Day 52: Bogota – Quito, Ecuador

Sunday, May 19th, 2019.

Todays plan:

“Bogota to Quito, Ecuador

Check out at the Cranky Croc and make your own way to Aeroporto Internacional El Dorado, Bogota

Fly from Bogot to Quito

Quito Airport Pick-up
From: Quito Airport To: Hostel Blue House, Quito; A Local partner will be waiting for you at the arrival gate holding a sign with your name on it.

Check In to the Blue House hostel, Quito“

It is raining, so no last trip on Monserrat. Unfortunately last Cranky Croc breakfast.

I pack my things flight ready. Then I pay, room upgrade, breakfasts, dinners, supercheap, 4 says for less than 60 eur. The lady at the reception is slave of her IT system. It is the same all over the world.

Then I call a Uber. He is there within 5 minutes. Bags in the trunk and off I go.

Airport is super modern, processes are super slow at Avianca. I wait more than an hour to drop my bag after electronic checkin. I go to Tax refund for the Northface Jacket. Super easy process. Within 10 minutes all is fixed and I get a refund on my credit card within 3 months … We’ll see.

Then security, already short in time. I have lots of pesos left. I check duty free, only overpriced shit, I get a coffee and change into USD, I will need them anyway in Ecuador. The exchange rate is suprisingly good, better than withdrawing USD.

Then I board the plane. Jam in the boarding gate. All back. No, stop, ok now. Jam. All back. No, we board the plane.

FLIGHT 10: 19.05.2019 Avianca AV111 Bogota (BOG) 13:35 – Quito (UIO) 15:18; flight time 1h43m;
Economy; checked luggage: 23 kg, 10 + 5 kg carry on; Seat 24D; Airbus A320neo; 500 star alliance bonus miles

middle seat stays free. I watch American Gods. The lady diagonally behing me doesnot like the explicit pictures.

ood thing I bought food on the airport, food in the plane sucks.

At the airport the driver is already waiting. We wait for another guy who goes with us, a german Ecuadorian. Then we go to the city. Blue House hotel seems to be a slum, everything is rotten and at least 50 years in use. At least the room is huge and quiet and clean. Shower has hot water, there is wifi.

At least it’s a Trinitron

I go with a Uber to the next shoppong mall, Santafe. There is a claro shop which is open on sundays to get a sim. english speaking people there, 4,5 usd for the sim, 10 usd for a promo for 3 gb of data. No queue, everything easy. The give me 1 usd coins for change. Never seen this before.

In the same shopping mall we find a northface shop and buy a bandana and a jacket. Then we leave and walk home. Nobody on the streets, it is not far. On the way we stop by a cuban restaurant – sunday seems to be dead day for restaurants. Food is proper, chorizo sausage is not considered as meat or pork.