Quito to Riobamba, Ecuador, 150 miles
In which the way Mike forgot Amie is revealed and other adventures worth describing while riding through Ecuador
We woke up after a very sound sleep to Mike’s birthday. I felt a little frustrated as I I do not have my own transportation, time or in a place to make it easy to surprise Mike with things that I would normally do at home for his birthday. I made him a birthday card, and that along with a part for his Corvair were my gifts from me. We slept in a little, then packed our stuff up to head out of Quito.
We rode into old town to pick up Adam on the way out of town. While waiting for him outside his hotel we bought a couple DVD’s to watch later. You can’t go wrong for one dollar each, and most of them are movies that are still out in the theatre. Even if you watch them once and throw them away, it’s cheaper than renting!
Quito is huge, as we got to experience while driving out of town south. It almost seemed endless, but soon enough we were out in the open countryside; beautiful. Big mountains lined with crops which made them look like a patchwork quilt against a blue cloudy sky. The air since we are at about 12,000 feet is crisp and brisk; we finally were able to appreciate the benefits of our nice gear! I felt nice and cozy and didn’t even have the electric vest which I’m sure will be much desired further south in the mountains.
We stopped for lunch at a little delicatessen/café on the side of the road. Such a good choice as they had a ton of delicious cheeses which we had them make us a sandwich with. We stuffed ourselves with delicious sandwiches, chips and water; a great birthday lunch for Mike. After a relaxing and enjoyable lunch at our little gem, we were smiling because the cheese was fantastic and it gave us great hopes for the rest of South America. The food seems to be only getting better for us!
We took our full bellies back out to our bikes, to continue on the road towards Riobamba. I don’t know if it was Mike’s headache or perhaps thought of delicious cheese, but just as I was tightening the bottom of my pant legs, I see Adam take off onto the road, and then Mike in tow. Yes, they took off without me, as I ran after them, neither Adam or Mike noticed that I wasn’t on the back of the bike! I was in shock more than anything at first as HOW is it possible for Mike to not notice I was not on the back of the bike, and beyond that, Adam was sure to have noticed. In disbelief I watched them zoom off down the road, expecting at any moment for them to turn around, but their bikes just disappeared into the horizon. I standed there, waiting, contemplating how this situation is almost impossible, but making myself believe that it was happening. The shock started to pass as the realization that it could now, at this point, be some time before they realized. If they hadn’t realized right away, who knows how long until they say ‘Where is Amie’. I sat, put my helmet cover down and felt like crying, but the situation that I was in I decided it wouldn’t do me any good. The realization that I had no money on me, no way of contacting anyone and not knowing how long until Mike will be back was scary, sad and frustrating. How could he not realize I’m not there! About 30 minutes later I finally saw his bike rounding the corner at high speeds. I figured he was most likely more freaked out than me as when the realization of me not being there hit him, I’m sure the unknown was much more frightening than the shock that I was experiencing. We couldn’t do anything but hug each other and cry. I’ve never seen him look so relieved, scared and happy…and I couldn’t be happier being back with him. What an ordeal, I still don’t know what to think of it as something like that seems impossible. Thank god for Adam as he is the one that pointed out to Mike ‘Mike! Where is Amie’ at some point about 15 miles down the road…
We made it to Riobamba, and this time with ME on the back of the bike. Mike kept reaching back and touching me once in a while to assure himself that yes, I was still there. Riobamba is the original capital of Ecuador. There really isn’t much here for the tourist, but it was a good stopping point for us in our day and a big city. My hopes were to find a nicer hotel and a good place to have a nice birthday dinner. We were fairly successful with the hotel after a man in a van chased us down and proceeded to tell us to follow him to his hotel which is the ‘nicest’ in town for a good price. We had a nice room for $30 a night, Adam got one for $10. We showered, napped and then set out for Mike’s birthday dinner. We took a recommendation from the book stating a great steakhouse with delicious food. It was a roadhouse/ranch type restaurant with a big open grill/kitchen. The menu consisted of one page listing the different types of meats and preparations you can have. It was fabulous, along with the bottle of wine we shared. A great birthday dinner (Thanks Adam!). We tried to follow it up with some homemade ice cream, but after we discovered they were closed, we walked the town until we ran across some phones and Mike took the opportunity to call home.
Mike had a nice birthday, and that’s all that mattered to me. I wish I could have done more, but we made the best of it, and he for sure had a birthday he will remember forever; Ecuador with his wife and best friend.
We woke up after a very sound sleep to Mike’s birthday. I felt a little frustrated as I I do not have my own transportation, time or in a place to make it easy to surprise Mike with things that I would normally do at home for his birthday. I made him a birthday card, and that along with a part for his Corvair were my gifts from me. We slept in a little, then packed our stuff up to head out of Quito.
We rode into old town to pick up Adam on the way out of town. While waiting for him outside his hotel we bought a couple DVD’s to watch later. You can’t go wrong for one dollar each, and most of them are movies that are still out in the theatre. Even if you watch them once and throw them away, it’s cheaper than renting!
Quito is huge, as we got to experience while driving out of town south. It almost seemed endless, but soon enough we were out in the open countryside; beautiful. Big mountains lined with crops which made them look like a patchwork quilt against a blue cloudy sky. The air since we are at about 12,000 feet is crisp and brisk; we finally were able to appreciate the benefits of our nice gear! I felt nice and cozy and didn’t even have the electric vest which I’m sure will be much desired further south in the mountains.
We stopped for lunch at a little delicatessen/café on the side of the road. Such a good choice as they had a ton of delicious cheeses which we had them make us a sandwich with. We stuffed ourselves with delicious sandwiches, chips and water; a great birthday lunch for Mike. After a relaxing and enjoyable lunch at our little gem, we were smiling because the cheese was fantastic and it gave us great hopes for the rest of South America. The food seems to be only getting better for us!
We took our full bellies back out to our bikes, to continue on the road towards Riobamba. I don’t know if it was Mike’s headache or perhaps thought of delicious cheese, but just as I was tightening the bottom of my pant legs, I see Adam take off onto the road, and then Mike in tow. Yes, they took off without me, as I ran after them, neither Adam or Mike noticed that I wasn’t on the back of the bike! I was in shock more than anything at first as HOW is it possible for Mike to not notice I was not on the back of the bike, and beyond that, Adam was sure to have noticed. In disbelief I watched them zoom off down the road, expecting at any moment for them to turn around, but their bikes just disappeared into the horizon. I standed there, waiting, contemplating how this situation is almost impossible, but making myself believe that it was happening. The shock started to pass as the realization that it could now, at this point, be some time before they realized. If they hadn’t realized right away, who knows how long until they say ‘Where is Amie’. I sat, put my helmet cover down and felt like crying, but the situation that I was in I decided it wouldn’t do me any good. The realization that I had no money on me, no way of contacting anyone and not knowing how long until Mike will be back was scary, sad and frustrating. How could he not realize I’m not there! About 30 minutes later I finally saw his bike rounding the corner at high speeds. I figured he was most likely more freaked out than me as when the realization of me not being there hit him, I’m sure the unknown was much more frightening than the shock that I was experiencing. We couldn’t do anything but hug each other and cry. I’ve never seen him look so relieved, scared and happy…and I couldn’t be happier being back with him. What an ordeal, I still don’t know what to think of it as something like that seems impossible. Thank god for Adam as he is the one that pointed out to Mike ‘Mike! Where is Amie’ at some point about 15 miles down the road…
We made it to Riobamba, and this time with ME on the back of the bike. Mike kept reaching back and touching me once in a while to assure himself that yes, I was still there. Riobamba is the original capital of Ecuador. There really isn’t much here for the tourist, but it was a good stopping point for us in our day and a big city. My hopes were to find a nicer hotel and a good place to have a nice birthday dinner. We were fairly successful with the hotel after a man in a van chased us down and proceeded to tell us to follow him to his hotel which is the ‘nicest’ in town for a good price. We had a nice room for $30 a night, Adam got one for $10. We showered, napped and then set out for Mike’s birthday dinner. We took a recommendation from the book stating a great steakhouse with delicious food. It was a roadhouse/ranch type restaurant with a big open grill/kitchen. The menu consisted of one page listing the different types of meats and preparations you can have. It was fabulous, along with the bottle of wine we shared. A great birthday dinner (Thanks Adam!). We tried to follow it up with some homemade ice cream, but after we discovered they were closed, we walked the town until we ran across some phones and Mike took the opportunity to call home.
Mike had a nice birthday, and that’s all that mattered to me. I wish I could have done more, but we made the best of it, and he for sure had a birthday he will remember forever; Ecuador with his wife and best friend.
Old town Quito in daylight
Adam is back on the road with us
Adios Quito
Cuddle break
Beautiful driving
Mixed meats...
...by a fake fire
Happy Birthday to Mike!
posted by Pedro and Maria at 11:30 AM
1 Comments:
Holy Crap! What a ditz Mike....hahahha! Altitude? That is a story that is going to go down in the books...(my equivalent to your 'green tea' story - I tried to poison you, you tried to lose my sister ;) ). I'm glad you guys were reunited eventually! Have fun and stick together - remember to do buddy checks before zooming off! Loves!
Post a Comment
<< Home