It is with sincere gratitude that I write to thank the gentleman (whose name I unfortunately forget) who visited Ecuador this past year & did an EXCELLENT job of providing an in-depth analysis & photographs of the current state of the Ecuadorean railroad. As a citizen of Ecuador currently residing in the U.S., it brought me joy to see the numerous photos taken of what I thought were inoperable sections (that I thought would never see railway service again) which indeed carried railcars or trains. As the writer discovered & noted, politics & money (but I really believe more of the former) have ruined what could potentially be a marvelous tourist transportation system that could generate needed employment & revenue for various parts of the country as well as provide an atypical mode of transportation for those visiting South America (i.e. riding on the roof). I myself was raised in a town where the railroad literally passes in front of the doorsteps to my house (The last train tooted its horn nearly 10 years ago). I commend the gentleman for his interest & would enjoy talking to him via e-mail to get further information about his experience. Many, many thanks for bringing much-needed attention to Ecuador & its train system.

Javier
(from near Ibarra, Ecuador)
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