Lessons Learned?

It looks like I´ll be returning home Sunday Night/Monday Morning. I leave for Peru early tomorrow morning then I start making my way north.

I went back to my old Hostel and told the lady who runs it about my story...missing the planes and all and she just smiled and said, Pero has apprendido bastante. But you´ve learned so much. Next time you wont cut the Jungle flight so close, you will probably take better care of your credit card and you´ll know what to do if you have any other problems. You´ve learned a lot, and you´ll be home soon.

I agree with her. I´m sure in the next couple of days or weeks I will be able to reflect on some of the things I have learned during this trip. I am pretty sure that is the reason that I travel.

Now I will know all of the ladies who work at the TACA office in Quito, I will know the security guard and the Airport, and will be able to go standby like the best of them. :)

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Today I spent a rainy afternoon buying a few pirated DVDs and CDs. It was kinda fun. Copyright laws don´t really exist here, so therefore real music and movie stores don´t exist either.

I debated going to the black market to see if I could find my ipod or Camera and buy it back but I was too lazy and a little bit scared. I guess its better that I don´t support the theft that allows the black market to exist.
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Yesterday I went back to the school I studyed at and visited Marta, the head of the school. She was so glad to see me, and her entire family was in the school having a get together. So she made me coffee and introduced me to everyone, including her parents.

It was pretty great. But boy do her parents hate our president.

We started talking about the jungle and the problems with Columbia, and the fumigation, (google Plan Columbia if you don´t know anything about it) that has destroyed so many lives and is sponsored by all of us and Mr. Bush.

This is the second time in Ecuador that I have seen someone speak with a voice so full of passion and emotion. It seemed that she was on the verge or tears or a revolution with every word. It was difficult for me because I obviously don´t like Bush, but I also don´t know exactly what to say.

She asked me if the Us was a democracy, and if so Why is Bush still in office. I gave her some blase teacher answer like it would be very difficult to remove him. But then it made me mad, because what have we done as an American public?

given up. Resigned ourselves to the fact that we cant do anything, and to the fact that no matter who is in office we as a general public really don´t have a say in the national or international goings on.

Grrr.....

I just love to see that much passion steaming from a person, it makes me happy to be alive and to be here.

We finished the Coffee and Elisabeth invited me to join her family for dinner or today for lunch. She was so accepting it made me feel great.

What a trip.
Hasta mañana.