I've had a few people ask me if I am still running now that we have been traveling for three weeks. The short answer is... of course I am. The longer answer is yes, but it's just not the same.
While we were in Bogota, I did not run at all. Because I was not used to the altitude, just walking around town was enough to make my extremities tingle. Also, the area we were staying was pretty dodgy, the sidewalks were practically falling apart, and the pollution made me want to gag. I know, excuses... but still. I decided to give myself a week or so completely off to settle in.
When we made it to Pasto, it was time. I had to get a run in or I was going to go literally insane. The area was once again a little sketchy, and Daniel was terrified that I would get lost. I wanted to go out for four miles, so I ended up doing about eight loops around the central plaza area. It wasn't exactly the nice easy run I had anticipated... it was more like my heart was beating out of my chest and I wished I had brought along an oxygen tank to maintain a 9:40 pace. When I stopped, my face looked like a tomato, my lips felt like they had pins and needles pricking them, I was sweating my guts out, but my legs felt like I hadn't done anything. It was an odd sensation.
Since then, I have run in each city that we've visited. To date, I have logged 45 miles in Pasto, Otavalo, Banos*, Canoa, and Puerto Lopez. I've been getting in just over twenty miles a week.
*In Banos, I ran out the highway to Puyo, Daniel waited a bit, then rented a Boogie to pick me up. I recommend it!
All in all, I would say my running has been pretty "meh". My mileage has drastically decreased from where it was before I started traveling, but I am making an effort to run at least every other day. I also am going to get back into the habit of a long run once a week, hopefully in the 10 mile range. I haven't been doing any speedwork, but have tackled some monster hills and put in some good efforts on the beach. I must say, I miss having the Prairie Path the run on and people to run with. So far, I have not seen ANY females running... so I've gotten my share of whistles and stares. I am hopeful that I will eventually meet some other travelers to run with, but for now, I'm on my own.