(Author: J)
May 21, 2021 – Mashpi Lodge
Our last full day at Mashpi was much less eventful than the previous day. We woke up early for the hummingbird breakfast, which is a picnic breakfast held on a portion of the lodge property that is at just the right elevation for hummingbird watching. Our guide was still scared to let us walk anywhere, so we were chauffeured back and forth (although we did a short walk along the road to look for other bird species before starting our picnic). The breakfast was once again quite elaborate, and the lodge prepared enough to feed 5 families. We would highly recommend this experience to anyone staying at Mashpi. Eating breakfast while you watch dozens of hummingbirds flutter by is an enjoyable way to start the day. P loved getting more close-up photos.
After breakfast, we headed back to the lodge to relax. I took advantage of the lodge’s spa services and enjoyed an hour-long massage before lunch. The masseuse did not speak any English, but between my mangled Spanish and some commonsense guesses about what a masseuse was likely to ask, we got by okay.
After lunch, we did a shirt making activity. I got the sense that parents usually send their kids to do this activity on their own, but we chose to do it together as a family. We started by gathering interesting leaves. Then we coated the leaves in t-shirt paint and used them to stamp leaf designs on the shirts.
It rained steadily while we were crafting but cleared up as we were completing our project. We took advantage of the nice weather to go back to the Life Center – at P’s request – to show D the butterflies. Again, we saw a nice variety of birds, along with some small mammals.
The highlight of the day was our night walk. Again, Gabriel was frightened to make us walk (especially because it involved crossing a shallow stream; the difference between waist-deep water and a puddle was apparently not significant as far as their insurance carrier was concerned). We somehow survived though and managed to see a variety of frogs, snakes and interesting insects. For P, who loves frogs almost as much as snakes, this was a great wrap up to our time at Mashpi.
May 22, 2021 – return to Quito
One night thing about Mashpi is that your departure is timed to allow you to enjoy a final leisurely morning. After breakfast, we visited the lab to chat with the scientist who is studying the wildlife on the property. This did not go as planned because P was in a bad mood and refused to speak with anyone, but it was still a nice opportunity to learn about the work that our tourist dollars were supporting.
Our ride back to Quito was scheduled for mid-morning. We were provided with box lunches for the ride, which was – again – private due to the pandemic.
We chose to stay at Swissotel again because none of the airport hotels had a swimming pool. This proved to be a distinction without a difference because the capacity limits at the pool meant that we could not use it. We, instead, spent the afternoon sitting in our room. In the evening, we went out for Mexican food. I woke up in the middle of the night quite ill (I suspect due to my decision to order a blended drink, my first experience with unfiltered water). Fortunately, I was able to pull myself together the next morning and leave for the airport as scheduled.
May 23, 2021 – flight home
We used Medical VIP (which Ecuadorians pronounce “Medical veep,” in case you need to ask for directions) for our covid tests. The process was quick and easy and we had our negative results in hand several hours before our flight. Because our bags were full of dirty clothing, it seemed logical to me to check them through. Mistake number 1. Once through security, the plan had been to use the extra time to eat and shop. But with my stomach still feeling off, I spent most of the time sitting in a chair and whining. I felt bad for P, who had been looking forward to souvenir shopping. Given my state, I put D in charge of buying food for the plane. For some reason, he decided to wait until the flight was boarding to attend to that chore, limiting options to whatever could be grabbed quickly — muffins. Mistake number 2.
Our American Airlines flight to Miami boarded on time. But then it sat there. And sat there some more. As the minutes turned to hours, the crew of the flight made no announcements to inform us of what was going on. Indeed, the flight attendants seemed to be intentionally ignoring the passengers, refusing to even acknowledge anyone who tried to speak to them. By the time we finally took off, several hours late, many of the passengers were panicked because it was clear that the ability to make connections was at risk. Again, the flight attendants ignored all attempts by passengers to ask questions about our landing time or how to make connections. Making matters worse, American had suspended all food and drink service due to the pandemic, so we had only water and tiny stale pretzels during the flight.
We landed in Miami with less than an hour until our connecting flight. Because of the lack of any guidance or help from the flight crew, exiting the plane was a free-for-all with those who had connections (everyone) pushing and shoving. All that pushing and shoving was for naught though because, once off the plane, we needed to collect our bags and go through customs. Once again, American provided no help on basics like where we should go to get our bags. We finally found the correct carousel, but once a few bags had popped out, it shuddered to a stop, apparently broken. In a panic by this point, I looked for someone – anyone – to help us. I found a woman in an American Airlines uniform, explained our predicament, and asked for help. Her response was, “No one here can help you.” I tried again, asking a man who was also in uniform; he was less blunt, but also clearly unwilling or unable to do anything.
With less than 30 minutes until our flight, the carousel finally started again. Bags in hand, we hurried to go through customs and recheck our bags. When we got to the front of the bag check line, the American employee who was taking bags told us that we were too late for our flight and would need to get into another long line to get vouchers for a hotel and fly out tomorrow. “Isn’t there anything you can do to help us?” I asked. The answer was, predictably, “No.” “You should be ashamed to work for an airline that treats customers so poorly,” I snapped in reply. At this point, the employee literally cackled before responding, “I feel no shame.” Since it was clear that any further attempts to get help from anyone at American were going to lead nowhere (except, perhaps to a tasering if I pushed my luck), we got into the long line for rebooking.
As we stood in line, I grumbled under my breath about how terrible American’s service was. This opened the door to conversation with other stranded passengers, some of whom who had been stuck in this room – a room with no food, drinks, or toilets — being shuttled from line to line for hours. Apparently, due to tech issues, multiple American flights had been delayed and American apparently decided the best approach was to strand all of those passengers in Miami — rather than making any effort to help at least some of us make our connections.
While we were waiting in line, I made the executive decision that we did not want to entrust American with our bags again. We tore the checked bag tags off, planning to carry the bags on the next day. As we waited, poor P, who had no raised a peep of complaint, informed me that he needed a bathroom. When I told him he would need to wait, he began to sob quietly. Sensing an emergency, I flagged down an American employee and asked if she could please help my son get to a toilet before he had an accident. At this point our luck turned around; we had apparently found the only helpful American Airlines employee in Miami. She asked where we were headed. When she found out it was Boston, she looked puzzled for a minute and then said, “That flight hasn’t boarded yet.” She then helped us speed through security and to our gate. At the gate, P was able to use the restroom. What we were not able to do was purchase any food or drinks because we were so severely delayed that all of the airport concessions were closed. Fortunately, our flight to Boston offered us the hearty meal option of a bottle of water. But, unlike the hundreds of others that American had stranded in Miami that day, we were going home, at least.
Travel Monkeys 