6/23/15
Have you realize everyone gives you warning about things these days? Your MacDonald coffee cup warns you the beverage you are about to enjoy maybe hot (unless you ordered ice coffee, of course. Then again, they could give you cold coffee in be wrong cup); not drinking enough water will cause dehydration on a hot day (unless, of course, you spend the day in an air conditioned room); and many more. We are warned everyday about lots of things, and have learned to sieve the serious ones from the weird ones. Personally, I take advices/warnings with a grain of salt (and other condiments…). I guess secretly, I like being rebellious (well, I was a good kid and never quite reached the rebellious teenager phase. I think I still am at a mental age of 12).
I woke up, roll to my right side and immediately remembered the event of yesterday. My wound looked better in the morning, but I see splatters of blood on my bed sheet just like you’d expect after a wedding night/prom night (the joy of having a mind like 12 years old!). I put some cream (the antibacterial kind, not the drinking kind. But I bet that would also be good for my skin.) on the wound, and went to Green Eggs and Ham for breakfast. As usual, it is the perfect beach day: not too hot, sunny and windy. As I ate, the internal struggle between not aggravating my injury or going for another run took place. I talked to myself (probably scaring the other patrons) for quite a while.
In the end, I walked over to buy my bus ticket to Guayaquil (and hopefully catch another bus to Cuenca the same day), and went for another run at low tide. It was an amazing run: the low tide allows access to stretches of beach I could not eat to before. I found lots of places deserted, and even startled some vultures, gulls and other animals. The scenery was quite impressive, and The whole place was deserted.
All was well until I reach the north portion of the beach. An armed military police/guard walked over to me and asked me where I was going. When I said “just running on the beach”, he told me the northern beaches are dangerous, and I should turn back. It was then I remembered reading about this in wiki travel. I debated for about 5 minutes on whether to run further north (while running), and finally decided to turn back and run the south beach instead. While I have read the north portion is safe and accessible to tourists, having an armed military person approach me did make me paranoid. Also, the south beach proved to be a great spot too, with more hotels, restaurants and bars along the beach.
Tired after the run, I opted for a quick lunch, drank an ice cream coffee float, and read my kindle on a pier, enjoying the sun, sound of waves, noises of kids and salt water smell. It was a great afternoon and perfect way to relax on the beach. I quite like the Mancora beach, except the lack of bathrooms. Apparently, there was a public bathroom, but it had collapsed. The buildings are still there, with warning signs. The floors of the pavilions that lead up to it were also missing. Danger signs were everywhere, although everyone just walk on the remains (of the structure, by bodies).
Looking at all the danger signs, I guess while I occasionally like to ignore warnings, I do take them seriously. If someone spent enough money and effort to warn me, I guess the least I can do is listen, take note and decide if I should heed the warning. I like to think I can analyze the facts and decide if something/some action is too dangerous for me, or if it will adversely affect others. And that was how I arrived at the conclusion of doing this trip. I hope to take more risks, and be rewarded proportionally.
(That all sounded so noble. Actually, I just want an excuse to go running on the beach and get a tan…)
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