We were collected at 4.21am (which is precisely the time we were given) for our transfer to the Airport. Not surprisingly there was little traffic and we had a pleasant enough wait for our flight after the queue at checkin. It turns out we are travelling all the way with some junior football team that is representing Ecuador. We didn’t get any notifications so couldn’t do a web check-in and by the time we got processed there were no seats together either for the 90 minute flight to Panama City or the 7 hour flight to BA. Copa Airlines is a Colombian based airline with reasonable service and planes but the food is not a strong point. It’s actually awful. The scrambled eggs were like cardboard and came with horrid little yellow things which looked like sausages but which I think was mashed and fried cassava. The meat was like warmed up luncheon sausage. No one around me that chose the eggs managed to eat much and we shared grim looks. The roll was ok. The people that chose the French toast did better.

We were unable to locate Mike’s hat (hardly surprising) and the lady at the service desk could barely stop herself from laughing out loud but went through the motions of phoning someone, somewhere. We cruised the shops then got a coffee and Mike got a panini, which he said was yum, then did some travel bookings for upcoming events including Xmas. No fancy lounge to wait in this time as we both forgot to bring our Priority Club cards. The toilets are funny. They have notices telling you what to do with the loo paper. Sometimes it’s flush and sometimes it’s not. In the fancier airports and hotels it’s flush!

In any event the 4 hours came and went and then it was back on the plane with Copa Air to BA. The food was marginally better. Always the choice is chicken + carbs or beef + carbs. There don’t seem to be any special options for anyone so I guess the gluten frees and vegetarians either go without or take their own. The planes are also quite small. Just 3 seats each side. We had middle seats one row apart. At least they had screens so were able to watch a couple of movies. The lady next door to me didn’t have headphones or watch movies or read. Maybe she practises zen yoga but she didn’t sleep and somehow managed to sit through a 7 hour flight without even a trip to the bathroom!

The process through immigration was quite swift except for the arrows pointing Argentinian nationals to the right and foreigners to the left. About 100 foreigners followed the sign into the marked lanes only to find that every way was closed off, a bit like those maze puzzles in the paper.

We eventually got to the Hilton just after 1.30am. The room is large with a nice bathroom.

It’s a shame we are here for less than 24 hours. It’s also Mike’s birthday. The checkout is 12.30 so we had a sleep in then breakfast in the room. There is a nice lounge downstairs where you can charge your devices and enjoy birthday bubbles. Then it was a short walk to Puerto Cristal where I’d booked lunch at 2pm. It is on the other side of the canal and has a terrace facing the promenade. What a great place. It specialises in seafood and was Mike’s choice, then he had the pork?. We both had an entree, each of which was large enough to be a main and then lovely mains that were beautifully presented. We also had an excellent bottle of local white wine that was a Chardonnay with some semillon and Pinot Gris. We had a fun few hours there including a FaceTime call from Jen. Another trip to the Galapagos is planned already.

One of the issues throughout South America is getting the bill. Once you’ve ordered the stuff you are captured and it can be really hard to pay quickly. It’s one of those things you need to plan for well ahead and sometimes you literally have to get up and start walking off, as we did in an airport cafe in Quito. Even when you ask for the bill it doesn’t come. No hurry today though.

Our flight leaves at midnight so it will be off to the airport at 8.30pm and hopefully we can get seats together and some rest. It’s only been 2 weeks but very full and worth every minute and dollar!

The promenade outside Puerto Cristal