Skip to main content

Alone in Olon

Yesterday after dragging around 70+ pounds of luggage through an airport, then onto and off of a bus, then dragging said luggage down a highway where I was at first unable to find the little dirt path leading to the hotel, I was a little cranky.  Add to this the fact that the whole entire day I felt like I was ready to puke and my body still ached from the altitude sickness or food poisoning I got in Quito.

Needless to say, I was not in a happy place when I finally got to Oloncito, or "Little Olon" around 4:00 pm.

I paid $60 for 2 nights at the Barlovento Hosteria, checked the room for cockroaches (happily finding none), and tried to take a nap.




After about an hour and unable to sleep, I walked down the highway into town looking for a restaurant.  Couldn't find even one!  I looked up and down every single street and...nothing except for the shacks on the beach, which I was leary of.  

I must mention that the town itself is very small, about 5 square blocks.  Everything is cinderblock, and nothing is painted so it's all grey.  Plus, the sky is overcast.  It's exactly like San Diego during May Grey or June Gloom, temperature and all.  The chicken here is, I believe, missing a leg.



So I ended up coming back down the highway almost to where I'd started, to a place called Mikes Tacos.  There, I had the worst burrito I've ever had in my life.  I ordered vegetarian so I wouldn't take a chance with meat.  It had boiled carrots and cauliflower (yuk!) one piece of American cheese, and beans that tasted like nothing.  I dug out the few good bits I could find and left the rest, depressed and hating my trip.  Tomorrow would be a new day.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

One Week Down Teaching English in Loja

I have officially completed one full week teaching English at in Loja, Ecuador.  It's been interesting, and I can't say I'm thrilled at this point.  The way things are done here is so different than at home, it's hard to go with the flow. I was offered the job by the school's "international recruiter" which was interesting.  There was really no interview, just a conversation about Loja.  I was told I started Monday so I started thinking of a lesson to introduce myself and have students introduce themselves.  My questions about who and when I would be teaching remained unanswered until Monday at 3:00 when I was supposed to meet with one of the managers.  She was out that day.  So I was eventually filled in, told that I'd be teaching teens.  If anyone knows me, this was my biggest nightmare scenario. So I started Tuesday night, from 3-6, one hour each to 3 Teen classes at the same level which is supposed to be Early Intermediate since they'v...

Living in Ecuador: The Good, the Bad and the Annoying

Good Things about Ecuador Rent is super cheap.  If you are paying $450, you are living the high life.  If you're not, you can get small unfurnished apartments for $150-250.  This was my apartment, $90 a month including utilities, shared with 2 other girls. Food is super cheap.  You can live on $10 a day eating out all 3 meals.  Waiters are also full-service, and they don’t expect tips.  (You just have to be a little patient and don’t drink alcohol to stay within that budget.) Almuerzo del dia, or lunch of the day, is the best deal around.  You get a delicious bowl of soup, a meat, rice, a small salad/slaw, and a tiny desert.  All for anywhere between $2-3, depending on the place. When you’re in a restaurant eating, other customers say good morning, afternoon, or evening to you as the come into the restaurant, or simply, “Buenas”.  They also say “Buen provecho” which means enjoy your meal .  I f...

Galapagos: Isla San Cristobal

I arrived in San Cristobal at about 9:30 am, on the 7:00 am boat out of Santa Cruz.  Thankfully, the ride wasn't as rough as the Isla Isabella boat ride. Still, it wasn't fun, and it was hot inside the boat. I got to town and, using my map, found my hotel, Pension Suiza. It was a little ways up into a neighborhood but still an easy seven minute walk from town. When I found out there was no A/C, I was a little disheartened, but with a strong fan, it turned out to be fine. There’s a kitchen you can use and a refrigerator, which is very nice for leftovers and beers/sodas bought at the convenience store. After settling in, I went down to the Malecon for lunch, where I had “chicken fajitas” which was a glob of chicken with mayonnaise and a few diced tomatoes wrapped into a cold flour tortilla. It was edible but was $6, plus a $3 iced tea = $9 just for a very basic, boring lunch. After lunch, I took a taxi to Playa Mann, the best beach near town. There are p...