3 cities, 2 clinics, 1 boat ride and 2 bus rides = 1 crazy 16 hr tour of Ecuador.

The boat was supposed to be there at 6am.  However we heard the word 'gringos' coming up from the river at about 5:30 am.  We hurriedly pulled ourselves off of our bare mattresses and dashed to the boat with our belongings for the start of a very long day.  With raw asses from the previous two days of boat rides, thankfully this ride took a little less time becuase we were heading downstream.  Watching the day slowly begin on the foggy river through our foggy brains was a nice way to wake up.  The Cayapas river and its tributaries are truly beautiful, and resemble many of the pictures we'd seen of the jungle rivers to the east.

After getting our outboard motor replaced in the middle of the trip, we pass by flotillas of rafts.  Logging of the jungle is ocurring at an alarming pace, and the rough hewn planks are lashed together into large rafts and floated down the river to the nearest road for pick up.  We see folks cooking breakfast on the rafts, as it must take many days to float down to the pickup. 

We arrive in Borbon and meet with another hospital director for the Esmaraldas province.  We inadvertedly get some insight into why many of the public institutions seem so short on supplies.  Only about 3% of the money from the Ministry of Finance goes to actual medications.  Roughly 90% of the money ends up going to the salaries of the people in charge.  Key word for the health care system in Ecuador: corruption.

The largest hospital in the area.

We chase down a bus leaving Borbon just before it leaves, and 4 hours later we find ourselves in Esmaraldas.  The city of Esmaraldas is well-known as being the most dangerous city in Ecuador.  We hold our belongings close as we make our way to the INH lab in town.  Samples from places like Borbon and Zapallo Grande are sent here to be analyzed.  We are greeted warmly and have a very nice discussion with one of the lab technicians.  These people seem to work hard and have an interest in doing the right thing, but an inherent lack of support is working against them.  We see them reusing pipette tips, and I don't think I ever saw anyone using latex gloves, even when working with blood samples.

Unlabeled samples cover the workbenches.

After eating some lunch, we get on the first bus back to Quito.  Five hours later, we arrive to the comfort of Casa de Welty.  We reunite with our long-last team member (Anat), who appears to be feeling much better.  Sleep comes easily this night after a truly memorable trip.

-Tanner