Robbed!
Trip Start
Jan 16, 2008
1
25
35
Trip End
Apr 19, 2008
Quito,
Ecuador
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Today we had decided to go to Mitad del Mundo (the middle of the world) where they have a museum and a monument and things right there on the equator. It's only 20km north of town, so it seems stupid to have been so close and not been. Alas, it was not to be - a moment's carelessness changed all that...
We packed all our cameras and things carefully in our Pacsafe backpack, safe in the knowledge that we wouldn't be victims of a slashed bag. Wallet in hidden zipped pocket, just a couple of bucks in my front pocket, and then the fatal mistake - my Palm in one of the pockets of my cargos. To get to Mitad del Mundo we knew we had to take the Trole bus and then change to the MetroBus Q and then finally to a direct bus to Mitad del Mundo
525. Hole 30m deep, 50m round. Taken from TV
. The Trole is very well know as a pickpockets paradise and there it happened. We'd gotten on the Trole and I could still feel my Palm in my pocket. The bus was pretty packed so we had to stand for the first 3 stops. Then heaps of people got off and we could sit. As I sat, I felt my pocket and GONE! Just like that. Pocket closed with velcro, loose fitting pants, but I can normally feel anything in that pocket. Didn't here or feel a thing. It's covered on insurance, so that's no biggie, but it's a real pain the the arse! And it's password protected with a self-destruct, so they won't even get at my data. But it's the data that is most annoying to lose - my address book, our itinerary, our budget, all my books. Arrrgh!!! I haven't read a paper book for years, I read everything electronically these days - that's how I can travel with a hundred books and read most of them :)
Just shows that you can never be too careful. Shame that our last memory of Ecuador is of some bastard on a bus.
Off to Costa Rica & Nicaragua tomorrow, a little shaken, but not stirred...
