Ecuador Adventures
The character Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings is quoted to say “It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
Yesterday I jumped on a bus to go to Quito just to get a special copy of Kimberly's Ecuadorian birth certificate from the main Civil Registration office. As the bus headed out of the city toward Quito the news on the bus tv was showing some demonstrations going on in Guayaquil, and what looked to me like Quito. Because I couldn't hear well, I asked the bus helper if he thought there would be any serious problems in Quito, and he assured me not to worry. ;-)
Well the rest you can read in the news. Yesterday turned out to be quite the day here in Ecuador. As we neared the city the road to the northern bus terminal was blocked, so the driver said he was going to try to go to the southern terminal (an hour detour) which worked out fine for me, I thot, as that was closer to the Registration office. Well, he dropped me off two blocks from the office, which to my dismay was closed because of the police strike. On the ride there I had learned that the road between Quito and Ibarra was also closed in places so I didn't have much hope of getting back to Ibarra that night. I flagged a taxi to take me to an area in the city where there are several mission guest houses. There I was able to hole up, and watch in horror as the news unfolded. The president being held hostage, then later as the Army coming in to rescue him, along with the shooting, was all carried live on TV. Tonight, as I traced the route the taxi took in getting me from south Quito to north Quito, I realized that we had unknowingly gone right by the place where the President was being held hostage!
Today as the Army and Police went back to work, things calmed down and I was thankfully able to return to Ibarra. Tomorrow, Lord willing, we are off to our home on the mountain top again which is really where I prefer being when such uprisings happen!
Because I wasn't able to do any of the paperwork that I had hoped during my trip to Quito, that is still on my to-do list for next week. I just hope that the next time I go out my door will not be as dangerous as yesterday, and I'm really glad that I have a God who directs my steps in spite of my plans! Prov 6:19
Thanks for your prayers,
Kevin Bruce
Yesterday I jumped on a bus to go to Quito just to get a special copy of Kimberly's Ecuadorian birth certificate from the main Civil Registration office. As the bus headed out of the city toward Quito the news on the bus tv was showing some demonstrations going on in Guayaquil, and what looked to me like Quito. Because I couldn't hear well, I asked the bus helper if he thought there would be any serious problems in Quito, and he assured me not to worry. ;-)
Well the rest you can read in the news. Yesterday turned out to be quite the day here in Ecuador. As we neared the city the road to the northern bus terminal was blocked, so the driver said he was going to try to go to the southern terminal (an hour detour) which worked out fine for me, I thot, as that was closer to the Registration office. Well, he dropped me off two blocks from the office, which to my dismay was closed because of the police strike. On the ride there I had learned that the road between Quito and Ibarra was also closed in places so I didn't have much hope of getting back to Ibarra that night. I flagged a taxi to take me to an area in the city where there are several mission guest houses. There I was able to hole up, and watch in horror as the news unfolded. The president being held hostage, then later as the Army coming in to rescue him, along with the shooting, was all carried live on TV. Tonight, as I traced the route the taxi took in getting me from south Quito to north Quito, I realized that we had unknowingly gone right by the place where the President was being held hostage!
Today as the Army and Police went back to work, things calmed down and I was thankfully able to return to Ibarra. Tomorrow, Lord willing, we are off to our home on the mountain top again which is really where I prefer being when such uprisings happen!
Because I wasn't able to do any of the paperwork that I had hoped during my trip to Quito, that is still on my to-do list for next week. I just hope that the next time I go out my door will not be as dangerous as yesterday, and I'm really glad that I have a God who directs my steps in spite of my plans! Prov 6:19
Thanks for your prayers,
Kevin Bruce
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