11.26.2017 The Ecuadoran border wasn't too far away, so we headed for Ipiales the next morning, the last town in Colombia and the Cathedral at Las Lajas. He was fascinated by the bike and thrilled to sit on it. Mama was shy and tried to hide behind the baby Random Savant sighting Tossing gear into the hotel and chilling out for little bit, we then grabbed a taxi for the short ride out of town to Las Lajas. The gothic style Cathedral spans a river gorge and is quite the contra

12.04.2017 From Ibarra, the next stop was a brief one to see Otavalo and its famous textile markets, even though it was not Saturday when the big one occurs. Stopping at the main plaza, vendors were just getting going and even though it wasn't market day, it was impressive. The goods were handmade and more interesting than much of the crap I'd seen elsewhere. For the first time I was wishing for a way to buy a bunch of things for home - blankets, ponchos I'd never wear, carvi

12.06.2017 The day before leaving Baños, Christine, Jules and I walked the town and the outskirts. The cemetery was an interesting layout I've not seen before. It's like a small town with houses for the dead and their families. There are streets and blocks, the buildings looking different, the niches filled with those passed on and empty spots for the remainder. It's like a white city of the dead, a continuation of life where you move into your next home a few blocks up the w

12.08.2017 Walking the main area of Cuenca, I was happy to find a city that wasn't obnoxious, but instead was beautiful and fairly tranquil. The main plaza was filled with people and the large cathedral was one of the most beautiful I've yet been in. It was monstrously large and one of the more impressive from this trip. When I first walked into the back of the cathedral, a strong incense seemed to be in the air... until I realized the foggy mist was, in fact, aerosol spray

12.16.2017 The bike had left a good size oil puddle in the dining room of the hotel the first night, but afterwards didn't leak another drop. Miracles happen, but I wasn't dumb enough to think the oil seal had healed itself. The search for a solution to a very big dilemma began. Michnus told me Kevin Chow, a friend and fellow adventurer on a BMW similar to mine, had had a main seal failure in Quito a few weeks earlier. A local shop there, MotoHell, had done a great job workin

12.21.2017 With the motorcycle broken down and waiting for parts, I had plenty of time for some street photography. Here's a few more images from my wanderings in Cuenca. #Cuenca #Ecuador #Adventure #Travel #Photography #Motorcycle

12.24.2017 In my wanderings and walks to Mojeron Moto to stare forlornly at my bike, I'd run across a little restaurant tucked away on a side street. It turned out to be run by a local who'd worked in Chicago for 10 years, and on his return to Cuenca had opened a US style eatery. The bar portion was run by a Canadian expat lady and they dished up some ribs and barbecue sauce for me. Dang tasty and a nice break from local rice dishes. The upshot was, I got invited to an expat

12.25.2017 I’d been stranded in Cuenca, Ecuador for almost the entire month of December, staying in a hotel and waiting for parts to repair my motorcycle, concurrent with the holiday season and delays inherent in the culture. I was under much stress, watching my timeline to beat the snow at the southern tip of the continent slip away, unsure as to whether the motorcycle could be repaired - if not, my trip was finished and if so, would it be reliable for the rest of my trek?