so.....we left Ecuador about three weeks ago by bus.....24 hours from Vilcabamba in the south of Ecuador to Colombia.....about 24 hours.....all was good past the border into Pasto, Colombia where we met some friends.....there was a beautiful cultural conference there for one week with many spiritual leaders and shamans from around the world.....we participated in an Ayahuasca ceremony with many beautiful people in the backdrop of the stars and two waterfalls.....what a dream. After a week in Pasto, we traveled north back to Cali, Colombia....the highway from Pasto to Popayan is muy caliente.....what I mean is it is hot with police because this road is heavy with trafficking of the devil's white powder....our bus was pulled over and searched twice.....how exciting....we stood back and watched while they took care of their business....one man got taken away because he was in possession of Gold....the political climate is crazy....I don't really understand all the goings on, but the police have the power over the people and whatever they say goes apparently....the key is not to draw attention to oneself and all is good...two glorious weeks in Cali and then we started to travel South again.....about one and a half hours south of Cali on the road to Popayan the traffic came to a stand still....I was dead asleep.....when I awoke we got out of the bus to have a look and find some good eats only to see a massive line of cars stopped for miles....Police, military and the Guerilla were said to be ahead....there was a blockade in the road so no one could pass....some indigenous peoples had started a protest and were rioting, which caused chaos of catastrophic proportions....the road was closed for more than a day and a half......when I say catastrophic I mean we saw the live news footage from a cafe and there were army tanks and people throwing fire and granades......a serious protest.....at any rate we waited about 7 hours then turned the bus around and headed back to Cali......I needed to get to Quito for a flight....seeing as the road was closed I had to travel by air.....and once again I am in Quito....swinging in a hammock on a balcony in the crisp evening air....tomorrow traveling again....destination undeclared.....
