Our Worst Travel Blunder

The morning we left Salinas, I woke up early to take advantage of one last stroll on the beach. There had been a couple of young guys building an elaborate sandcastle on the beach during the month we were in Salinas. I had meant to take pictures of it multiple times, but just never made it happen until the last day. People are so talented. Turning something seemingly simple like a sandcastle into an elaborate work of art totally amazes me.

We had quite the travel day ahead of us. Our planned route was taxi to Salinas bus station, bus to Guayaquil, taxi from bus terminal to van terminal, van to Cuenca, taxi from terminal in Cuenca to our Airbnb. *whew* This was our first transfer with all our belongings on us, and I would be lying if I didn’t say my nerves were on edge about all these transfers. In fact, any time we have to take public transportation of any kind I get a little nervous. I’m going to blame this on the total lack of public transportation in most of the US. Or maybe I just worry too much.

The bus to Guayaquil was huge, super comfy, and very clean. We were off to a fantastic start! Once we got to the bus terminal in Guayaquil, we were struggling to find the taxis so we could get to the van station. Our plan was to take the vans because they hold fewer people and leave as soon as they fill up rather than waiting for a bus to leave the bus terminal. However, we found the ticket booth for the buses to Cuenca and opted to take the bus from the terminal instead and eliminate another transfer.

While waiting for our bus, we met a nice man from Atlanta traveling in Ecuador. We welcomed a friendly conversation and shared our plans as he shared his. Before long, the bus was ready for us to board. Luggage gets checked under the bus. Jacob and I both put our backpacks under the bus with all our clothing in them. However, we opted to keep our duffle bags on our person to keep a close eye on our electronics and passports. The bus was quite full by the time we boarded, so unfortunately, we couldn’t sit near our new friend.

Before we knew it, the bus was off, and we were entering into the mountains. There aren’t many formal bus stops in Ecuador. The bus stops at the terminal in most major towns. Beyond that, you just flag the bus down on the side of the road when you want it to stop. The driver will pull over and pick you up. Then when you want off the bus, you ask the driver to stop, and he will let you off. If you aren’t transferring from one major city to another, this is generally how you get on and off. The mountains were beautiful, and I soaked in every minute of the lush green scenery that I had missed so much being on the coast. Jacob had stayed up way too late and he gets motion sickness, so he passed out almost immediately.

I carried our passports in my bag, so I clutched my bright pink duffel tightly on my lap. One of my big worries when traveling internationally is something happening to our passports, so I never let them leave my side when we are carrying them. Jacob’s bag was quite heavy, so he opted to place it between his feet on the floor. There wasn’t room for it under the seat and the overhead storage is a notoriously dangerous place to leave bags. Frequently people will grab bags from the overhead shelf and run.

As we neared Cuenca, Jacob put his portable travel fan in the side pocket and seconds later it fell out onto his lap. After he more closely examined his bag, he found a tear on the bottom. My stomach dropped instantly thinking someone had cut open his bag. Jacob was convinced that he simply had his bag too full, and it busted. He could see his laptop case in the main compartment, and that was all that mattered to me. His headphone case was gone but all that contained was a little cash and his portable charger. When we got to Cuenca, he stayed on the bus to search for the headphone case while I got off to collect our other bags.

Time crawled as I stood outside the bus waiting for Jacob to meet me. When I finally saw his face in the bus window, I knew that something was horribly wrong. He looked terrified. He stumbled off the bus in a fog. Someone had cut open his bag and stolen his headphone case and contents, his personal laptop, and his work laptop. The bag he had seen inside his duffle on the bus was his toiletry kit and not his laptop case (they are made by the same company and out of the same material).

We had officially encountered our worst-case scenario. Jacob’s work laptop is the one thing, other than our passports, that we absolutely had to have and would be extremely difficult to replace. There isn’t much of a postal system in Ecuador. Things take forever and are incredibly expensive to ship from the US if they ever arrive at all. We went into crisis mode. The bus driver told us to wait there, and he would return to review the footage from the cameras on the bus. Although I knew it would make little difference. The thief had surely jumped off the bus at the first opportunity after getting Jacob’s computers. There would be little to no chance of ever catching him let alone having our belongings returned. When the driver returned, he told us to go to the office of the bus company. They were not able to do anything but tell us to go to the police station and file a police report.

Humorous side note – speaking a second language when you are panicking is extremely challenging. This led us to use google translate while talking to the bus company employees. Google translate has proven incredibly useful in many situations throughout our years of travel. However, when you are flustered, in a busy place, and wearing a mask is not one of those situations. After one exchange, the lady who we were speaking with had a puzzled look on her face. When I looked down at the phone, we had asked her where to find her purple squeaky hamster (or something similarly ridiculous). I have laughed out loud recalling this moment, but it wasn’t as funny to me while we were at the bus station.

After the few minutes between stepping off the bus and leaving the bus office, we knew with certainty that we had been robbed and we weren’t going to be able to recover anything. Jacob immediately called his company to have his laptop deactivated while I started investigating the variety of different insurance options we have that might allow us to recoup some of this loss.

We spent a few minutes freaking out, researching, and collecting ourselves before heading to the police station to file a police report. The officer on duty was so incredibly nice and calming. This time we used google translate with a much higher success rate. Once we had the police report, we had done all we could do on a Saturday evening and decided to grab a cab to our Airbnb and settle in. As I walked out of the police station, I broke down crying. I had held it together up until this point for Jacob. The reality of the mess we were in combined with uneasy feelings weighed heavy on my heart and came flowing down my face. I was also incredibly disappointed because Cuenca was the city I had most looked forward to. Now it felt like our experience in Cuenca was already going to be tainted beyond repair.

We settled into our Airbnb and set out on foot to find dinner. We were both craving something as close as possible to the food we could eat at home. We needed something familiar and comforting after the crazy day we just had. By total chance, we wandered into Chill & Chela – a fresh and funky brew pub. We both ordered burgers and shared a flight of beer and loaded cheese fries. The meal was fantastic and exactly what we needed after not eating all day.

I couldn’t just go back to our apartment after dinner. I wanted to at least walk around for a bit and get a feel for the city before turning in. The day had been tough enough, I wanted one good memory from this day. We were immediately captivated by the bustling and charming streets of Cuenca. The architecture in the city is heavily influenced by Spanish architecture. I truly felt like we were strolling the streets of Europe – one of my favorite past times. Suddenly, I could see the 3 bright blue domes of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. Tears started flowing again, but this time of gratitude. We were safe, healthy, and in Cuenca. Whatever had happened, we would figure it out. We would work through it just like every other challenge life has presented us. We would come out the other side stronger, wiser, and more resilient than before. We were going to be okay. After all the events of the day, we were in Cuenca, the city that drew me to Ecuador, and I wanted to fully embrace it.

Some time has passed since this incident. Jacob has gotten another work computer that was shipped to the FedEx location in Cuenca where he picked it up. It took 16 days from the day his laptop was stolen to the day he had his replacement work laptop. Luckily, his phone is quite powerful. He was able to do some work using a monitor, keyboard, and his cellphone, so he did not have to be off work the entire time. We came up with many different solutions including someone flying down with Jacob’s new laptop, Jacob flying home to get his new laptop, and buying a computer here to connect remotely through. There were even more ideas we tossed around, but at the end of the day, the solution that was chosen worked best for Jacob’s company and Jacob. That is all that matters. A huge thank you to all our friends and family that knew about this situation and volunteered to assist in various ways. We are truly blessed with an incredible community of loved ones.

We are still working through the insurance claim, so I don’t have a definitive resolution to share on that yet, but I will update this post when that happens.

The day of the robbery, we committed to not cutting our trip short due to this incident. Even though it was stressful and challenging, we thought it was important to work through the problem and carry on rather than giving up and returning home. We didn’t want to let fear deter us from living out this dream. We wanted to use this situation for good and share a glimpse into what it looks like when things don’t go according to plan. Because when you are traveling, things NEVER go according to plan. My sincere hope is that you never have to encounter something this far off course. But I think it is important to know that things go wrong: you might miss your bus, get lost, or even contract an illness. These aren’t reasons not to travel. Just breath, be flexible, and willing to come up with solutions to any problem that may arise. We still firmly believe the best in people. Please do not read our story and site it as a reason not to visit this incredible country. Petty theft like this happens all over the world – yes, even in the U.S. We have learned valuable, although expensive, lessons from this experience, and we will change the way we travel when carrying valuables. We thought we were being careful, but now know what we will do differently next time.

Ecuador is a gorgeous country filled with some of the kindest people. We haven’t let this experience sour our view of this amazing country. In travel, as in life, things don’t always go according to plan. This wasn’t our first travel blunder, and I am sure it won’t be our last. Our character is defined by how we respond during uncertainty, not merely how we behave when everything is going our way. We are grateful to be safe and healthy, and we are looking forward to exploring more of what Ecuador has to offer.