World Run II / Reports

The map shows the position of which the pictures for the day are taken (if any). The start and finish markers are placed at the first and last valid registered position. This is not nessesary the actual start and finish position, if GSM or GPS signals was not available.

Goto: 2011-11-07 2011-11-09 Equador

2011-11-08:

46
Distance today: 20.0 km (Accumulated: 30020.0 km)
Elapsed time: 02:05:15
Country: Equador

Start 12:18, 11c, rain, thunder & l.wind, at km-marker "km 195" on hwy. E35 to Colombia. Finish 15:31pm., 10c, light rain & no wind, at km-marker "km 215" on hwy. E35 to Colombia.

Last day in Equador

Today was the last full day in Equador. To my surprise this contry and not least running through it, has filled me with some of the most contraidicting emostions of any part of the world I have run in.

On one hand there is a nature, stunning to an extend that only the run across Russia & Siberia in 2004 comes even remotely close to the purity of the nature, the variety, the breathtaking vistas' across remote valley and mountains. And.. Siberia is 75000km across when running from West to East (Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, as part of my first run around the world, 2004-2005). Equador, on the other hand has a similar vareity of nature, but, within 900km straight across the contry. Its amazing to experiense, if even that word seems a bit empty to really describe the scale and multitude of habitats in this small contry. I guess you will just have to come and see for yourself :-)

Yet, on the other hand: The traffic, the behavior of the else kind and friendly people of Equador - is simply the worst and most unpleasant I have had to run through in now more than 55 000km of running (world run 1 & world run 2). The full disreguard for the safety of anyone not inside a car - and a car which is a big enough to pose a risk - is beyond what I can understand. I could perhaps find a way to explain it if the living conditions, the economy or other factors were very hard in Equador, that the value of life wouldnt matter much in the struggle for survival. But; that is not the case. There is a richness of nature beyond comprehension. A fairly good economy. Fairly good education. A friendly & curitous culture towards foreigners. Still, the grim experiense of people smiling, sometimes waving while they at the same time make you jump of the side of the road in order not to be hit at high speed... I makes one dislike this people like I hope not to dislike any other place. I am certain that this behaviour is not on purpose or understood, much raugher its probably the lack of understading of the fact that traffic is no childs-play'. This is the closest I can come to describe how it fealt to run through the traffic on the main roads in Equador: To run at a highway with children-drivers, smiling, waving and having no clue whatsoever that they are putting others at risk of their life. So very unpleasant - and sad to see the reminder at roadside of the many accidents.

Goodbye Equador; I'd love to come back and see the nature again. And I at the same time make the promise to myself that I will never run in this contry again. The positive is that this is only a thing I can say about 2-3 contries out of approximately 35-40 contries run through by now (the others beeing Northern Ethipia with 1500km of daily stone throwing from locals on my run, and Argentina where there seems to be almost as bad a driving culture). The other contries - have been a pleasure far beyond expectation to run in :-))