Museo Portoviejo – Ecuador
Portoviejo Ecuador
‘There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like—“
Thank you everyone for your concern, and for your support. For those who missed the last few posts, I’ve been in a holding pattern in Guayaquil. I stayed one extra day after friends left Ecuador, and in that day I received that glorious ‘cedula’ which will help get internet in the apartment, an Ecuadorian driver’s license, and other benefits. Yay!
I checked out of the hotel and went to the nearby bus terminal – only to find it basically abandoned. It was a ghost of the normal bustling Terminal Terrestre with the straightest tangents to all destinations in the country.
As many of you already know, the thought of renting a burro to reach home was an option I considered. A burro could endure the journey far better than a horse, and I smiled at the thought of strapping my Andean bag to the burro’s saddle and aiming for Portoviejo! Perhaps, when this present smoke clears, I will research the possibilities of taking that trail ride. Does anyone want to join me?!
Margo, thank you so much for adding your comment via your Vilcabamba experience. Glad to know that you received some rain, and I noted a headline from a few days ago to expect more-than-usual rain for the rest of this year. It’s dry here in Manabi, and most likely all of the farmers would be grateful for the rain.
Although people in Guayaquil assured me that travel on Saturday (yesterday) would be fine, the owners of Manta Express said that they could reach Manta but not Portoviejo. Usually the shuttle stops at the community of La Pila and connects with their Portoviejo shuttle. A couple reached my hotel after traveling from Puerto Lopez, and I asked, “How did you get here?”
They smiled and said that they paid a driver 120 dollars — and the man added, ‘and the driver removed his car tag which showed he was a taxi driver.’ Hmmm, I was not too crazy about paying someone a lot of money to make that last three hours home, and the burro sounded like a sound option at that time! With a positive attitude, I bought the Manta Express ticket, which soared overnight from ten dollars (at least ten years at that price) to fifteen.* I reminded them that I hoped to reach Portoviejo and not Manta. The driver thought it would not be possible, but we would check in La Pila before making the last half hour of the drive.
* – (Remember that Ecuador’s Monthly Minimum Wage – $394.00 – is much less than in many other countries.)
The following slideshow contains screenshots from the evening news on Thurs and Friday nights:
After a rest stop (Corviche para me!) the shuttle bus continued until La Pila, and I asked to stop there. If I could not find a driver or co-op vehicle, I would see about renting that burro. Of course my travelmates chuckled at the idea of the gringita traveling by burro. The couple in the front of the van said that they were going to Portoviejo, and someone from the family would be arriving soon. They gave me a ride and insisted on driving me to the apartment – because the taxistas were still protesting.
From an empty ‘Terminal Terrestre’ in Guayaquil, to television images of extreme unrest and looting, to a tranquil stop in La Pila, I have witnessed only the good side to human nature. “Lisa, are you alright” emails patiently awaited, and I am glad to be back in Manabi, where I have a good supply of food, paint and paper and good books (The Overstory was amazing!!!! ) to keep me occupied until the problems are resolved.
Guayaquil’s Terminal Terrestre, near the international airport. It was actually nice to wander this area!
Uh-oh, Houston. I think I landed on the wrong planet. Where are the buses?!!! (Last Thursday afternoon)
Television news screenshots from Thurs night.
This morning in Portoviejo I walked to the market for produce, tuna, quinoa, etc. Traffic choked the area, as did the pedestrian traffic. The locals are also preparing for tomorrow, when ‘they’ say the protests will resume.
It was more like Christmas Eve instead of a lazy Sunday morning. Returning my items to the apartment, I then walked to the museo to let everyone know that I reached home base. Three serious-looking police on motorcycles rolled slowly in the opposite direction. Unlike the market, the streets near the museum were almost empty. Few cars traveled this area. At the corner of the park by the museum, an armored Police vehicle blocked the street. A barricade stood at the other end near the museo’s entrance.
Museum guards/staff on a normal day!
The museum was/is basically empty, except for the guards that rotate 24-hour duties. I asked if I could use the internet in the library (Of course) and the most-recent emails were from people who live here and wanted to be sure I was OK. I am blessed to have a team of living angels who watch over me.
While answering emails and assuring loved ones that all is OK, one of the guards came downstairs and stated, “Lisita. Eat. Encebollado” and he placed a bowl of encebollado and a serving of chifles on the nearby table. I reached a stopping point and took my ‘take out’ meal upstairs and dined with the guards. So sweet and loving people, and for sure if things should turn violent, I would race to the museo in search of safety!
from archives: Encebollado and chifles.
Suffice to know that if I should go silent again, all is fine and I will be tucked under the wings of people who embrace foreigners into their loving care.
So glad to hear that you made it safely back to PV , we hunkered down here in San Clemente.. Needed to go to Bahia Friday but postponed the trip until sometime next week. As you saw it changes on a day to day basis. Take care , be safe, love and hugs Mary y John
Thanks to both of you! I’m sure it’s quiet there in San Clemente, but I’ve heard it’s not so serene outside of Cruzita as well as Bahia. It seems quiet at the apt, but each day when I go out there is news of tire burning or protests/tear gas in varous areas across town.
What an adventure! Take care, my friend.
Doing my best, Hugh! Thanks! (How’s the weather there|?)
My goodness, Lisa, what an adventure! Glad to read that you reached safety, and that people were kind… Reading this humbles me and makes me feel so grateful that, despite the turmoil currently going on in the UK and also in Scotland where the independence movement has grown considerably in recent months, our country is still safe to live in.
Thank you Anne. It’s a good example of how fast things can go from simmering to a raging fire. Again, I really enjoyed your last post and the insight from an astrologer’s point of view..
Glad to hear you’re ok. Amazing how things work out! Faith!
Thank you Fletcher! Hope things are quiet there in ‘the Delta.’
Having been in the Guayaquil bus station many times, that pic was a little surreal. Glad you are back home sans burro Amiga! Stay safe! ❤
Si, for once the terminal terrestre was a pleasant place to be – no fear of someone trying to snatch something out of my bags!
So happy you are safe. Still, you would have had some really good blog material if you had decided on the burro.
It would be really fun to do that burro trip when things are quiet again!
Lisa,
we will miss you in Mississippi. Hope all goes well and that you and the burro are friends more than travel companions. YeeHi lil doggie.
Thanks Steve, and I hope that everyone has a great time. I think that Burro travel might be a solution for many people if this crisis continues!
It’s good to hear from you again, even if you’re living through trying times. In recent years the “news” channels on American television have largely stopped carrying much news and have devolved into political polemicism most of the day. I mention that as an explanation of why I haven’t heard a word on any of those channels about what’s going on in Ecuador.
Happy cédula to you. When I saw the word I suddenly realized, as I never had in the half-century I’ve known it, that it’s the Spanish cognate of English schedule, though the two languages now apply different meanings to the word. Here’s what the Online Etymology Dictionary has to say:
late 14c., sedule, cedule “ticket, label, slip of paper with writing on it,” from Old French cedule (Modern French cédule), from Late Latin schedula “strip of paper” (in Medieval Latin also “a note, schedule”), diminutive of Latin scheda, scida “one of the strips forming a papyrus sheet,” from Greek skhida “splinter,” from stem of skhizein “to cleave, split” (see shed (v.)). Also from the Latin word are Spanish cédula, German Zettel.
The notion is of slips of paper attached to a document as an appendix (a sense maintained in U.S. tax forms). The specific meaning “printed timetable” is first recorded 1863 in railway use. Modern spelling is a 15c. imitation of Latin, but pronunciation remained “sed-yul” for centuries afterward; the modern British pronunciation (“shed-yul”) is from French influence, while the U.S. pronunciation (“sked-yul”) is from the practice of Webster, based on the Greek original.
Thank you so much for the ‘cedula’ trivia… I remain grateful for the research your so easily share with others!
Barb in Oregon said that the Ecuador crisis is in the news there, but I am not surprised that many areas are more focused on the national news.
I suspect that most Spanish-speakers do not know the origins of the word, ‘Cedula.’ Thanks!
It is so good to hear that you are fine despite the troubles and that you have such great friends to watch over you! A burro…maybe.
Thanks Judy! It’s been a full month and not too much time for internet, but I’m always aware when you publish more amazing images of the beloved feathered citizens of the world. Thank you!
Always my pleasure and I feel the same about your news of art and the people of Ecuador and your flower and birds too! Internet can be a double-edged sword so better to not be overly immersed…you are doing great!!
Thank you again! Love, Lisa
What an adventure, I am glad you made is safe. Lisa, sounds like life is very difficult over there, internet on and off…how do you stay on top of things?
Hey from the Museo Portoviejo, which has been open for the past two days. The normal staff are absent, but the sweet guards have the door open – they are surely as bored and appreciate the regulars who drop by to read the newspapers, say hi. I am grateful for the internet which I am using in the library… Heading home now – and I also greet the police and soldiers who all seem pretty bored right now.. and I visit with the people who have little tiendas or the people who keep the restaurants open, etc. Each person adds his/her own slice of info! Thank you Valentina!