Quito to Puyo

Quito
I will be heading back to Quito at a later date so for now I will just mention that I had a stroll around the city and had thoroughly exhausted myself by 3pm and retired early. Saturday was another early start with me still being on UK time and it was the day of my first bus journey, how I wished I spoke a little more Spanish. I´ve done okay so far - bought a local SIM card for my phone, understand the cost of my water, sin gas, when asked and knew to order chicken for my dinner, though I didn´t know what the chicken came with. The bus station was a different matter and with no timetables to be seen and lots of people shouting for their particular bus tickets for sale and destinations it was all a bit of a minefield. But I knew where I was going so that´s all I had to say really - you´d think! I was sold a 9am bus ticket to Puyo at 9am, by the time I had got to bus stands and figured out which was my bus, it had gone. Someone from the bus company saw me and then had me running through the station, fully rucksacked, to try and catch the bus before it actually left the compound. Hot and sweaty later the bus had well and truly gone. With out any Spanish there was no way I was going to get my money back and that company had no more buses to Puyo that day - doh! Another $5 spent and I was sat quite happily on another bus going to Puyo at 9;30 (even $10 is not bad for a 5 hour journey). The bus was more like a coach with comfy seats and no chickens, though it did continue to take on more people, in the end some having to stand, and it was rather a warm ride. A good way to see the countryside.