The final bus ride, out of Colombia and into Ecuador, wasn't any easier than the previous few I'd taken recently. We were stopped for about 2 hours while a bike competition passed through, so we didn't arrive until about 6 p.m. After starting to stress when the bus driver couldn't find my checked bag, he finally found it and I was on my way to the hostel.

As I was still suffering from some mystery bug or virus, I was quite looking forward to doing nothing in Quito. I'd almost resigned myself to staying in bed on my 27th birthday, until I was convinced by Carolina to meet up with her and celebrate the day. She kindly bought lunch for me at a sushi restaurant, then we went to the Quicentro shopping mall so I could replace some clothes that in truth should've been thrown out months before. We shared some ice-cream and a juice in the afternoon before I headed back to the hostel and in to bed. Considering I'd never met Carolina before (we'd only met and talked via Couchsurfing), and the fact that she'd been up since 2a.m. that day working at the airport, it was an incredibly nice gesture from her that not only made me feel a little better, but made what could've easily been an unforgettable birthday into a really nice day.

The next day I met up with another friend off Couchsurfing, Keika, whom I met when I was last in Quito in September 2015. For the second time in two days I was spoiled, this time Keika and her boyfriend buying me a birthday cake after our lunch together. Again I was made to feel incredibly lucky by the awesome people that I've met whilst travelling.

In between this I spent a lot of time laying in bed and watching tv shows, while recovering. I've been pretty lucky on this trip so far in terms of getting sick, never having needed to go to the doctors. But even the mystery bug/illness aside, travelling for one year certainly takes it out of you.

When I first started this trip, I met other travellers who had been going for months on end, and they would tell me, "I just feel tired all of the time". I didn't get it then, but now I can certainly appreciate the feeling. And not only is my body tired, my clothes and luggage look tired too.

It's been great to settle down in Quito for a few days, see old friends and make new ones, and recharge the batteries. I needed it, because I can't see myself getting much of a rest over the next few weeks during Carnaval in Brazil!