29th October

New role-play for today. The Post Office. K told me there was a DHL on Avenida Colón which is a big smelly road that terminates at the end of my street. Found it, went in, showed all the bits I wanted to send home to the lady behind the counter. We both laughed at a present I had bought my mum (sorry, Mum, no clues here, you will have to wait). Neither of us were laughing when she weighed the items and told me the shipping price to Bham. $207. She leant forward across the counter and said the magic words "It is much cheaper if you just go to the normal post office, and it is secure too". This contradicts the Rough Guide but seeing as it also said Quito was a fun and happening place I took the chance.

Went to the main post office, a short walk down Colón on the corner of Reina Victoria. The grumpy old moo behind this counter did give me a free box and tape to wrap it up and then growled the instructions on what to complete form-wise. The cost came to a more appealing $41 and should hopefully arrive in 20 days.

I have also found the hotel I am due to join the Galápagos tour from - it is well plush. I walked past it twice thinking I could never afford to stay there!

For once I am writing the blog as it happens as shortly I need to go and pick up the revived washing, buy some travel sickness pills for the boat, a towel and some roses for Maria. Then comes the joy of pacing my cases and moving out. This time tomorrow I will be in the Galapágos islands. From now on I will be touring rather than having a permanent base which has formed the basis for the first half of the trip so the updates will be less regular.

***Addendum
Was late for the welcome meeting. Met the lot on the tour. Some pretty old but look reasonably in shape. Checked into the room in the hotel. HOT shower, HOT shave! Had dinner with the new gang - Sharon (divorcee), Ian and Jackie (retired), Krys, Suneel and Jaz (young testers from Accenture). All of the above are from Canada. One yank on tour. Doing well. Had an enormous sandwich of steak, egg, cheese, ham and bacon. I am rooming with Krys who is a slightly louder version of Bob but looks decidedly like Roland Browning. He also informed me he snores like a mule.