Day 127: Quito, Ecuador
Once I was serious about my trip and booked flights, my mother announced that she and my sister wanted to come visit me.
This may seem normal for some families but this was an extraordinary gesture for mine – my sister had only been to the Dominican Republic on an all inclusive vacation and my mother had been to a resort in Spain and Florida. Oh and she hates flying.
What made it an even grander gesture was that they wanted to travel like I did and backpack for two weeks.
After looking at my tentative itinerary we decided on Ecuador; it sounded like a quaint country that would be easy to travel. So they booked the tickets months in advance and we began to make plans.
But as I made my way through Central America I started hearing stories about Ecuador, particularly about theft in Quito as they are a few well-known scams:
1) A fake bus employee insists that you put your day bag up in the overhead compartment, when you leave you realize all your electronics are gone.
2) Someone throws ketchup or another liquid on you and a kind woman offers tissues and says she’ll watch your bag if you put it down. The bag is taken as you are preoccupied with the mess.
3) You wake up in an unknown place, robbed, after a night out with a beautiful woman at a bar – okay not applicable to us.
So as their departure approached I tried to delicately balance informing my family that they should be aware of theft without scaring them; constantly reaffirming that while theft was common, violence was not.
They arrived they wearing their money belts I had bought for them in Canada. The next day they carried only $5 each, as instructed, and we had a free walking tour of the city and our guide warned us about pickpocketing, particularly at night.
We had a nice lunch at a local restaurant and made our way back to the hostel through the colonial streets of Old Quito.
So far it was a perfect first day.
As we turned the corner to the hostel my sister screamed as a man pushed her. I pushed him back and he ran off with her camera that she had been gingerly holding under her arm, knowing that she needed to be careful.
It was that quick.
We saw him run off down the street and around the corner.
Although shaken up, she was fine and there was nothin to do but walk the remaining 20 feet to the hostel. We later found out that the corner was particularly bad for this as it’s next to the black market.
The good news was that if we wanted to we could probably go buy it back. But her camera was 5 years old and she had only taken 3 photos that day so we just cut our losses.
A bad start to the trip, having also been robbed I wanted to minimize the damage so within hours we went back out on the street. We were all a bit jumpy but we needed to shake off the disappointment that people will rob you.
I asked my sister how she was doing and she said she wasn’t scared because now she had nothing left to steal.
 |
I'm Ayngelina and in my mid-thirties. I left an amazing job, boyfriend, apartment and friends to find inspiration in Latin America. I'm creating a new life choosing what I want instead of what other people think I should do.
Sorry to hear about this – Glad she’s okay! Must be nice having some close family with you after a while on the road!
That sucks, not exactly a great way to kick off your sisters trip. At least she’ll have a great story to tell.
That’s too bad that this happened while they were visiting you. I’m sure it made your mom worry about you a lot more. I got robbed when I was on a school trip to Paris when I was 16. It’s amazing how quick it happens.
You’re freaking me out, I’m gonna be there the 1st week of September. Glad it was nothing serious & you guys are ok. I hope the rest of the trip goes well!
Hi Ayngelina
Sorry your weeks with your mom and sister had to start out so bad!I hope the rest of the trip was wonderful!!I was surprised to read that they weren’t travellers!!So I’m wondering if the police in these countries do ANYTHING about these thefts!!!
Hi Ayngelina
Sorry your weeks with your mom and sister had to start out so bad!I hope the rest of the trip was wonderful!!I was surprised to read that they weren’t
travellers!!So I’m wondering if the
police in these countries do ANYTHING
about these thefts!!!
So sorry that your mum and sister had to start their trip like that!
But at least she is taking it well; crossing my fingers for you guys that all goes well from here on out!
I am leaving Ecuador tonite and heading to Peru!!! Hope u and me will be fine during our trip!!!no more robbed!!
Quito sketched us out too. We had heard mixed reviews before visiting, but when 2 different people from our hostel got mugged in the square, we elected to push on to the Galpagos instead. It’s a shame too, because since returning we’ve read about some great experiences in the capital.
I don’t think I could come visit you. If anybody tried to rob me, the fight would be on and then I’d be on the 6 o’clock news about a tourist being killed.
Glad to hear your sister didn’t let it beat her. Many experienced backpackers would have been a lot less chilled about it. When we were mugged in Rio (although we didn’t lose anything) I figured the chances of it happeneing again were low, so hopefully this applies here too.
So sorry that this happened on your family’s first day with you! Definitely would shake anybody up, I think.
I had a friend who studied in Ecuador for a semester, and he got mugged once at knife-point in broad daylight. Lost his camera and money, but luckily got to keep his passport. I think I’d probably think twice about visiting there. Or at least be super suspicious of everybody.
Wow, scary story. So sorry that happened but I am so glad no one got hurt. All you and your family can do now is enjoy the time yall have there. Looks like yall will so thats good.
Wow, scary story. So sorry that happened but I am so glad no one got hurt. All you and your family can do now is enjoy the time yall have there. Looks like yall will so thats goo
Yikes, that sucks
Thank goodness it was only an old camera and no one was hurt!! Your sister is right not to be scared – what you were worried about has already happened!
Thanks to stories from some local friends, my younger sister was paranoid she’d be pickpocketed when we were in Kowloon, in Hong Kong – she walked around the entire time clutching her bag to her chest looking terrified. Was pretty amusing, actually
Happily, we made it out alive with all belongings where they were supposed to be!
Oh gosh, I’d rather have anything else stolen than my camera!!! At least it was old though and only had 3 pics. I had my camera stolen in South Africa AND Spain.
What a bummer! Like you said though, at least it’s not violent crime. I hope the rest of the trip more than made up for it for your mom and sister
so crazy! glad you guys are OK. oh-the ketchup scam is common all over Latin America. It happened to us in Costa Rica! They got my friend’s bag with her camera, passport, and $200. It happened exactly how you described it above. In this instance, just thank the person for pointing it out and the deal with it later.
Argh! I hate when thieves do that. It’s especially annoying when travelers are well informed and generally cognizant of their surroundings.
Well that’s an unfortunate start. Of course, as your sister already realized, now she doesn’t have to spend much energy keeping her guard if there’s nothing left to be stolen.
It’s always disappointing when it happens, but rarely should a theft ruin an entire trip. Glad to see your sister dealt with it so well and is ready to carry on with her visit!
sorry to hear that.. good thing she only took 3 photos from it. if i was your sister and i have so many pics in it, i would have felt bad. But on the bright side, she has a story to tell back home
hope this incident wouldn’t ruin the rest of your future trips.
Sorry you and your family had this experience and glad no one was hurt.
I would emphasize what Earl said. It’s bound to happen during long term travels to less developed countries. Aracely and I consider ourselves lucky it never happened to us during 1 year in Central and South America. We realized we were in a lot of places that had high risks and it could have happened at any time. I know Quito probably left a bad taste in your mouth now that this terrible experience occurred. But, know that it could have occurred anywhere, even in another place you may have enjoyed most. I always wondered how we would label and describe a place to our friends if we had this experience. Luckily it hasn’t happened yet.
We stayed in Quito for over a month and really enjoyed our time there, but again, we didn’t have the experience you encountered either.
Let’s hope the remainder of your trip is perfect!
@Jason
Thanks so much for the comment. My sister was fairly well prepared, basically I told them not to bring anything they weren’t willing to part with and because she only had 3 photos she handled it well.
I was robbed in my favorite country thus far – Nicaragua – and it didn’t change my impression of the country one bit.
Whew! Hopefully that was the worst of it. What scams they run!
I guess losing a camera is better than waking up in a strange place after a night out with someone…
That thought is scary… it sounds like an urban legend… sans the kidney missing part…
@Angela
You mean like waking up in a bathtub full of ice cubes?
This exact thing just happened to me on a bus from the new city to the old city in Quito. It is also our first day-I look for a brighter tomorrow. I’m glad you were able to look on the bright side!!
Sorry to read this. Must have been traumatic for your sister. Sounds like you handled it well, though. Smart to get right back out there…
Lisa E @chickybus recently posted..Trippy Travel Photo 2- ‘Cave of the Mad’
Bummer. We’ve had a camera stolen and it feels awful. You replay it over in your head and think about all the different things you could have done to prevent it. At least you guys went back out right away to shake it off.
Dave and Deb recently posted..Kickboxing with Rawai Muay Thai
I think I would have flipped out about my camera. I guess I’ll just have to keep remembering to change out the cards so I don’t lose everything. :X
Erica recently posted..Travel Photography January 14
Bummer! Your sister hasn’t traveled much and has this experience in her first backpacking trip. It is bad luck though…I heard all these bad stories about Quito too but didn’t find any problems despite walking at night in shady areas. It should all go well from now on!
Federico recently posted..Photo of the Week
Reminds me of when I got robbed my first day in Quito, also the start of my one-year sabbatical traveling in Latin America. I luckily also had advice from my Spanish school on not carrying anything of value, so all they got was my backpack, a raincoat, a Nalgene bottle, and a Spanish pocket dictionary. Not even a dollar.
In case you are wondering, I fell for scam #2. Read about it http://www.thetravelchica.com/2010/10/bienvenidos-a-ecuador/
Stephanie recently posted..What Can You Buy for a Dollar
That kind of robbery is the most violating. I know you’ve learned so much about protecting yourself on this trip. You’re so strong!
Abby recently posted..Why journalism snobs should love blogs
What an unfortunate indoctrination! UGH… I hate it that this kind of things happens… As silly susie sunshine as it may sound though, I like to think that maybe having this happen right out of the gate made your collective mojo ward off something that – gulp – might have been worse. Oh! And I love it that you pushed him back after he pushed your sister
Margo recently posted..Question of the Month- What Makes You a Travel Belle
aww, that’s too bad. I’d be heartbroken if someone stole my camera
Glad she only took three photos with it though!
Seattle Dredge recently posted..11 Days on a Train – A Cross Canada Adventure
I see this is an older thread but I’m going to comment anyway. I was robbed five times in seven months in Quito, and to answer your question above, no the police don’t care. Could have been worse though–a young Canadian who was staying at the hostel at a bar I used to frequent was robbed violently three times in three days. The third time he was hit on the head in the middle of a busy street on a Saturday night. Nobody did a thing other than to step over his unconscious body. I finally helped him into the bar, where they gave him some ice for the bump on his head. That’s as good as it gets in Quito.
Tom Bartel recently posted..A Golden Hour with Agung Rai
Do you remember the name of the tour company that you used for the free tour? I am in Quito now and looking for one.
It was the tour company that operates out of the Secret Garden Hostel. I have also heard that Urban Adventures is in Quito and they would be pretty reasonably priced.