17 buses later...

We're finally here. Safe and sound in Ecuador. And I don't want to get on another long distance bus. Good thing we only have one more to Quito!

We actually didn't have too much of a problem for our bus rides. The buses in Peru were quite nice because of the company we went through. When we arrove in Tumbes it was so hot and muggy, even at 9am. We were glad to not stay in that city but to take a taxi to the border and take us into the city. The cab driver insisted we lock our doors because the border crossing was so unsafe. I think for the first, and hopefully only, time on this trip I felt rather scared and unsafe. The cab driver told us about how the day before the border was closed because the cuidanos were on protest against the government. We felt lucky to be crossing but eventually had to leave our cab and hike the backstreets of the city to get over the border, into a Ecuadorian taxi, and then have our papers processed (the actual border wasn't used because our taxi driver told us it was more dangerous to walk over the official crossing -- where they try to charge you to enter Ecuador). So without too much hassle, we made it into Ecuador but our taxi driver charged us a "safety" fee on our bus ticket and I think we ended up wasting a lot of money on it. We could have done it ourselves but at that time it was difficult to imagine going through all of that after being on a bus for two days. We just needed to cross the border and be on our way to Cuenca so that we could feel more secure, and have a good night's sleep.

Speaking of which, our hotel we are staying at is $11 a night for each of us (and as our taxi driver told us, Cuenca is the most expensive city in Ecuador). We have a hot shower (I can't remember the last one we had...was in Potosì, 3 weeks ago) and a rock for a bed. Amber actually compared it to the Salar Hotel which was a bed that was on bricks of salt. SOOOOOOOO hard. However, we tried looking at multiple hotels and hostels in town for a little more and a little less money, but the ammenities were the same. So we'll stay in our hard bed hotel and enjoy the location and the fantastic shower. We enjoyed the shower so much we each showered last night and again this morning. I miss the hot water. The water pressure sucks here, so we're looking forward to coming home and having a hot shower with water pressure (something that is unheard of in south america apperantly)!

This city, Cuenca, is one of our favorites so far. Its another city, like Salta, Argentina, that is a large city but has a small city feel. We enjoy the ambiance of the city and the colonial buildings. Our hotel is only a few blocks from the city center and there's lots of fun botiques and stores. Moscow Mom, there's even a flower market here...I plan to take photos for you tomorrow!

As for everything else we are enjoying our last week, well 8 days, here in Ecuador and enjoying the bananas (we haven't had any yet but that'll soon change)! We had an amazing breakfast this morning. We are very much looking forward to coming home though. We both need massages as our necks and backs are at their limits. Hopefully the next week wont be too rough.

Can't wait for Sushi and Batman,
Katie Beth

P.S. There was a woman on our bus to Cuenca that had about 200 pounds worth of garlic with her. I'm not sure if you've ever seen that much garlic but it was ridiculous. I'm sure it made our bus ride go that much slower :P