Arrived in Quito !!

Somewhere between Manchester and London

My Yotel Pod

Approach to Quito

The train journey from Manchester to London was relatively uneventful. I met Larissa and her sister Saskia (both of whom I have known the 29 years of my existence) for a couple of drinks and then made my way to Heathrow on the tube to access my pod (www.yotel.com). 4 m2 of pure practicality. Despite a very comfy bed I didn't get to that much sleep. Partly due to the exitement and partly due to a sliding door which kept opening and closing. After a complimentary bottle of water from the chekout desk I made my way to Iberia counter in Terminal 2 to check my baggage in. The ady at the desk politely informed me that I had been upgraded to Business Class for my flight from Madrid to Quito. How civilized is all I could think of. After rushing through adrid Airport I installed myself in my fully automated seat the size of our livingroom couch. After complimentary champagne ( I was torn but ended up going for the water - I know I was lame) I had a look at the menu and opted to feast on the smoked tuna and gazpacho followed by the pigs knuckle and quince main course which I devoured alongside the sommelier's choice of red wine. I finished with the rasperry sorbet. I entertained myself playing with the chair and watching a couple of movies, had some real sleep and dreamt that I would never have to fly cattle class again! Whilst in the toilet I realized that the set of pants my parents gave me had a big rip down the bag. I must have looked like a total hobo prancing around the business class cabin in little more than a loin cloth. I passed immigrations without a hitch and checked into the Hostal Vagabundo, which I had stayed in previously. I am now sitting in the Magic Bean (a horrible tourist hang out saved my the fact that they have free wireless and amazing smoothies and milkshakes) downing a banana-milkshake and munching on sme ibuprofen and paracetamol to get rid of a splitting headache... Life is hard (sigh)  ;)

The Storm before the Calm:

I have been scratching my head lately as to what to take with me on my journey. 6 month's is a considerable amount of time and considering that I have a full research schedule makes the idea of traveling 'light' fly straight out of the window. I am having to provide my own electricity to be able to recharge a computer, a camera and an ipod (which I will use for both interviews and to ensure that my own sanity, stays more or less intact. Needless to say, I am questioning the sanity part when I think about 6 months of self-imposed exile. Richard, my boss, is a little bit of a gadget freak ( and this is a massive understatement - I am sure he agrees) has come up with a cunning plan to attach a set of solar panels to a motorbike battery and then use the charged battery to power all the electronic equipment. I haven't got the slightest clue as to how to do that but I am sure I will learn rather quickly. Anyways, here's a list of things that I will be carrying around with me...

2x Solar Panels (already in Ecuador)

1x Motorcycle Battery (still to buy in Ecuador)

1x Power Inverter (still to buy)

1x MacBook

1x MacBook Powerlead

1x Extra Macbook Battery

1x 160 GB iPod

1x iTalk microphone

1x small Sony Stereo Microphone

1x Nikon D300

4x Nikon Batteries

1x Nikon Battery charger

1x Nikon 17-55mm  f2.8 Lens

1x Nikon 10.5mm f2.8 Fisheye Lens (For Canopy Analysis)

1x Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 Zoom Lens

1x Sigma 2x Teleconverter

8x 2 GB SanDisk Extreme III Memory Cards

1x Nikon SB600 Flash 

1x Flash cord

1x Voigtlaender R2 35mm Lens 

60x Rolls Ilford HP5

1x Small Tripod

16x Rechargeable AA Batteries

16x Rechargeable AAA Batteries

Battery Charger

1x Head Torch

1x Mini Maglite AA Torch + LED converter

1x Small camping cooker (to buy in Ecuador)

1x Cooking ware

1x Camping Cutlery

1x Kestrel 4500 weather station

1x 20m Tape Measure

1x Satellite Phone + Charger

1x EPIRB

4x Longsleeved T-shirts

3x t-shirts

3x Combat Trousers

7x Pairs of Underwear

5x Socks

1x Jumper

1x Sandals

1x Shoes

1x Rubber Boots for the actual Jungle

1x Travel towel

1x Swimming shorts

1x 50% Deet Spray

1x Permethrin Spray

1x Mosquito Net

1x Sleeping Bag Liner

1x Hammock

1x Thin Sleeping Bag

1x Sleeping Mat

1x Water Bottle

2x Waterproof Notebooks

1x Notebook

1x First-Aid Kit

1x Snake Anti-Venoms

1x Wire-Mesh for locking Bags (usually don't use these when traveling but considering the amount of expensive equipment and the fact that I might have to leave all of this in unlocked places for hours or days I thought better safe than sorry)

1x Online Banking Equipment

1x Leatherman

1x String

1x Bandana

1x Hat

1x Sunglasses