Chris in the Sweet Spot...

Again, almost everyone was gone, and the only people that I hung out with before and who were still in Montanita, were Karin (CH) & her new boyfriend Miguel (COL) and Mariella (ARG). Karin & Miguel maybe knew each other for 4 days before they somehow had the glorious idea to move into a place in Montanita together. Maybe because they liked each other so much and maybe cuz Karin was homeless, as her hostel needed the 3-bed room for ripping off tourists. Miguel was somehow cool with the moving together thing and since he worked 13hrs a day as a vendedor at the beach (selling these wristbands and other random shit), he was glad to have someone keeping the bed warm…

Mariella was a girl that Karin randomly asked at the beach to watch over her things for a few minutes and the same evening Karin brought her to a group dinner and from then on she hung out with us. Actually, she was here to work a bit for a month and earn some money before her boyfriend from Buenos Aires would also touch down in Ecuador and they’d then start travelling a bit. At the beginning she worked in the Casa Blanca, a for Ecuadorian standards expensive restaurant and attached Hotel, but one day they let everyone go for no reason.

Contradictionary to some others, Mariella was someone who I really liked to be around. She was witty, smart and had the same great humor that I am lucky to have. :D
Don’t get me wrong, not that I didn’t like the others, but sometimes they just shot over the top, exaggerated a bit too much and had the same attention span like squirrels. So Mariella was a good change for a while and despite the fact that we mostly ate in a group of 4 it was bearable.

A few days into the week, my buddy Wladi from Quito, who Chris and I met thanks to Russ, came to Montanita to celebrate a few days with Chris and me. Unfortunately he could only stay for two days, which was unfortunate, because Chris wanted to come to visit me too, but not until a day later. But never the less, Wladi and I met up and also encountered with a Belgium/ Australian couple that Russ also introduced to Wladi in Quito, just a week before we arrived there. So again it was the 4 of us hitting it hard in Cocktail Alley and the nearby Shisha-places.

During this night we came up with a really stupid idea. As a few of you might know, last year when Chris came to visit Jens, Stefan and me in Eastbourne just before Christmas, we did a Roadtrip up to Leeds to meet the 5^th person of out little entourage Caru. There he told us about a thing called “Otley-Run” which basically consists of hitting 18 Pubs, drink a pint each and then be able to get into any club in Leeds for free. Sounds simple, but it isn’t, trust me!!
It took us about 12hrs to get to every bar, we spend about 150 pounds each that night and had lunch/ dinner like 4 times in between. The night is now commonly known as our personal “Hangover” experience.

Well, I don’t know what I was thinking, but somehow I suggested to apply the Otley-Run onto Cocktail Alley in Montanita for the next day, when Chris would be there as well.
Just to give you an idea what Cocktail Alley looks like:

It is 36 places giving out really good but also strong drinks. At first I said to only have small drinks for the challenge, but later we decided against it, mainly cuz we´re MEN and don’t fuck about, and 2^nd not every place offers small cups. So the decision was actually made for us.

The next day, when Chris arrived and we told him about the challenge, he was thrilled and scared at the same time. I also had a weird feeling that this might not end good, as it was really a lot of places!!! After lunch we rested for about an hour and then started the party. It was 6,5hrs of real good fun, and we aborted our run after 9 cocktails when Chris asked me to bring him home cuz he was absolutely plastered.

If I think about it now, it all seems like a blur and I wonder that it was 6,5hrs all together. In my head it seemed more like two hours. But then again we have loads of pictures from that, mh… well, let´s call it “long afternoon”… which indicate that we were on a run for a few hours at least. According to the pictures, these are the drinks that we had along the way:

-         Mojito

-         Strawberry Daiquery

-         Maracaibo

-         Caipirinha

-         Cuba Libre

-         Pina Colada

-         Long Island

-         Maracuja Daiquery

So here are a few impressions of how the Cocktail Alley Run looked like.

  

 Unfortunately, Wladi had to leave the day before New Years, and since Chris and I had more or less failed our challenge, we decided to keep playing. Because we didn’t want to get plastered again, we only had another 6 cocktails in the following stands. One of them was an absolute delight: “Extasis Playero”. As the name already gives away, it’s a beach drink and will most certainly be one of the drinks I bring home with me.

The next day was New Years Eve and Chris and I were the luckiest sons of bitches ever, because this day, Petrus pulled all his skills one last time this year and performed absolute magic during the sunset. And with Chris’ new camera we actually got pictures that are even cooler than the sunset itself, although I must say it was breathtaking.

 After this, Chris and I were psyched to be in a warm country once more for New Years and couldn´t wait to celebrate the change of year at the beach between about 50.000 other people who had come from everywhere on this CONTINENT!!! and to kick 2011 to the curb and welcome 2012. In the midst, Chris and I witnessed the Ecuadorian tradition of burning figures, who represented the last year, and bonfire jumping, in which we of course joined.

Also, the hardcore local surfers had gotten all their surf gear and welcomed the new year by hitting the waves at sheer darkness. A few times, while they were out in the water, I saw some guys crashing into each other. Not that the waves were massive or anything, it was just absolute chaos in the water. Chris and I continued through all the cocktail stands and little bars that were open everywhere along the beach. It was actually not that enjoyable as each place had their own speakers, an although everyone was more or less playing the same salsa / raggaeton music, each places’ speakers were heavily fighting the other speakers, which resulted in a massive mixture of 6-7 different songs, all played at the same time. Like a mash-up, but just really bad. The only way to actually hear one song clearly, was right next to the speakers, where a common illness called tinnitus would be the sure reward.

Thus, we strolled along the different places until 4 something in the morning and had a short hit into Cana Grill before leaving the town for the last time in 2011 and going to bed at 6 in the morning in a fresh new year. The next day we had a last cocktail at Emilia’s Cocktail stand and Chris finally left the coast with the Bus at 3pm. Great times and I cannot wait to repay the favour and come visit Chris in Quito once more.

From me, of course, to all of you “a happy new year” as well!!!!

The Party continues...

Lee was gone, Team America had departed as well, and The Dutch had also hit the road again for further travelling. Jana and I were sad that everyone left, but live had to go on and so we tried to make the best out of it. During the last 8 days we of course met other people and since we used to go out together as a big group, who now hung out too

Among these peeps were 2 swiss guys: Noe, who stayed in the same hostel as Jana and me, and Karin, Noe’s best friends ex-girlfriend or something like this. Especially with Noe I started to go surfing a lot, since he had his own little shortboard here and I got a shorty from my workplace (not that I had to work properly, yet…).
And while Jana hung out at the beach, watching our stuff, she and Karin chatted about this and that, like girls do. Monday and Tuesday we again ate at my place, again abusing the 2 for 1 offer and after we would go for a few drinks in cocktail alley and/or to one of the local watering holes.

During the week that I spend in Quito, I got to meet a few other guys who were doing Spanish courses in Montanita and who just had a few days of for travelling but would be back for Christmas and New Years. The time had come that all of those fellas returned and while we were celebrating our Quito-reunion at a place called “Zach’s” (with 1 Dollar-beers), two massive suprises rolled in:

1^st: I saw Michael walking along the street, completely naked in his face and Austin as his companion. I was absolutely thrilled to see the guys, although I wondered why they had come back, as they only left for the Galapagos Islands a few days earlier. The reason was that they had seen and done most of what they wanted and the surf-swell for the Islands would be absolute shit for the next days to come. So instead of blowing huge amounts of money for nothing they got an earlier flight and came back to Montanita. Michael was even more thrilled to be back as he had fallen madly in love with Jana and didn´t leave her side for the rest of the night.

2^nd: The two Dutch girls, Nikki and Gwen, had also returned to Montanita, as there had been some problems with their family and they just used Montanita as a hideout for the days until the could get on the next plane back to Amsterdam. But despite their reason to be back in town, they overplayed it well and were also thrilled to see all of us.
For the next 2 days I gave it all I had, went surfing with the boys during the day, and after a little afternoon nap we would meet up with the other guys (Spanish School, Team U.S.A, The Swiss, The Dutch) and would go big for dinner and after drinks and club.

Along the next days I was called in a few times for working on the surfboards and fixing the dings and dents they had suffered during the last season. I also got called in one day to go diving with a swiss guy who wanted to do his diving license. This was helpful for two reasons, first to get to know the spot and to translate in case my boss´s English was not understandable. It was a sweet dive with super clear water and loads of underwater life. We even got to see an eagle ray, close relative to the manta ray, who flew by only about 10m away from us.

After the week, again, I had to say good bye to a few peeps. This time, team America left for good back to the holy country, so did the Dutch and Noe as well. I still had the guys from the Spanish School, which I sadly knew not really good, yet. Guess I have to get some work done and befriend people, to not be here all by myself…
(as if that was ever possible… :D )

And don't forget the FUCKING Cheeeese!!!!

After the strong week in Quito I actually never wanted to drink again… Not because I didn’t appreciate a good buzz (I’m sure every one does) but because my stomache was hurting from the cheap rum that we got almost for free a the hostel.

So I was already focused on popping by my internship place, make a good first impression and finally throw myself into the working life of a dive and surf instructor; a healthier life including physical exercise and a healthier way of eating, too.

So upon arriving in Montanita, I asked the first guy next to me (in Spanish) where I could find the Surf & Dive Club and if he knew a decent hostel for a few nights. As a reply I got „Ey ey, no Spanish, English buddy!“…
Fair enough, I thought. I repeated the question in English and received „I don’t know, I don’t care, I’ve just been on the bus for 3 hours and I don’t know about you, but I need a beer… Would you care to join?“ as an answer.

Despite my intention to never drink again, I somehow cared to join and suprising 7 beers later my new best friend Lee and I split up to drop our luggage at whichever hostel and grab dinner together. In the end, we let the day fade away while sipping Cuba Libres and watching Sunday night football.

GOOD TIMES!!!!

By then I didn’t know yet what was about to happen and how much time Lee and I would be spending during the days to come. And since we met a shitload of people while doing this, fort he purpose of this blog, it is easier to introduce the groups one by one.

The Trio:

The place that Lee and I hit first for beers that Sunday afternoon is called Zoe and offers 2 for 1 food deals on Mondays and Tuesdays. It hence seemed perfect to be the place for us to meet up for lunch. Before getting there the next day, I met Jana, the 3rd member of our little group, who I knew back from Quito and who took part in the absolute banter night in the zona rosa.

Together we hung out every day, and after having chosen Zoe’s as “My place” for eating, we had to find another 2 places for Lee and Jana. Jana already had “her place” and it was one of the cocktail stands in cocktail alley called “Galan”. After 5 days of searching we finally found a 3^rd place, which Lee could call his home. It was a Indian-style Bar right at the beach which offers the sickest sunset view, depending on the clouds of course and supplies their visitors with Shisha (a.k.a. Hookah) and Coronas.

The Portugues:

The next addition to our little group, were two Portuguese fellas (Sebastian & Diogo) being on vacation from home for a few weeks. We met them Tuesday night at Jana’s place in cocktail alley and despite their physical disability to keep drinks from spilling over ones pants or  “not-dropping their glasses” in general, they were absolute fantastic company and we had much fun together. The first night we even got into a club and got 2 bottles of vodka between the 5 of us. Whereas Sebastian got lucky, Diogo preferred a nap on the sofas and Lee, Jana and I were the last to leave the place.

  

Team America:

Another group that we hung out with on a regular basis were 4 lads from Florida who “saved about 1.500$ each by flying out from Miami and not Orlando, although it was a 12hrs ride down there”, to quote Lee´s first words about them. J
He met them since they were staying in the same hostel as he was, right at the other side of the beach, a good 10mins+ walk from the town centre. One Floridian (Michael) used to be professional Wakeskater and got sponsored during Uni, the other (Austin) used to be sponsored by the big brands for his sick surfing and the 3^rd (Alex) is best pals with the surfer guys from bondi rescue, lives half the year in Sydney and is in the board industry…

My point is, besides being keen drinkers and party goers, each one of them had quite a few stories to tell. Unfortunately I don’t have a picture with all of them, but I’ll try to get one together.

The Dutch:

A few days before Lee left, there was a massive birthday party of one of the other guests of the cabanas that Lee stayed in. The birthday child was a Dutch guy named Alex who stayed in Montanita for language lessons. So half the Cabanas and half the Spanish school showed up for the celebrations of his 32nd anniversary. Among were two other Dutch girls, sisters to be precise, who with Alex, formed Team Holland, and probably were as solid in drinking as Lee, Jana and me. Team America joined, too, as well as Team Canada, 3 girls who bought the Casa del Sol (Lee´s Hotel) only a few weeks earlier and provided catering for the festivities. It was a sick night and everyone had an absolute blast.

I think that was the night, that Lee suddenly started singing “I got a pineapple on my head” and held a pineapple as well as other different fruits in his face. Everyone in the round was convinced the pineapple would look just dynamite on their head and we finally managed to get about 100 pictures of people with pineapples on their head.

Again: GREAT TIMES!!!

Sadly, as most good things end, the trio had to split up eventually, too. It was Lee who departed first and left poor Jana and me by ourselves in Montanita. It was good times and we only let him go after promising to come and visit us again, either in Montanita or anywhere else in the world. And seriously, with 130 flights a years this seems very likely to run into each other again somewhere. :D

As a few of you might wonder what’s the story behind the weird post-name, I might explain this real quick. It was one of the constant catch phrases that Lee, Jana and I would yell at each other on the street, in bars, at the beach or anywhere else, we felt like it. Here are a few of these phrases and the subject they rely to.

-         “Eyes like sourceror´s pinwheels” (by Lee) about his facial expression after another binge drinking night

-         “We need some deep, deep house music” (by Lee) commenting on the DJ´s poor choice of music variety

-         “Coockadoodle dooooo” (by Lee) vs. “Piu Piu Piu” (by Giam); intercultural clash of animal noises, here a roster

-         “What´s more harmless than a toothpick? – Queuetip!!!!!” (by Lee & me) talking about Jana´s arm size

-         “And don´t forget the fucking cheese!” (by me) politely notifying the others that their fajitas would possibly improve their taste if a product made from milk was added

Lee´s last day was a Monday, which usually was celebrated at a reggae party at the far end of the beach. Usually the music itself is absolute crap and eventually they switch later to the whole musical repertois of mainstream artist “Gentleman”. That night went by way too fast and finally at one point we had to say good bye to each other. It was a good week together and I cannot wait for the next encounter with Jana and Lee!!!

*Miss you guys!!*