Caracas-Bogota-Quito

It is December and I am in Quito, Ecuador to spend my birthday, the holidays, and new years with my friend Karen, an Ecuadorian I met while planting vegetables at EARTH University. Over the next three weeks we will spend a lot of time with her family in Quito and travel. She is finishing finals at EARTH and will arrive to meet me on my birthday, December 17th.

Stuff from the last few weeks..

Venezuela
-Caracas police considered me suspicious for speaking decent Spanish
-Espresso shots at every corner for less than 50 cents
-Swam to cays off the shore by Emilio's apartment in Chichiriviche
-28 oysters for $1.50 (also in Chichiriviche)

Colombia
-Friendly people dressed in style
-Public concerts and theatre almost every day in Bogota
-Played an extra in Paraiso Travel during a scene with John Leguizamo
-Cartagena fortress colonial town once destroyed by Sir Francis Drake

Ecuador
-Met up with Susan Fawcett who was here working on a documentary about health and healing in Ecuador
-Swam in a volcanic lagoon near the pueblo Quilotoa
-Walked 20km of the Pan-Am highway which was shut down by campesinos demanding potable water
-Learned how to make a Zampoña, an Incan pan flute
-Received an official police insignia patch from an officer while playing pool