Ecuador 5/18/2024 |
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Saturday, May 18, 2024 - ArrivalWe woke up at 4 a.m., and Logan Way car service picked us up promptly at 6 o'clock. We got to the airport at around 6:20. Wow, that was record time! Not much traffic at 6 a.m. on a Saturday morning. We checked in at Copa Airlines for our business class tickets. Although we were in business class, the lounge was not open this early in the morning, so we headed to the gate.We were in the new section of terminal E, but there was a lack of concessions. I don't know if they just aren't open yet, or whether it is by design. Either way, I had to walk back to the old section of the terminal to buy bagel, egg, cheese, and sausage sandwiches for breakfast. Our flight took off on time at 8:50. They fed us pancakes stuffed with cinnamon and apples on the way to Panama. We arrived in Panama City, and we bought lunch. I got Nathan's popcorn chicken, and Craig got a Nathan's chicken sandwich. We also bought large bottles of water. Our flight to Quito was on time, and they fed us snacks en route. We landed in Quito at around 5:15 p.m. Although it is difficult for Craig to get up so early in the morning to travel, one benefit is that we arrived while it was not yet dark. Many times in the past we have landed very late at night, which makes for an even later arrival at the family's home. Our bags were some of the first ones off the plane. As we exited the baggage claim area, we met the family (Antonio, Sisa, Yupanki, Shina, Nena, and Kuri). Aida was holding down the fort at the house, cooking dinner and awaiting our arrival. Yupanki is now taller than Sisa, and calls her a Minion. Nena is a chatterbox, and almost-2-year-old Kuri is content and has no stranger anxiety at this point. We enjoyed chatting with the kids on the drive back to Morochos. When we got back to the house, we greeted Aida. She fed us soup, hot dogs, fried eggs, and llapingachos. After dinner, we went to our casita and started to get settled/unpacked. They had our room all ready, the beds made with fresh linens, etc. We went to bed at around 10 o'clock. The community of Morochos was celebrating its 86th anniversary (we had been here to celebrate the 76th ten years ago). When we learned of this, we apologized to the family for arriving amidst the festival, which meant that they couldn't attend because they were picking us up. We hadn't realized that our arrival coincided with the festival this year. We told them to go ahead if they wanted to attend the evening activities, but we were too tired after a long day of travel. The family assured us that it was no problem, and they were just as happy to stay home. We could hear celebratory music coming from the direction of the community center for most of the night. Thank goodness for earplugs! |
 Nena, Yupanki, Shina, Kuri, Sisa, Antonio  The van ride back to the house Photo Gallery May 18 |
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