Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (Ecuador Edition)
Transportation is quite different in my life here in rural Ecuador than in Cleveland. In this field note, I'll explain some of the different types of transportation here and talk about my personal experiences with them.
The two main forms of transportation in San Miguel de Bolívar are cars and buses. Peace Corps prohibits volunteers from driving (and I don't have a car, of course), so my main transportation is through the buses. The town itself is quite small and easily walkable, so there's no need for transportation other than my two feet to get anywhere I need to go. However, leaving San Miguel means I take an inter-provincial bus (it's like a charter bus, nicer than a yellow school or city bus) to different cities. The buses run throughout the entire country. Guaranda, the capital of the province of Bolívar, is only about 35-45 minutes north of me on the bus. To get to my next "big" city of Riobamba or Ambato takes about 3 hours in a bus, and to get to Quito (the capital) takes 6 hours, and getting to Guayaquil (the biggest city and my closest airport) takes about 4 hours.
There are also camionetas and normal yellow taxis. The camionetas are pickup trucks that function as taxis, and they will take you to more rural places.
