hop from there to Lima would be really convenient, but I guess it doesn’t really work that way.

Technically speaking, once we reach L.A., we will have circumnavigated the globe. My friend Stacy jokingly asked me if we would want to turn left instead of going right when we get to L.A.; i.e. head home to Seattle or down to South America for the last seven weeks of our One Year, One World trip. While I think it’s now fair to say that we’re looking forward to being home, we’re still pretty keen on visiting Peru, Ecuador, and possibly Bolivia. The Galapagos Islands beckon, and the call of Macchu Piccu is alluring.

This is the last major transition on our trip though, in a year full of transitions. Curiously, the keen anticipation that we felt on our very first flight almost 43 weeks ago has now been tempered by the easy familiarity of a well-practiced travel routine. Every transition has caused a bit of re-adjustment, every border crossing has required a bit of a brain shift. However, that change has become familiar to us now, and we face the currency changes, the language differences, and the cultural adjustments with a comfortable confidence.

Without a doubt, we will be facing some challenges when we get home adjusting to the regimen of a routine work week, where there aren’t new adventures to face each and every day. Hopefully that adjustment will be alleviated by the knowledge that we have had an incredible opportunity to experience the world outside our normal boundaries, and have led enriched lives as a result of it. There hasn’t been a day that has passed in the last ten months that we haven’t been grateful for this opportunity.

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We are in San Diego now, taking advantage of Stacy's fast internet connection (I really do miss fast connections)! After landing in LA, we passed through customs with surprising ease, and took a rental car down to San Diego. We had a great evening catching up with Stacy, Betsy, Tim and Rosie, chatting up a storm over burgers and beer. It's rather surreal to be back here again, having transitioned here almost seven months ago between Turkey and India.

Oddly enough, it seems that I've become a left-hand driver while driving through Oceania; I made signal changes with the windshield wiper several times on the way in. And boy, there are a LOT of cars around L.A.; we haven't seen that many people in one area for a while!

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Taking Five with Family in Fiji
Nadi, Fiji

We spent the last week in Fiji doing the things most tourists do when they come to this island archipelago: sightseeing, island-hopping, and relaxing. We have been here with family: Evelyn, Ken, and Karen, who flew in from Seattle and Vancouver to join us. It has been great fun catching up with then, sharing stories, and spending time with some family again.

We haven’t really made much effort to get too far off the beaten track to see beyond the typical tourist vantage point. There apparently exists a rich Fijian cultural heritage that we haven’t really seen, and there is also apparently an interesting, if not uneasy, dynamic that exists between indigenous Fijian and Indo-Fijian populations; we haven’t made much effort to further explore that either. We have had little if any exposure to the results of the May 2000 political coups that came as a result of land rights differences.

Once again, the great economic disparity that exists between tourists like us and those who work in the hospitality industry implants in me a twinge of guilt; we spend in one meal what some people will earn in a week. There are those who wait on us, clean our rooms, and drive us around; they are all friendly and polite and cater to our every wish, but at the end of the day, I can’t help but think they must go home and wonder why they were born on the other side of the figurative railway tracks. In the end though, the futility of being unable to change the situation is discouraging, and the guilt and global indignation I feel is once again only fleeting.

I suppose that having a temporary social consciousness is perhaps better than not having any appreciation of our collective humanity at all. And of course, who am I to think that I have a right to comment on anything that we’ve observed in just an ephemeral moment, a passing visit? Perhaps it’s best to leave the social outrage to professional observers or local writers. I suppose the least we can do while we travel to less developed countries is simply extend to others our courtesy and thanks, and know that while the majority of our tourist dollars goes to some wealthy owner, some of it actually provides people with a means to put bread on their table and a roof over their heads.

One thing that we have experienced about Fijians that is quite unique among people we have visited in other countries is the sincere friendliness with which we have been treated. Not only did hospitality staff greet us with a friendly “Bula!” but complete strangers did as well. We rented a car for two days and drove around the main island of Viti Levu; up along Kings Road where we managed to get off the main tourist track for a little bit, we passed through several quite villages and coastal townships… people were waving to us with a smile practically all the time, it was quite incredible actually. There was no sense of ulterior motive or wanting something at all. There are certainly friendly people in many of the other places we have visited, but we have never before felt as universally welcome as we have here in Fiji.

We made our base at the WorldMark resort on Denarau Island, close to Nadi. We met up with Karen who flew in before us, and were later joined by Evelyn and Ken, who flew in the following morning. After a quick reunion though, we set off for a day trip to Tivua Island, on which there wasn’t much to do other than relax on the beach, read, and take an occasional dip in the clear azure waters. Couldn’t complain. In the so-called sailing schooner we took to the island (the sails were pretty much just for show), Karen entertained a bunch of Scottish guys from the Royal Air Force, and the rest of us chatted about home, our cat, and shrimp.

The next day, we took a rental car and set off on Queens Road towards Suva. On the way, we took a few detours to visit the Momi Guns, a WWII battery that was never fired in anger, and Natadola Beach, a nice stretch of light sand curving along a shore lined by palm trees. We stayed at a little eco-hotel near Suva, and fought off mosquitoes while listening to the insects of the Fijian forest.

We didn’t spend too much time in Suva, but did take a walk around town, through the market, and along the sea shore. We took a wander through some souvenir stalls and handicraft shops, but didn’t pick up anything there, not being in the mood to purchase more wood carvings. After picking up a few more pastries at our bakery of choice, the Hot Bread Kitchen, we hopped in the car again, and set off for the Kings Road, the route that goes over the north side of the island.

Just driving along Kings Road was interesting, as a large part of it was unsealed (unmettaled, unpaved, or unsurfaced, as called in other countries). The destruction done by heavy rains from the previous wet season was evident in many places along the bumpy road; apparently a strong cyclone had damaged much of Fiji’s farmlands just a few weeks before we visited. We made slow progress, passing quiet villages and friendly villagers along the way. Eventually, we made our way back to Nadi, where we arrived just in time to catch the setting sun.

Our highlight of the week was to come next, a two-day trip to Tavewa Island, in the Yasawa Island chain. To get there, we skipped the five hour boat ride, and opted for the smooth seaplane ride inside. It was the first time in a seaplane for almost everyone, and we all enjoyed the scenic views afforded by the 1000 foot vantage point.

Upon reaching the island, we checked into some diving and snorkeling options. While Jen, Ev, Ken, and Karen went snorkeling, I did a single tank dive just off Tavewa Island. The coral was relatively colourful, and there was quite a variety of wildlife, but I still maintain that diving at Sipadan Island spoiled diving at other locations for a while! One highlight on this dive though, was watching the divemaster dubiously extract a large octopus from its lair, then watching the octopus furiously wrap itself around his head amid a huge ink cloud. Mayhem ensued, with the octopus eventually squirting away into another crack in the coral, leaving a dark trail of ink in its wake.

We lazed away the hours on the island beachcombing, reading, and chilling out in the hammock. The accommodations there, at a family-run place called Otto and Fanny’s, were very simple but comfortable, in quaint traditional bures, made of thatch and palm leaves. We scored with the roomy family bure, which fit five of us comfortably; there were quite a few mosquitoes there though, and we all received our fair share of bites when we weren’t in the mosquito nets.

I woke up early to catch sunrise light the sky in a brilliant pink, but as usual, I was enjoying the light show on my own as everyone else snoozed. Later that morning, we hired a boat to take us to the famous Blue Lagoon, where we had fun feeding bread to the fish in very clear waters. The day passed pleasantly enough, with the warm South Pacific breeze blowing over us as we read some more and got a bit more colour. Our seaplane arrived right on time to bring us back to Nadi, where we ate in for a change, then chatted the night away.

We finished up our time in Fiji with a lazy day by the pool. Worldmark arranged an entertaining frog race, we played some ping pong, and we all started packing our bags for the long flight to L.A. From there, Ken and Evelyn would return to Seattle, Karen would fly to Vancouver, and Jen and I would pop down to San Diego for a one-night visit with Stacy, Betsy, Tim, and Rosie, before we set off on the long journey to South America.

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