Condorito

Monday 22nd February 1988

I had breakfast amongst the mob of Panamanian Cub Scouts in the hostel café before walking into town with several tasks to do. First, I went into the offices of VARIG Airlines to confirm that I was definitely on tomorrow’s flight to Quito in Ecuador.

VARIG (acronym for Viação Aérea RIo-Grandense, Rio Grandean Airways) was the first airline founded in Brazil, in 1927. From 1965 until 1990, it was Brazil's leading airline, and virtually its only international one. In 2005, Varig went into judicial restructuring, and in 2006 it was split into two companies – Flex Linhas Aéreas, informally known as "old" Varig, heir to the original airline – now defunct, and "new" Varig, a new company, fully integrated into Gol Airlines.

Next stop was the bank where I changed up another $20 U.S. dollars, and then the Post Office where I posted my postcards and letters. A window-shopping spree ensued, walking around the big department stores looking at books and clothes.

I was tempted to buy a T-shirt but wanted to save my money. I bought a “Condorito” comic book to try and translate in order to improve my Spanish. I strolled back to Toruma Youth Hostel in the warm sun to do some writing and washing.

I sat out on the veranda and slowly translated “Condorito” comic strips, trying to adsorb new Spanish words. At 15:00 hrs. I was feeling really hungry, so I walked down to the nearest supermarket for some cheese, tinned sardines, hamburger rolls, tomato and a bottle of Sprite (carbonated lemon and lime drink).

I settled down at the table in my hostel room and thoroughly enjoyed making and eating huge, filled rolls – a real treat! I lazed about for a bit and then read up about Ecuador in the South American Handbook 1988. I also studied the San José section to see if I had missed anything exciting and concluded that I hadn’t. I could live without seeing every museum and church here.

At 18:00 hrs. I ate in the hostel canteen and drank their delicious blackberry (mora) juice. Back in my room I translated more “Condorito” jokes while the Cub Scouts ran riot outside in the main hall. The structure of “Condorito” is very simple: each page is an independent joke, without any continuity with others (though some jokes are larger or shorter than one page).

“Condorito” is a condor who is lazy, charming, irresponsible, and a cad. He was born in 1949 in Chile as a specific and spiky response to Walt Disney's 1942 charm offensive to conquer South America. Chile wasn't having it. Where Disney's personification of Chile is a plucky infantilized plane, Condorito is mischievous. He's adult, and so are his jokes. And, despite the fact that his eponymous strip has been one of the most popular in all Latin America, he's unmistakably Chilean.

I nipped out to the Bar Peru Tica at 20:30 hrs. for my last couple of beers in Costa Rica. I sat watching, but without understanding, a game of backgammon between a local and the manager of the bar. One American customer was drunk and staggered around muttering “shit, shit”, all the time.

The regular dice game (Craps? Craps is a dice game in which the players make wagers on the outcome of the roll, or a series of rolls, of a pair of dice. Players may wager money against each other (playing "street craps") or a bank (playing "casino craps", also known as "table craps", or often just "craps").) was underway at the other end of the bar and a lady, who’s birthday it was, struggled with a huge champagne cocktail.

I polished off three bottles of Pilsen and some delicious bocas before returning to bed in the hostel at 22:30 hrs.