Ecuador 11/16/2019 - 12/1/2019

Saturday, November 16, 2019 - Arrival and Detour

It has been 10 months since we last visited our compadres in Ecuador. We planned a two week trip encompassing the Thanksgiving holiday so that we could spend some quality time with them.

We woke up at 4 a.m. We had an early morning flight. Though it is difficult for Craig to wake up this early with his multiple sclerosis, we thought it would be worth it in the end because we would arrive in Ecuador by 5:30 p.m. That would mean that unlike other visits, the family wouldn't have to pick us up at the airport late at night, arriving back at the house in the wee hours.

The Logan Way car service picked us up at 5:40 a.m. and drove us to the airport. The TSA Pre-check security line was quite slow.

We were taking Copa Airlines to Panama City and then on to Quito. We had booked business class tickets. On the plane, we were fed breakfast: fruit, coffee, omelette and turkey bacon, and guayaba pineapple juice.

As we approached Panama City, we could see dozens of ships waiting to pass through the Panama Canal. Craig counted at least 68. It was fascinating.

When we landed, Craig didn't need a wheelchair to get to our connection because the gate was literally across the hall. We didn't have to go through security again, so we walked across the hall to the gate and waited for our connection. We were happy not to have to rush around the airport; instead we were able to relax.

On the flight to Quito we were seated in the same seats as the previous flight, but these seats had foot rests. We took off an hour late due to bad weather and the subsequent airport backup. We were served Bailey's Irish Cream as an apertif. For lunch, I had tapas and Craig had a Panamanian tamale. We had guayaba pineapple juice to drink.

We landed in Quito at 6 p.m. (30 minutes late due to the weather delay). There was no line at immigration, and our bags were some of the first off the plane.

Rosa, Antonio, and the 3 kids (Sisa, Yupanqui, and Shina) met us at the airport with flowers. It was hard to believe how much taller all of the kids were since we were last here 10 months ago. They introduced us to a young man and woman who would be our drivers to the house in Morochos. As we walked to the van, the sun was setting and the sky was a beautiful shade of pink.

We were tired after our long day of travel, but the prospect of arriving at the house at around 8:30 p.m. and being able to get a good night's sleep was satisfying.

As we pulled out of the airport parking lot, we were unable to pull onto the Pan American Highway. It was closed due to a procession. We have been in Latin America when roads are closed for religious processions, but these are usually small city roads. We were quite surprised that the highway was closed.

There was much chatter in Kichwa and Spanish between the drivers and Antonio about how to proceed. We had to backtrack into Quito proper (the opposite direction) and pick up a side road to Otavalo. After following that road for a while, there were police telling us that it was also closed...until 6 a.m.!

So this procession was expected to last all night long. We could either find a place to park for the next 11 hours until the road re-opened, or we could find another route. Nobody felt like resting in the crowded van until dawn, but neither did they know of an alternate route that could take us to Otavalo.

After consulting some locals, we embarked upon a bumpy, sometimes washed out dirt road which meandered through the Andes, climbing higher and higher and higher in altitude. We were pummeled by the washboard surface of the road. Craig and I were both in fear that either a) this rural road would not actually take us toward Otavalo or b) that the road might be closed somewhere ahead of us and we would have to backtrack all the way to Quito.

We were both exhausted to the point of delirium, and the whole situation seemed absurd. Hours were clicking by, and we were not any noticeably closer to the family homestead than we had been when we landed at the airport. I tried to doze off, but the roughness of the road made it pretty much impossible.

We finally were overcome with relief when we saw a small, beat up, old sign indicating that the road would eventually take us to Otavalo. We were headed in the right direction! And hopefully we were far enough away from the procession by now that we wouldn't be detoured further.

We continued on the uneven road, fearing that we might get stuck at any moment. Evry once in a while we would fall into a rut or a washed out rocky section of road, and our tires would spin a bit. A car passed in the opposite direction very infrequently, so if we did get stuck, it was unlikely that anyone would be able to help us until morning. The possibility of spending the night in the van was seeming more and more inevitable.

It had seemed like a very long time since we saw that Otavalo sign. Were we still going the right way? How much further could it possibly be? I really needed sleep.

We eventually popped out on a paved road at the cement plant, a familiar landmark indicating we were less than 30 minutes from home! We had never been as happy to see this eyesore!

Craig and I were absolutely exhausted. The 2 hour ride ended up taking 7 hours...we arrived at the house at 1:15 a.m. We said goodnight to the family and went straight to our casita. We spent as little time as possible unpacking what we would need for the night, and then went straight to bed.

We would later research the cause of the road closure. The pilgrimage which shut down the highway and other roads from 6 p.m. until 6 a.m. has taken place for 417 years. The pilgrimage is in honor of the Virgin of El Quinche. Pilgrims take a variety of routes on foot, starting from various towns in the greater Quito area. Procession routes vary in length, from around 30 to 40 kilometers or more. El Quinche was visited by Pope Francis when he traveled through Ecuador in 2015.

They were expecting a million people to participate in the pilgrimage this year, to ask the Virgin for help or to thank her for their blessings. That certainly explains the road closures. You can't drive on a highway alongside that many pedestrians carrying effigies, etc. This is obviously a very important religious tradition, which we totally respect. We just made a mental note not to fly in or out of Quito on this date again!

Ships around the Panana Canal

Ships around the Panana Canal

Sunset flying in to Quito

Sunset flying in to Quito

Sunset at the Quito Airport

Sunset at the Quito Airport

Sisa, Shina, and Rosa as we left the airport

Sisa, Shina, and Rosa as we left the airport

Yupanki and Steph

Yupanki and Steph

See all photos from November 16





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