New Page 1

South America / Letter 11


December 15, 1998 Bogota, Columbia to Bano, Ecuador Greetings to all of you who have followed my trip and been so encouraging. The trip has continued to be exciting and different everyday. My final solution to getting around the Darian Forest of Panama was to airfreight my Toyota from Panama City to Bogota, Columbia. I flew on commercial airlines. When I arrived, I found myself waiting and jumping through bureaucratic hoops for two days getting the car out of Customs. I met great people who couldn't have been more helpful and kind. I took one day to visit the Museo de Oro (the pre-Columbian gold museum). It is by far one of the best museums with over 30,000 pieces of gold figurines, masks, cups, nose rings, chest plates, etc., etc. I also walked through the commercial center where emeralds are sold at a very reasonable price. I was very thankful to leave Bogota because of all the traffic and pollution and move southward to Fusagasuga and Ibague and then onto Cali, Columbia. This area of travel is along the Andes Mountains. I would ascend to 10,000 feet and then find myself back down in a valley. (Steve.the 4-runner has been great! I did have to change the fuel filter on the extra tank. The good news is the filter did its job and was plugged solid. The bad news is I had to change it on the road from Bogota to Cali, on top of the highest Colombian Mountain pass.) After that I had planned to spend the night in the colonial Spanish Cali, but a wrong turn sent me on to Popoyan. I spent part of a day walking through Popoyan, which was founded in 1536. The city has maintained the colonial architecture through out and is very beautiful. There are palm trees lining many of the boulevards. I traveled from there to Pasto, Columbia, and then spent the night at Ipiales for an early morning border crossing into Ecuador. To my surprise, Ipiales is known for the Sanctuary of the Virgin of La Lajas. This is a magnificent architectural church that is built into a cliff, rising out of a canyon gorge over the Rio Guaitara. It is very ornate and the altar is the rock canyon it is built against. This Sanctuary is a pilgrimage for many Ecuadorians and Colombians because of the miracles that many claim to have taken place there. I found no less that 200 people making the 20-minute walk down to the Sanctuary at 5pm in the evening. I am starting to see llamas, and the diet specialty is Qui... guinea pig and boiled potatoes. The fruits are unbelievable. Things I have never seen before..chirimooyaas, pitahaya, guayaba, guanabana, maracuya, curuba. The Colombian money system is the Peso and is 1,571 to the US $1.00. If you have $10.00 you feel like a millionaire. I could not have asked for nicer people and their generosity is par excellent. One exception was a very organized group of robbers who nearly scammed me by pointing at my car tires as if something drastic was wrong. Well, I kept driving, knowing not to stop. A mile down the road, a different set of guys on a motorcycle drove up again pointing. Now I was sure there must be something surely wrong. I had just stopped when a guy in a jeep drove by and shouted to keep going. Later on the highway, he shouted over to me that they were robbers and not to stop for anything! He saved me from a very bad situation. This was the second time someone has tried to rob my Toyota. I was thankful to be out of Columbia and into Ecuador. Ecuador....WOW! What a fantastic country. The people are very different... Many of the traditional Indigenous groups in their wool skirts, wraps, sweaters, and felt hats. The pace of life is very laid back and again people are very helpful. The land is mountainous volcanoes with frequent misting rain. The weather is cool and humid. We found ourselves driving at 12,000 feet and then dropping to 5,000 feet in a few miles and then climbing back up to 8,000 10,000 feet. Unbelievable country and the driving is better than Columbia where they pass you on a steep blind corner, but in Ecuador you just pass and the oncoming cars move to the side so you can have 3 cars side by side on a small two lane road. I entered Ecuador at Tulcan driving through Ibarra to Cotacachi and Otavalo. I stopped in Otavalo and visited the weaver's market. Colorful rugs, sweaters, and silver, but more importantly was the kindness and gentleness of the people. I then traveled to Cayambe where the Monument of the Mundo (world) represents the Equator. It is hard to believe I'm at the equator. I have traveled 7,000 miles to date and are only forty percent of the way to my end goal, the Terra Del Fuego at the tip of Chile/Argentina. I decided that I had had enough of big cities so I bypassed Quito, Ecuador, driving east though many of the small villages. Beautiful scenery as you ascend into the clouds, mud and brick houses, sheep, llamas, horse drawn wagons with grass or lumber stacked high, pot holes in the road (big ones that would swallow a dog), fields of potatoes, lettuce, and carrots, oxen pulling plows, and people tilling land with giant sized hoes (I only saw one or two tractors). I stayed near the Cotopaxi National Park at a hacienda called La Cienaga, a huge mansion with walls three feet thick. Entering the mansion, you drive down a half-mile corridor of eucalyptus trees. Inside the mansion are ornate flower gardens and a private 1600 chapel. The artwork was the dark Spaniard oils and furniture of that era. The next day I headed to Cotopoxi National Park. This is about a 45-minute drive that takes you up a volcano to 14,000 feet where you park your car and then hike up to 15,000 feet. There are wild horses, llamas, and alpine bird life. I heard there were actually wild Condors but never saw one. They can have a wingspan of over eight feet. At the top, I found myself in the middle of a sleeting 60-mph wind and so decided not to make the final climb. I did walk around the refuge and found myself getting a headache, restricted breathing and slightly dizzy. It was most unbelievable and difficult to describe. Well I'm now in Bano, Ecuador (mid-country) and it is a language school heaven. I would love to stay a week.. not sure what I will do. It has a large outdoor hotsprings, great markets, and good food that is cheap. A pizza costs about two dollars. I know Christmas is just around the corner and I find myself missing friends and family during the holiday period. I'm working hard each day on my new novel and I continue to work on my Spanish. I wish each of you a wonderful holiday season filled with hope and good cheer. If this trip has provided nothing else, it has given to me an intense thankfulness and appreciation for being citizens of a country so abundant with opportunity. Cheers. Warmest Wishes to Everyone, Ben P.S. Email is difficult to find and very expensive. I will write when I can.....Happy Holidays!