Enjoy Simple

June 18, 2017

Last night my SMS wasn't working. I tried everything possible, but this morning I turned off my phone and it seems that the SMS from yesterday finally went through. I was also able to check my phone's balance today. A little over 100 MB for Pokémon-ing without Wi-Fi and over $10 for calls, which I hardly need. WhatsApp and Facebook are free with the subscription. Brilliant move by Facebook. All of Ecuador is WhatsApp-ing and Facebook is in control. I don't care if the NSA sees my correspondence.

I didn't have any bread for breakfast and once again I had a craving for ... rice. This time with ham. In terms of food, I want to slowly transition to normal operation. It looks good in that regard. After that, I did a little research on the internet for current affairs and read 20 minutes. By the way, the dot in Quito is me. Usually from 2-3 pm each day.

And then, off to the city. This time with the Ecovia to the Atahualpa Olympic Stadium. I can't help it, but the Avenida de los Estados Unidos is one of my favorite streets and there's a Pokémon GO arena there, which was yellow last week. I'll skip the rest now, otherwise it will look like I'm playing Pokémon GO all the time. (But just real quick: now I'm in the level 10 arena with my highest - 3147 - Dragonite and there are five Blissey in front. Super!)

The weather, by the way, is also great. Like yesterday, it's T-shirt weather, with the jacket in my backpack. I was drawn to El Español. I had coffee there a week ago. The best one so far in Ecuador. And I had it again today. Just sitting there, eating a sandwich and then slurping the fine coffee. Wonderful, even though the café was on the wrong side of the street in terms of the sun. On the way to Parque Carolina, I strolled through the entire department store at Japon. I had a shopping list with me, including chamomile tea (which I practically finished single-handedly in the last three days), tissues, and bread. For tomorrow's breakfast.

But there was no grocery section in the building. So, I looked for SD memory cards. To hell with it, only 8GB cards in three stores. So I gave up, just like the search for a photo store where I could buy replacement lens caps for my two lenses. Nada. Instead, I found something I have never seen before and definitely didn't expect here. Right in the middle of the shopping center, between a bookstore and a sports shop: a church. The doors were open and people were going in to attend the mass. Imagine that in the Rhine or the Messepark. Firstly, they wouldn't be open on Sundays and secondly..., no way!

After that, I slowly strolled through Parque Carolina. I love how people here just go out and have fun on Sundays. Families play football and they laugh and have fun, children ride on all sorts of vehicles through the park, young people lie on the grass (after the spots were first examined for dog poop, I assume), all kinds of food are offered everywhere, people watch with enthusiasm at the BMX park as the riders perform tricks and cheer after every jump, only the boat rental is slow today, or rather, there is not enough water. But that offers other possibilities. I'm enjoying it!

On the way back with the Ecovia, I made a stop at Parque Ejido, maybe there are some Pokémon trainers there. Instead, I browse the stalls and look for nice backpacks. I noticed some yesterday and I think it would be a good gift for Aline. I sent her some pictures. They look really good, with Andean patterns and colorful. But maybe not for me. Or maybe?

Dark clouds are moving in from the south and it starts raining. I leave the area, board the Ecovia to Marin Central, get off and... damn it, the shopping list! Behind me, at the corner of Manabi - Juan Pio Montufar, I see a big sign saying 'Centro Comercio'. So, I make my way through the crowd. Nowhere is it as dense as here. But the centro turns out to be a disappointment. I believe they only sell phone cases and some other rubbish in there, but nothing related to groceries. So, I exit again. There's a traffic jam at the exit. A woman, half squealing, is berating a man, and he is also saying something, and the police are there with three officers. People are congested and... my sensors detect crowding from behind. My backpack is back there and suddenly it gets a bit rough. I quickly turn around and if he had continued pushing my backpack, my fist would have landed on his face. The police were on the scene and I would have given my statement. But I won't allow anything like that shit from the bus to happen again. I have no idea if it was intentional and if my reaction prevented something. The most untrustworthy guys hang out in these square meters between the exit to the old town and the bus stops at Marin.

Then I got on a blue bus, on which I could see an orange bar, the label 'Coop Quito L8', and somewhere La Marin and Los Pinos. I asked the driver if the bus goes to Rancho Los Pinos. He nodded and I got on. Everything was fine at first, but at some point, he turned off and I got off to return to Simon Bolivar. There I waited for the Chillogallo - Marin L8 and voilà, it took me to my destination. It's possible, and even likely, that the other bus eventually passed by the right place, but this way I was sure to be faster.

So, after this nice, quiet weekend, I'm starting the third to last week in good spirits. At home too, there are only three weeks until the big vacation.

But I think the stress there is greater than here. Here it's just... living!