riobamba adventures

on saturday, amy and I rode the bus to riobamba, a town right in the middle of ecuador....we wanted to go there because there is talk about a train that runs from Riobamba to a thing called Nariz del Diablo (the devil's nose) which is supposed to be spectacular, plus you get to ride on top of the train...so we decided to go for it...i wasnt so sure if we should go because there has been a strike here, with road closings, protests, etc. but we called the bus company to see if buses were running, and they were...plus, Ecuador is in a State of Emergency in 4 provinces, which means that there is a 10 oclock curfew on the weekdays, and midnight on the weekends...and police are making sure that no roads are blocked...so we went for it.

we arrived in riobamba and it was crazy...the most colors i have ever seen in my life. it was busy with people everywhere, mostly vendors selling fruits and veggies, and clothes and all the other random things they sell here. they were also selling live chickens, and fresh roasted pork, head and all. there were atleast 5 vendors selling pork with their pigs proudly displyed with the mouths proped open. i decided not to try any. :) they eat everything on the animals here, intestines to the hooves to the heads, to the chicken feet IN the soup for "flavoring" :)

it was great to walk around and just take it all in...we were on our way to try and find the train and book a hostal to sleep in for the night. we were on a tight budget, and decided to make it a weekend, "ecuadorian style" so we went to a hostal, and the lady said it was 4 dollars a night, which was too expensive for us, so we walked down the street and got a room for 3. it was an extremely basic room, 2 beds, thats all..but it included a nice little balcony, which was nice.

when we were walking around riobamba, we found it shocking that we were the only gringos there...until we went to the train to buy our tickets...when we walked around the corner, there it was...gringoville! there were atleast 20 gringos waiting to buy tix for the train. halarious.

that night we went to a local place to get some food...it was like a cool hangout for younger people who like to drink...and it had everykind of food you can imagine...it reminded me of the states kinda. we were enjoying our food and this guy, Luis started talking to me...and introduced me to his friend...so amy and i were "talking" to these guys as much as we could with our limited spanish, and thier limited english...but it was fun. they were telling us all about the best placed to go in ecuador...and at one time luis was making a point that he was socialist and not an imperialist, like americans...but the other guy, roberto, was saying that he was for america because they are intelligent and think ahead and save, with oil and resources. muy interesante.

the next morning, we got at the train at 530am (train leaves at 7) but we wanted to make SURE that we had a great seat on the top of the train. we were the 1st ones there. it was awesome. when we arrived, there were vendors just waiting for all the gringos. they were selling hot coffee, bread, cookies, chocolate, bananas, etc. and they dont stop bugging you until you buy..and when you do buy...they still bug you. i bought coffee and a banana :) and a hat..for 2.50...i figured it was like going to a baseball game...you gotta get the stadium food and souveniers..it was the same thing :)

the train ride was magnificent. ecuador is an extremely beautiful country--to say the least. you just have to experience it. along the train we passed through villages with kids who would run--sprint up to the train and wave...and people on the train throw suckers and candy at them..then they collect their candy...its quite a show. next time i go on the train, i want to bring more candy to throw.

next to us on the train, were 2 men from the states, one was named daren CLAYTON! how crazy is that? he is from michigan...and i dont know if there is any connection, but how crazy is that?! only in ecuador :)

one thing the train is known for is: DERAILING! so, on our way to the devils nose part...our train derailed a little, so we had to wait for the men to pry the wheels or the track back into place, or however they fix it. it added 2 hours onto our trip (bc we derailed to and from the devils nose) it was a long trip. we finally got back to Alusi (the town it stops in) at like 2:30 pm...a long day..but it was beautiful! i think im going to do it again.

we started our journey back to shell, which took 4 and a half hours, but its not bad on the buses bc you can sleep and just enjoy the ride. it was a great and relaxing weekend. pictures later.