Saturday 20 March
Montañita
I don’t remember what happened during the day. I probably did some sunbathing. But at night we went dancing.
There was this club night advertised with flyers that had been around the bars. There was no commotion going on in town so the Scottish couple and I decided to check it out. We arrived at midnight and it was free to get in, which was a surprise as it had said $10 on the flyer. So we went in and well, had a good time. The music was a little dull to start with – think minimal tech – but it improved later on in the evening.
I danced, I met some people, I drank, I had a good time. The Scots left early and then when I eventually left, who was waiting outside but none other than the Americans, who were being asked $10 to get in, at something like 4.30 in the morning. I was done though so I headed off to bed.
Friday 30 April 2010
Don’t Cut off Your Dreadlocks
Friday 19 March
Montañita
I’d hit gold. One of the good things about spending a long time in one place when travelling is that you find out where the good places are, rather than relying on random factor, like a tractor. Today I discovered the best breakfast at the best value. Two fried eggs, three pieces of toast, jam and butter, fruit juice, tea and a small fruit salad. All for $3. Bargain. This place would see my custom for the rest of my stay.
It was a cloudy day again today, so I surfed the net, updated the blog and generally made myself useful. In the evening I was hanging out with the Americans again and I went to watch a reggae band playing. They were proper Rastafarians with dreadlocks down to their knees and in between every song they would shout “Haile Selassie! Jah! Rastafari!” just in case you weren’t sure. There was a dog sleeping on stage. I had a bit of indigestion so ordered a whiskey. It worked a bit I think. After the band finished there wasn’t much else going on so I went home.
Montañita
I’d hit gold. One of the good things about spending a long time in one place when travelling is that you find out where the good places are, rather than relying on random factor, like a tractor. Today I discovered the best breakfast at the best value. Two fried eggs, three pieces of toast, jam and butter, fruit juice, tea and a small fruit salad. All for $3. Bargain. This place would see my custom for the rest of my stay.
It was a cloudy day again today, so I surfed the net, updated the blog and generally made myself useful. In the evening I was hanging out with the Americans again and I went to watch a reggae band playing. They were proper Rastafarians with dreadlocks down to their knees and in between every song they would shout “Haile Selassie! Jah! Rastafari!” just in case you weren’t sure. There was a dog sleeping on stage. I had a bit of indigestion so ordered a whiskey. It worked a bit I think. After the band finished there wasn’t much else going on so I went home.
Jump in the Pool
Thursday 18 March
Montañita
I was really tired today. I woke up at the usual time, went and had breakfast, and then came back and just wanted to sleep. So I did. For most of the day.
I think I must have had some mild virus as I had a dodgy stomach and after going to the loo things picked up a bit. I watched some Formula One highlights that I had downloaded.
There was some party on at one of the bars tonight. I randomly met up with both sets of Americans and we all went to the bar. There were cocktails and a small pool filled entirely with Scandinavians (unfortunately both men and women). It took a bit of umming and ahhing as I toyed with the idea of going back to the hotel to get my swimming trunks but in the end I decided to go with boxers for the second time this trip.
I saw one guy about to pass out in the water so I tried to help him out. He then seemed to want me to buy him a drink so I gave up on him. I later saw him about to vomit and thankfully he made his own way out. Loser. There was lots of fun in the pool but nothing too scandalous. At a late hour we called it a night.
Montañita
I was really tired today. I woke up at the usual time, went and had breakfast, and then came back and just wanted to sleep. So I did. For most of the day.
I think I must have had some mild virus as I had a dodgy stomach and after going to the loo things picked up a bit. I watched some Formula One highlights that I had downloaded.
There was some party on at one of the bars tonight. I randomly met up with both sets of Americans and we all went to the bar. There were cocktails and a small pool filled entirely with Scandinavians (unfortunately both men and women). It took a bit of umming and ahhing as I toyed with the idea of going back to the hotel to get my swimming trunks but in the end I decided to go with boxers for the second time this trip.
I saw one guy about to pass out in the water so I tried to help him out. He then seemed to want me to buy him a drink so I gave up on him. I later saw him about to vomit and thankfully he made his own way out. Loser. There was lots of fun in the pool but nothing too scandalous. At a late hour we called it a night.
Monday 26 April 2010
There’s a Starman...
Wednesday 17 March
Montañita
I have to warn you that not much happens in Montañita until the weekend. Ish. There’s lots of surfing here but I have no desire for it. It looks quite cool and I’ve done it in the past and it’s good fun, but I’m all about the relaxing. I’m trying to get a tan but there’s a lot of thin, high level cloud that, when combined with factor 15 sun tan cream, really gets you nowhere. Why does no one stock factor 8 anymore? I must have missed some news or something that says “Factor 8 More Likely to Cause Cancer than the Daily Mail.” Nothing causes more cancer than the Daily Mail – and that's a scientific fact. I mean, there's no proof or anything, but I think you'll all agree that we're all fed up with the scientists and their politically correct 'elf and safety nonsense, trying to erode our hard-won British sovreignty and cowtow us to the whim of expenses-abusing Brussels Eurocrats who are probably lesbians anyway. I mean, scientists brought us Facebook, and that is just a haven for peados and people who like eating babies. So yeah. In conclusion then, the Daily Fail definitely causes cancer.
So I do a bit of sunbathing. I randomly meet one of the Americans from Canoa on the beach so stop to have a chat with him. He then meets another American language school person by random as well, so we all hang out.
In the evening I go out with the Scottish couple for dinner and have a good chat with them. I end up explaining lots of astronomical phenomena, like why the sun is in the north in the Southern Hemisphere, why the moon’s crescent points down at the equator and other such interesting topics*.
I met up with the Americans briefly afterwards but they went home and I ended up talking to some other Americans. We played the state capitals game and they got me on Maine (Augusta) and also the adjective quiz - there’s two, and Little Rock is the other one.
*depending on your point of view
Montañita
I have to warn you that not much happens in Montañita until the weekend. Ish. There’s lots of surfing here but I have no desire for it. It looks quite cool and I’ve done it in the past and it’s good fun, but I’m all about the relaxing. I’m trying to get a tan but there’s a lot of thin, high level cloud that, when combined with factor 15 sun tan cream, really gets you nowhere. Why does no one stock factor 8 anymore? I must have missed some news or something that says “Factor 8 More Likely to Cause Cancer than the Daily Mail.” Nothing causes more cancer than the Daily Mail – and that's a scientific fact. I mean, there's no proof or anything, but I think you'll all agree that we're all fed up with the scientists and their politically correct 'elf and safety nonsense, trying to erode our hard-won British sovreignty and cowtow us to the whim of expenses-abusing Brussels Eurocrats who are probably lesbians anyway. I mean, scientists brought us Facebook, and that is just a haven for peados and people who like eating babies. So yeah. In conclusion then, the Daily Fail definitely causes cancer.
So I do a bit of sunbathing. I randomly meet one of the Americans from Canoa on the beach so stop to have a chat with him. He then meets another American language school person by random as well, so we all hang out.
In the evening I go out with the Scottish couple for dinner and have a good chat with them. I end up explaining lots of astronomical phenomena, like why the sun is in the north in the Southern Hemisphere, why the moon’s crescent points down at the equator and other such interesting topics*.
I met up with the Americans briefly afterwards but they went home and I ended up talking to some other Americans. We played the state capitals game and they got me on Maine (Augusta) and also the adjective quiz - there’s two, and Little Rock is the other one.
*depending on your point of view
Ghost Town
Tuesday 16 March
Montañita
Most of today was taken up with admin. I did my laundry. I explored the town and looked at all the other hotels to see if there was something cheaper. I found one with wifi, and it was cheaper too! Bingo.
In the evening I searched for the nightlife. There was a big club-type place next door. It was empty. I later worked out that it doesn’t get buy until midnight. After checking out nearly every other bar (it doesn’t take long) I decided to head home. Luckily I started talking to my neighbours who were a nice Scottish couple from Prestwick. I had a good chat with them and then headed to bed.
Montañita
Most of today was taken up with admin. I did my laundry. I explored the town and looked at all the other hotels to see if there was something cheaper. I found one with wifi, and it was cheaper too! Bingo.
In the evening I searched for the nightlife. There was a big club-type place next door. It was empty. I later worked out that it doesn’t get buy until midnight. After checking out nearly every other bar (it doesn’t take long) I decided to head home. Luckily I started talking to my neighbours who were a nice Scottish couple from Prestwick. I had a good chat with them and then headed to bed.
Roll up!
Monday 15 March
Canoa – San Vincente – Bahia – Jipyjapa – Montañita
The dog in my hotel sleeps outside my room. Which is cute, until it decides to bark all night, which is what it did tonight. So that was very annoying. But it is what it is, and I had places to go. Namely Montañita, about six hours south of Canoa.
Frankly I’m fearing travelling by bus in Bolivia, something that will happen in about a month’s time. I’ve heard some horrible stories on my trip so far. Plus there’s the usual factor of you don’t really know what’s going on. I first experienced this on the train from Bangkok to Surat Thani, where there was no way of knowing when I should get off for my stop. Luckily on that occasion I used some mime to work out from a local when to get off. But I comfort myself with the fact that thousands if not millions have done it before and still live to tell the tale*.
So other than the trip from Quito to San Vincente and the trip to the cash machine a few days ago, this was my first proper budget class bus journey. In my mind I had divided it up into six sections:
1. The bus from Canoa to San Vincente
2. The ferry from San Vincente to Bahia
3. The taxi from the ferry terminal to the bus station
4. The bus from Bahia to Jipyjapa
5. The bus from Jipyjapa to Montañita
6. Find a hostel to stay in
The first part was easy, I had done that before.
For the second part, I fortunately saw the ferry pier from the bus as we approached San Vincente so I knew roughly where I had to go. I found it and despite the boat leaning over on one side quite dramatically we ferried across the Rio Chone successfully. They’re building a bridge at the moment, which is a good thing.
Once on the other side there were taxis but more excitingly cyclos waiting to take people away. I picked a cyclo and headed off into town at a leisurely pace. I could have used a cocktail. It seemed I had arrived in a good amount of time to catch the bus to Guayaquil via Jipyjapa, which was provident. Amusingly, Jipyjapa is pronounced “hippy happa” which makes it a fun-sounding town.
Again there was the issue of getting off at the right place and luckily the bus conductor helped me out on this occasion. The guy sitting next to me also wanted to help me out, but he got off at Puerto Viejo a couple of hours before, which wasn’t much use. I also realised that by sitting on the left (driver’s side) I couldn’t see the road signs, so sitting on the right might be a better policy from now on.
So anyway I had a lunch of biscuits and the conductor signalled me to leave when we arrived in Jipyjapa. We were at a basic road junction on the outskirts of the city, and I was wondering where I would find the bus to Montañita. Luckily as soon as I got off there was some guy frantically waving at me to get on his bus. I asked him in fluent Spanish “Montañita?” and he seemed to say something that looked like a positive response. So I got on.
The bus was packed and I had to stand along with the other late arrivals for the first hour or so. Slowly people filtered off and I had a seat soon enough. We seemed to wait for ages in Puerto Lopez but in due course we set off again and arrived in Montañita just before sunset.
I walked down the main street to the beach to see what hostels were there and some Australian guy helped me out. I took a room overlooking the sea. It was nicely turned out though the shower was small but was perfect for the first couple of nights.
So all in all it went very well. I chatted to the Australian couple and a German guy who was with them and ended up hanging out with the German guy that night. He even gave me the rest of his spaghetti which was nice, though it was all the same to him as he was leaving tomorrow and wouldn’t have been able to take it anyway.
He was called Johannes and came from the part of southern Germany that isn’t Bavaria – I didn’t know such places existed. He was half Romanian (“half gypsy” he said) and had a slightly crazy look about him, but in a good way. We were joined by an old, crazy Scottish guy and had some drinks. We had a good laugh and I did a pretty good Hitler impression and made jokes about Nazis which was fun (as in, testing the boundaries of bad taste - not as in an insulting way). We spoke to some Swedish girls which is always nice. He had a term for the squealing noise a dog makes when you step on it which was pretty funny – a “foot trumpet.”
*I am posting this in Peru having been through Bolivia and survived. The buses are better than Ecuador. It helps to pay more for the "tourist class" buses that don't have chickens on them.
Canoa – San Vincente – Bahia – Jipyjapa – Montañita
The dog in my hotel sleeps outside my room. Which is cute, until it decides to bark all night, which is what it did tonight. So that was very annoying. But it is what it is, and I had places to go. Namely Montañita, about six hours south of Canoa.
Frankly I’m fearing travelling by bus in Bolivia, something that will happen in about a month’s time. I’ve heard some horrible stories on my trip so far. Plus there’s the usual factor of you don’t really know what’s going on. I first experienced this on the train from Bangkok to Surat Thani, where there was no way of knowing when I should get off for my stop. Luckily on that occasion I used some mime to work out from a local when to get off. But I comfort myself with the fact that thousands if not millions have done it before and still live to tell the tale*.
So other than the trip from Quito to San Vincente and the trip to the cash machine a few days ago, this was my first proper budget class bus journey. In my mind I had divided it up into six sections:
1. The bus from Canoa to San Vincente
2. The ferry from San Vincente to Bahia
3. The taxi from the ferry terminal to the bus station
4. The bus from Bahia to Jipyjapa
5. The bus from Jipyjapa to Montañita
6. Find a hostel to stay in
The first part was easy, I had done that before.
For the second part, I fortunately saw the ferry pier from the bus as we approached San Vincente so I knew roughly where I had to go. I found it and despite the boat leaning over on one side quite dramatically we ferried across the Rio Chone successfully. They’re building a bridge at the moment, which is a good thing.
Once on the other side there were taxis but more excitingly cyclos waiting to take people away. I picked a cyclo and headed off into town at a leisurely pace. I could have used a cocktail. It seemed I had arrived in a good amount of time to catch the bus to Guayaquil via Jipyjapa, which was provident. Amusingly, Jipyjapa is pronounced “hippy happa” which makes it a fun-sounding town.
Again there was the issue of getting off at the right place and luckily the bus conductor helped me out on this occasion. The guy sitting next to me also wanted to help me out, but he got off at Puerto Viejo a couple of hours before, which wasn’t much use. I also realised that by sitting on the left (driver’s side) I couldn’t see the road signs, so sitting on the right might be a better policy from now on.
So anyway I had a lunch of biscuits and the conductor signalled me to leave when we arrived in Jipyjapa. We were at a basic road junction on the outskirts of the city, and I was wondering where I would find the bus to Montañita. Luckily as soon as I got off there was some guy frantically waving at me to get on his bus. I asked him in fluent Spanish “Montañita?” and he seemed to say something that looked like a positive response. So I got on.
The bus was packed and I had to stand along with the other late arrivals for the first hour or so. Slowly people filtered off and I had a seat soon enough. We seemed to wait for ages in Puerto Lopez but in due course we set off again and arrived in Montañita just before sunset.
I walked down the main street to the beach to see what hostels were there and some Australian guy helped me out. I took a room overlooking the sea. It was nicely turned out though the shower was small but was perfect for the first couple of nights.
So all in all it went very well. I chatted to the Australian couple and a German guy who was with them and ended up hanging out with the German guy that night. He even gave me the rest of his spaghetti which was nice, though it was all the same to him as he was leaving tomorrow and wouldn’t have been able to take it anyway.
He was called Johannes and came from the part of southern Germany that isn’t Bavaria – I didn’t know such places existed. He was half Romanian (“half gypsy” he said) and had a slightly crazy look about him, but in a good way. We were joined by an old, crazy Scottish guy and had some drinks. We had a good laugh and I did a pretty good Hitler impression and made jokes about Nazis which was fun (as in, testing the boundaries of bad taste - not as in an insulting way). We spoke to some Swedish girls which is always nice. He had a term for the squealing noise a dog makes when you step on it which was pretty funny – a “foot trumpet.”
*I am posting this in Peru having been through Bolivia and survived. The buses are better than Ecuador. It helps to pay more for the "tourist class" buses that don't have chickens on them.
Wednesday 21 April 2010
I’m Lazy as a Man Can Be
Sunday 14 March
Canoa
I’m a fan of Formula One. I’ve barely missed a race since 1997. Except for 2002 and 2004 which were as boring as hell. The last three years have been great, and you really have to say that’s down to Lewis Hamilton and Ross Brawn. But anyway that’s another story. Today was the start of the 2010 Formula One season and unfortunately the race was at 7 am local time.
I had spoken to the guy who ran one of the bars in Canoa that had a TV and had the necessary sports channels. He said he would be open for the Grand Prix at 7 am. But I thought there was a good chance that he wouldn’t be, given that he was always drunk whenever I saw him. Not to reinforce cultural stereotypes or anything but the bar was called Shamrock (yes, an Irish bar in Canoa...) and he was Irish!
I woke up nice and early and checked ... the bar was closed. So I resorted to the internet. I managed to find some streaming video of the race although it was in (I think) Russian. But it wasn’t very reliable (not least because the wifi wasn’t the fastest) and every now and then it would stop and I would have to find another one. But with a combination of that and the BBC website live text updates I could follow the race more or less. Apparently it was quite boring but you don’t notice that when you’re constantly waiting for streaming videos to load. It was annoying that the confirmed cheat Alonso won on his debut for Ferrari but you can’t have everything. At least Schumacher was lacklustre. Who would have predicted an Alonso-Massa-Hamilton podium? Later I downloaded the BBC highlights and watch them properly.
There’s not much to do on Sundays in Canoa. Most places close down. I did a bit of sunbathing and there was a massive dog fight (as in a fight consisting of dogs, nothing to do with aeroplanes) on the beach. The barking continued sporadically for much of the rest of the day, and some of the night (see tomorrow’s post).
In the evening I went walking through town but there was nothing happening. I bumped into Carlos and we talked at each other in broken English and Spanish. He sang a song as he played on his bongos which was a bit strange. Where there is Spanish (speaking) people there is always music, as Henri Charrière said. He improvised it apparently and it was actually quite good, though I didn’t know what he was saying.
I spent the evening at the hotel which put on a roast dinner for Sunday, which was nice. I found myself talking to a grumpy old Englishman whose main concern was to top anything you said with something he thought was more interesting, but usually wasn’t. He was really irritating but he did tell me two interesting facts, one was that Quito is full of Elderberry trees, and that they are constantly in all stages of the reproduction cycle – shoots, buds, flowers, seeds – as there are no seasons to adhere to, so they do everything all the time. The other was that lorries and busses usually start in third gear and the first two are only used for going up or starting on hills with heavy loads. FACT!
Canoa
I’m a fan of Formula One. I’ve barely missed a race since 1997. Except for 2002 and 2004 which were as boring as hell. The last three years have been great, and you really have to say that’s down to Lewis Hamilton and Ross Brawn. But anyway that’s another story. Today was the start of the 2010 Formula One season and unfortunately the race was at 7 am local time.
I had spoken to the guy who ran one of the bars in Canoa that had a TV and had the necessary sports channels. He said he would be open for the Grand Prix at 7 am. But I thought there was a good chance that he wouldn’t be, given that he was always drunk whenever I saw him. Not to reinforce cultural stereotypes or anything but the bar was called Shamrock (yes, an Irish bar in Canoa...) and he was Irish!
I woke up nice and early and checked ... the bar was closed. So I resorted to the internet. I managed to find some streaming video of the race although it was in (I think) Russian. But it wasn’t very reliable (not least because the wifi wasn’t the fastest) and every now and then it would stop and I would have to find another one. But with a combination of that and the BBC website live text updates I could follow the race more or less. Apparently it was quite boring but you don’t notice that when you’re constantly waiting for streaming videos to load. It was annoying that the confirmed cheat Alonso won on his debut for Ferrari but you can’t have everything. At least Schumacher was lacklustre. Who would have predicted an Alonso-Massa-Hamilton podium? Later I downloaded the BBC highlights and watch them properly.
There’s not much to do on Sundays in Canoa. Most places close down. I did a bit of sunbathing and there was a massive dog fight (as in a fight consisting of dogs, nothing to do with aeroplanes) on the beach. The barking continued sporadically for much of the rest of the day, and some of the night (see tomorrow’s post).
In the evening I went walking through town but there was nothing happening. I bumped into Carlos and we talked at each other in broken English and Spanish. He sang a song as he played on his bongos which was a bit strange. Where there is Spanish (speaking) people there is always music, as Henri Charrière said. He improvised it apparently and it was actually quite good, though I didn’t know what he was saying.
I spent the evening at the hotel which put on a roast dinner for Sunday, which was nice. I found myself talking to a grumpy old Englishman whose main concern was to top anything you said with something he thought was more interesting, but usually wasn’t. He was really irritating but he did tell me two interesting facts, one was that Quito is full of Elderberry trees, and that they are constantly in all stages of the reproduction cycle – shoots, buds, flowers, seeds – as there are no seasons to adhere to, so they do everything all the time. The other was that lorries and busses usually start in third gear and the first two are only used for going up or starting on hills with heavy loads. FACT!
And I Might as Well Just Grin and Bear It
Saturday 13 March
Canoa
I was hungover today. I was woken up early by someone building a house next to the hotel. Who builds on a Saturday at 7.30 am? Satanists, that’s who. I had a headache, I was tired, I didn’t want to do anything much. So I didn’t.
It was Saturday, and it’s all about the weekend around here as practically nothing happens the rest of the time. Busloads of Ecuadoreans come from Quito, Santo Domingo, Bahia and so on and there’s a party. Though it’s only relatively busy. There’s only about two and a half bars open. But it’s good fun. Or at least it was last night.
I didn’t know what it was like on Saturday as I fell asleep at about 10.30. I was too tired and too hungover. It was like Salvador all over again, except I didn’t have to go out three days in a row.
Canoa
I was hungover today. I was woken up early by someone building a house next to the hotel. Who builds on a Saturday at 7.30 am? Satanists, that’s who. I had a headache, I was tired, I didn’t want to do anything much. So I didn’t.
It was Saturday, and it’s all about the weekend around here as practically nothing happens the rest of the time. Busloads of Ecuadoreans come from Quito, Santo Domingo, Bahia and so on and there’s a party. Though it’s only relatively busy. There’s only about two and a half bars open. But it’s good fun. Or at least it was last night.
I didn’t know what it was like on Saturday as I fell asleep at about 10.30. I was too tired and too hungover. It was like Salvador all over again, except I didn’t have to go out three days in a row.
I’m Miles from Where You Are
Friday 12 March
Canoa
I received some bad news today about a relative that has the advanced stages of cancer. They might not last before I come home. It made me very sad. I cried. With a cloud over my head I didn’t do much today. I sat on the beach for a while. I fell asleep in the afternoon. I woke up and managed to catch the sunset which was spectacular. I took lots of photos.
In the evening there was an official event at the hostel I was staying at. Some American guy had set up a PA and was playing acoustic guitar to the few people there. So I sat and listened with the rest of them. He was playing old country and western and blues type music – stuff which I didn’t know – though he did throw in some classics as well like Here Comes the Sun. He went on for ages and I ate supper. But eventually he went for a break, so I asked him if I could play a few tunes. He said I could so he set me up and I did my thing.
I played Mr. Jones by Counting Crows, Green Eyes by Coldplay, The One I love by R.E.M., Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd and There Is a Light that Will Never Go Out by The Smiths. They all went down really well and I played pretty well given that I hadn’t picked up a guitar in a couple of months. It was pretty emotional for me, especially given the morning’s news, particularly the last two songs. Also, by playing songs that people actually knew I managed to draw in a bigger crowd to the hostel.
There was a local Ecuadorean guy called Carlos who had been teaching the Americans from Buffalo to surf. He turned up during the first song and started playing bongos along with me and all the others who played afterwards. He was a cool guy and pretty good.
The American guy played some more and then some Ecuadoreans played some Spanish music. There was a guy called Pablo who played particularly well, it was fun to watch. I was talking to his friend Diego who spoke a bit of English. I went up for a second session and played Man on the Moon and The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight by R.E.M., Let It Come Down Gently by me, and Crazy by Gnarls Barkley. Eventually everything came to a finish round midnight. I was pretty drunk and a couple of locals convinced me to go on to another bar. We drank at another bar and then when that closed we moved on to a small beach that probably wasn’t meant to be open but they get away with it. Diego and Pablo were my drinking buddies even though I had stopped buying, they kept on giving me beer. Eventually I had to call it a night at around 3.
Canoa
I received some bad news today about a relative that has the advanced stages of cancer. They might not last before I come home. It made me very sad. I cried. With a cloud over my head I didn’t do much today. I sat on the beach for a while. I fell asleep in the afternoon. I woke up and managed to catch the sunset which was spectacular. I took lots of photos.
In the evening there was an official event at the hostel I was staying at. Some American guy had set up a PA and was playing acoustic guitar to the few people there. So I sat and listened with the rest of them. He was playing old country and western and blues type music – stuff which I didn’t know – though he did throw in some classics as well like Here Comes the Sun. He went on for ages and I ate supper. But eventually he went for a break, so I asked him if I could play a few tunes. He said I could so he set me up and I did my thing.
I played Mr. Jones by Counting Crows, Green Eyes by Coldplay, The One I love by R.E.M., Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd and There Is a Light that Will Never Go Out by The Smiths. They all went down really well and I played pretty well given that I hadn’t picked up a guitar in a couple of months. It was pretty emotional for me, especially given the morning’s news, particularly the last two songs. Also, by playing songs that people actually knew I managed to draw in a bigger crowd to the hostel.
There was a local Ecuadorean guy called Carlos who had been teaching the Americans from Buffalo to surf. He turned up during the first song and started playing bongos along with me and all the others who played afterwards. He was a cool guy and pretty good.
The American guy played some more and then some Ecuadoreans played some Spanish music. There was a guy called Pablo who played particularly well, it was fun to watch. I was talking to his friend Diego who spoke a bit of English. I went up for a second session and played Man on the Moon and The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight by R.E.M., Let It Come Down Gently by me, and Crazy by Gnarls Barkley. Eventually everything came to a finish round midnight. I was pretty drunk and a couple of locals convinced me to go on to another bar. We drank at another bar and then when that closed we moved on to a small beach that probably wasn’t meant to be open but they get away with it. Diego and Pablo were my drinking buddies even though I had stopped buying, they kept on giving me beer. Eventually I had to call it a night at around 3.
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