It's 5:08 in the morning. My bus from Mancora, Peru to Guayaquil, Ecuador was due to arrive at 5:30 am. However I just spent the last 3 hours sitting at the Ecuadorean border, praying that I was going to be allowed to make it to my destination. 8 people did not, and I don't know what happened to them.
I was never supposed to even be on this bus. I never would have agreed to a 9 pm bus that first gets me to the border at 11 to start the whole customs process. What happened was I had bought a ticket to go to Quito, and when I found out I had a flight to the Galapagos from Guayaquil instead I had to change my ticket. There were a million companies going to Guayaquil, most leaving at 12 to 1pm, but I needed to go with the company who I bought my ticket through, who left at 9pm or 1:30 am. Luckily this really nice Swiss couple, Olivia and Johann, were also on my bus so it was no big deal.
We get to the Peruvian exit border at 11:15. Go through the process, fine. We get to the Ecuadorian border around midnight. I'm getting cranky because I just want to sleep, but we get back on the bus around 12:30 and I finally can rest.
After that I don't know what happened. I first woke up because the steward lady was with Ecuadorian policemen checking our tickets. I wake up, show my ticket, and go back to sleep. I feel the bus move again, but when I wake up again there are more police now asking for our luggage tags. I pull that out, but now I'm getting really annoyed because I'm exhausted. I close my eyes again, and then I feel the bus has stopped and the light are on. Olivia tells me she thinks they want to go through all of our bags. I look at my watch and it's 2:30 in the morning now. What the hell is going on?
We get off the bus, and the policemen are pointing for us to go in different directions. He has some people face different ways, so they're not able to see the rest of us. They make Johann stay on the bus steps and close him in. The Peruvians are all lined up against one wall, and they empty their bags out and an officer goes through them. No one tells us to do anything, or explains what's going on. I'm of course annoyed and am sitting with Olivia making stupid comments and complaining. The policemen walk around with what looks like a bag for a surfboard that's empty and asks whose it belongs to. No one claims it. We then go through the process again of showing our tickets first, then a second officer comes to see our baggage tickets. At this point I'm falling asleep ad getting livid. We've been sitting on the floor of some police parking lot for at least an hour.
They start separating people, and the policemen disappear. They're gone another maybe half hour. No one tells us what's going on. When they come back they're accompanied by a fat Ecuadorian man wearing a ratty t shirt, shorts and sandals. He starts screaming at all of us so fast in Spanish I can't make out what he's saying. The only thing he knows how to say in English is "shut up", which he walks around barking at each of us even though no ones talking.
He makes us take out or cell phones and put them on the floor out of arms distance. I'm convinced at this point we're getting robbed, and am so annoyed that I just withdrew $400 from the ATM in US dollars.
The bus turns on, and they let all the Peruvian people back on, but when we try to move he screams again and the policemen come over. Now I'm getting scared.
He let's a few people back on the bus, including Olivia and Johann. There are 9 of us left. All tourists. 2 Americans, 1 French guy, 2 Isrealis and the last 2 girls and 1 guy I'm not sure.
They take 2 of the guys away and separate them in these locked caged areas. I see a policeman go in and hear noises, I have no idea what's happening in there. They make us take our bags OFF the bus, an at this point I know we're getting left behind. Someone whispers the surfboard bag had drugs in it and that's what this is all about. And they think it belongs to one of the 9 of us. They tell me to take my backpack off the bus, and while I'm searching I burst into tears because the last thing I want is to be stuck at this border with these weird policemen thinking I'm a drug smuggler. I transferred $1600 for my Galapagos trip that leaves tomorrow, which will be down the drain. One cop felt bad for me and told me to calm down, and he went and talked to the man in charge. The boss man came over and asked me who I was traveling with. I said myself, and he asked if I knew any of the people on the floor. I said no, just the Swiss couple on the bus. Olivia had been trying to tell them I was with them, so this was apparently the right answer and at the last second the guy said "vamos" (we go). I grabbed my bag, not even caring if my backpack made it back on, and as I made my way to my seat the bus pulled away with the 8 people still there. I have no idea what happened to them and I wish I had one of their emails to make sure everything is okay. I know one of the American guys names and I'm going to contact the embassy today to just let them know in case god forbid he goes missing. I'm calmer now but really shaken up by it. I'm glad to be in the Galapagos for a week but scared afterwards to move forwards into Colombia. I cant even think about that part now because at this moment I'm too tempted to cut the last month out completely. I guess these things happen, but when you're by yourself it's terrifying and I hope nothing like it happens again
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