After a fitful sleep- lots of dreaming, waking and struggling to sleep again- I woke with a jump at 6:02 (what happened to the alarm?), threw on my clothes and went to my taxi ( Read more... )

After a leisurely breakfast and a look at my guide book, I went off to find la Mercada Artesanal la Mariscal, the craft market- there were lots of lovely things but I didn’t have much cash left so I didn’t stay long as it wasn’t fair on the stallholders, all dressed in traditional clothes and giving friendly greetings, to browse without buying ( Read more... )

Up before dawn to get our boat across to Baltra. We were on the boat in time for sunrise, but it was cloudy so it was more a case of light gradually showing through the clouds than anything more colourful. A few sealions were already up, playing and chasing and leaping in the sea, while the rest slept on the beaches. We packed onto the boat and ( Read more... )

After a rather sleepless night, I headed to the airport (in a taxi the hotel booked for me the night before). Driving (well, riding in a taxi) to the airport in daylight showed the less shiny end of town- but still, only the building style, rather than the standard or state of repair, would have looked out of place in some parts of south London. In ( Read more... )

This morning I visited the Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana Museo del Banco Central- basically the national museum, sponsored by a bank and based in a bigger cultural centre with theatre etc. Three hours was about right in the end, the archaeology exhibition taking far longer than the art exhibitions on the upper floors not least because of the ( Read more... )

I woke up at 6am (a combination of the time difference and the early night) to a lovely sunny morning, like a good summer day at home even though it’s the cooler season here ( Read more... )

Assuming I can spare you the details of London transport, Heathrow airport and in-flight entertainment, I should at least mention Miami. I made a concerted effort not to judge a place of which my only experience was to be an aerial view and an airport, but I felt a few notes on the aerial view on approach were justified ( Read more... )