Phil's Big Adventure

I've dropped some hints and made some references on LJ, and I've talked about it to a few people in person, but only as a maybe.  But I've bought my non-refundable plane tickets, and my check for the trip fee is in the mail, so I guess it's real, and I guess I should write something about it.

I'm going to Ecuador!

Yes, that's right, boring old Phil, who's never traveled anywhere farther than San Diego or anywhere more exotic than Texas (I've been to Winnipeg and Toronto, but I think Texas is weirder) will be spending 9 days on another continent in a country where they don't speak English, 6 of them in a place so remote that it's two hours by riverboat from the nearest road, in the Amazon jungle with no electricity, telephone, or computers.

( The more detailed version )