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Announcements
Posted by: perry on 03/12/2009 07:51 PM
Updated by: perry on 11/26/2009 03:14 AM
Expires: 01/01/2014 12:00 AM
Pasto and Leaving Colombia
We spent the night just outside of Pasto after being dropped off at a gas station by a couple of truckers. The ride to the city was just a short downhill ride and we had finally arrived in our last stop on our way through Colombia. We arrived on the 27th of February and needed to leave the country by the 6th of March. So, because of our good luck in hitchhiking we managed to shave a few days off our traveling which enabled us to actually see Pasto rather than just pass by. We ended up spending five nights there. Read more...
So, we found a place to stay at Hotel Manhattan where we had a great big room. There was also the first bathtub that I'd seen in months with hot water too. So I made myself a great big joint, filled the tub, and soaked my weary bones. Ahhhhhhhhhhh. Then when Austin finally got around to taking his shower we went to see if we could find someone to work on his bike stereo. We found a guy and bought the parts needed to make things work. He said he'd have it finished in the morning. After that we headed into the city to see what's going on there on a Friday night. Well, we went to one bar and had expensive beer while a band was setting up. We finished our beers and left before our ears started bleeding. Then we wandered the streets looking for another bar, any bar, as long as it wasn't playing salsa or valenates. We found one and Austin went in while I waited outside finishing a cig. Well, out came a really drunk girl who looked straight up at me and we just started talking. She dragged me over to the nearest beer stand and bought me one and one for her and her friend. Then Austin came out of the bar wonder where the fuck I was and annoyed that the music there went from bearable to "Wind of Change" by the scorpions (poor guy). Suddenly there was a taxi and the girl I was talking to was whisked away and I was left with my beer, her beer, and her friend's beer. Austin and I drank them and ended up just hanging out there drinking the cheaper beer off the street and watching the drunks fall down or fall off chairs. Entertaining to say the least.
The next day we spent a LONG time looking for a place to wash our clothes. Eventually we found one but it wouldn't be ready until Monday evening, so that secured that we wouldn't leave until then. Austin went on the net so I went back to the hotel with nothing really to do. I turned on the TV and the new Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was on. I'd never seen it, got nicely stoned, and loved it. But the original is better for sure. Then came on some highlights from Carnival in Bucharamanga. Cool shit! We found a really great pizza place for dinner and stuffed ourselves then headed back to the hotel too full to even think about going out and seeing what's goes on in Pasts on a Saturday night. Austin forgot to pick up his bike stereo and got there too late when I reminded him.
Sunday sucked. Nobody was on the streets. Nothing was open. I walked a bit. I watched TV. I went on another walk. BOOOOOORRRRRRIIINNNNGGGGG.
My big accomplishment for Monday was to find a new gasket for my pump. It took a while but eventually I found one. Actually I bought 5 (they were less than $0.20 each). I also spent some time talking to the old man who buys and sells junk right outside the hotel. When we first arrived he was a total jackass but this time we talked for quite a while. He showed me his money collection from around the world and I ended up buying a brass angel for the front of Austin's bike and a small pocket knife for me. The angel is AWESOME! I hid it in Austin's ganga bag so when he got back it didn't take him long to find it. The next day Austin got a screw put into the bottom of the Angel and it fit on the front of his bike perfectly. Pics to come soon! Austin went to get his stereo and it still wasn't done. So our stay in Pasto had to be extended, as boring as it was. I also got a new cone and my rear hub repacked all for free because of the friendliness of a local bike shop! How cool!
The stereo was finished late in the day on Tuesday, and Austin still didn't have speakers for the stereo yet. So we had to stay yet another night. During the day I watched a lot of TV including a Christopher Lloyd film, Camp Nowhere. It was great! Christopher Lloyd rocks! Then we went back to the pizza place from two nights ago because it rocked so much. Back at the hotel we were planning on watching Batman Returns but instead watched Escape from New York. Definitely better!
In the morning Austin went out to quickly buy some speakers. He had a good idea what he wanted. It took hours. But anyhow we got out of town and climbed for 16k which I did non-stop. At the top I waited for 45 minutes for him to catch up even though he had caught the back of a truck for a few km too. I had some agua panela and cheese cake while waiting and shivering. Then we had a nice long drop which took us over a really narrow and deep canyon guarded by the military. We weren't allowed to take pictures and only after asking a few times was I allowed to even look into the canyon and see the raging river below. We went a little further uphill to the next town and changed clothes to start hitchhiking to the border. Well, we were instantly surrounded by kids, like 30 of them. It was fun but night was quickly approaching. We had to cycle away from the village before we could hitch and only had about half an hour before it got dark. So we went in search of a place to sleep and ended up in a really funny place. We found a strip club which was closed because it was Thursday and they had cheap rooms and we could use their kitchen to make dinner. I went out to look for veg and got a bunch for free and we had pasta. Then some of the girls that work at the bar (wider than taller) came in we spent a while talking with them. It was a funny night.
The next morning we cycled to the first restaurant, had breakfast, then got started on our way to Ipiales and the border to Ecuador. The road was closed to one direction at a time so we decided to hitch from there because everyone had to stop and wait. It didn't take long before we had a ride to 3km before the border. We took the downhill drop to immigration and checked out of Colombia one day before our visa's expired. But before going to the Ecuador immigration office we got started talking to a couple space cadets who were traveling the other direction. They called themselves Falcon and Nimo. Nimo told me that if you close your eyes you'll really see what's going on around you on the inside of your eyelids. Total space cadet! But we talked to them for over an hour before actually leaving Colombia.
Colombia was really great. One thing that we kept hearing while traveling there was that we needed to tell everyone how good our time was there. Colombia has a really bad rap as being dangerous. Well, we never had a problem and met a lot of really cool and exciting people. The places we've been to have been amazing, especially the nature! I would have liked to spend more time in Colombia but it costs a lot of money to extend the visa along with a photo and descriptions of tattoos. Even without the money it was too expensive. So we had to leave. But on the other hand it made sure we got to Ecuador on time so that we could get to the capital, Quito, by the 12th of March. My parents are coming and their plane should be landing while I'm posting this. So it's time to go.
Thank you Colombia!!!!
Peace,
Perry
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