Quito, Ecuador, is the second highest capital city in the world—only second to La Paz, Bolivia. We were glad that we had spent some time in Bogota, Colombia, getting acclimatized to the altitude. Quito is built on hills—the same hills that are home to 80 volcanoes and many earthquakes.
Upon our arrival at the airport, we went immediately to our hotel, the boutique Casa Aliso, located near many restaurants and stores. We had time that evening only to go to Segundo Muelle for a delicious dinner before an early evening to get ready for the next day.
Our first full day in Ecuador was spent touring the city with the first stop being at the Virgen de El Panecillo, the beautiful Virgin statue that overlooks the city from its perch high atop the mountain, El Panecillo. The statue is the world’s tallest aluminum statue and the tallest image of a winged Virgin Mary. The hill, which stands in the middle of Quito, provides wonderful views of the entire city.
Our next stop, back at ground level, was at the Basilica and Convent of San Francisco built in 1536 and the Iglesia de la Compañía de Jesús. The highly ornate basilica features the sculpture of a winged Virgin Mary by Bernardo de Legarda, from the Quito school of art, that inspired the Virgen de El Panecillo. Like many of the buildings in Old Town Quito, San Francisco Plaza is built on Incan ruins.
After the morning seeing the town, we needed a bit of caffeine and sugar to keep us motivated and a chocolate tasting at Yumbos was a great way to do this. At the same time we learned about the blossoming chocolate industry in Ecuador, we were able to taste the different chocolates produced by the company. (Hint: 100% chocolate is not very good in my opinion.)
After our break, we made our way up the crowded Garcia Moreno Street, also known as Calle de las Siete Cruces (Street of the Seven Crosses). The street, one of the oldest in Quito, was built by the Spanish along a sacred Incan route that led from the temple of the sun god to the temple of the moon goddess. The Spanish filled in the deep ravine and, began building Catholic churches along the route to make the conversion of Incans to Catholicism easier. Over time, they also constructed crosses—seven of them, in fact. Along the street, there are also great views of the sacred mountains, El Panecillo and San Juan, on either end.
A quick lunch at Miskay gave us the opportunity to try some traditional Ecuadorian foods such as empanadas and more ceviche before we grabbed an Uber to the Mitad del Mundo, the middle of the world. Just a warning: the statue is not the actual middle of the world. Instead visit the Intiñan Equator Museum which is almost next door.
Our guide, Ricky, was fabulous. (Guides are provided by the museum and are so knowledgeable.) He gave us information about all parts of Ecuador including the Amazonian tribes that maintain the old traditions and violently don’t want any visitors. Ecuador doesn’t have any tornadoes, hurricanes, etc. because of the Coriolis Effect, but they do have more than their share of natural disasters with volcanoes and earthquakes. (The Coriolis Effect means that water drains counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.) We were able to do multiple experiments to see the effects of being on the Equator. (Just an FYI…water drains straight down on the equatorial line.) This museum was one of my favorite stops throughout this South American trip.
After interesting adventures with Uber drivers---both of whom were excellent—we made it back to our hotel. Remember: Flexibility is the key to happy travels! The only restaurant open at that time near our hotel was La Briciola where we were treated like royalty and enjoyed great Italian food.
Using Quito as our base, the next morning we drove along the Pan American Highway to Cotapaxi National Park Museum followed by further exploration. This stretch of the highway, that runs from Alaska to the tip of South America, was nicknamed the Avenue of the Volcanoes by Alexander Humboldt, a famous Prussian scientist who explored the area. (Humboldt supposedly made the observation that Ecuadorians are unique because they can sleep in peace surrounded by volcanoes, celebrate to sad music, and are poor but rich in resources.) Cotopaxi, the second highest volcano in Ecuador at 19,347 feet above sea level, last erupted in 2023. (Wanna-be visitors should check the website for alerts.) We took a break in the drive at 10,700 feet to warm up with coca tea and buy toboggans to stop the cold wind from blowing through our ears. We took several short hikes, including one around Limpiopungo Lake.
Even though the day was shrouded in fog which prevented us from seeing the top of Cotapaxi, small wildflowers kept us company. Most of the time, our views of Cotapaxi looked much like our views of Mt. Fuji! The weather did clear long enough for us to see the peak out the van window, but not long enough to snap a picture.) Our guide for Quito, Gabriela, pointed out flora and fauna to make us much more educated about the area. One of my favorites is the Lupinus pubescens which is related to the Texas Bluebonnet. Our drive took us across a boulder-strewn plane 3-5 km from volcano. (Our driver did an excellent job on the rough roads.) The huge boulders, thrown from the mouth of the volcano during an eruption, show the massive power that volcanoes can have.
We ate lunch at Chilcabamba Mountain Lodge with a beautiful view of the almost visible snow-covered Cotopaxi peak. In hindsight, this lodge would be a great place to stay overnight to eliminate such a long drive the next day to see the Quilatoa Crater, but, instead, we drove back to Quito, had a great meal at Somos and then followed this same route the next day to get to the crater. (Just a note: Every meal we had in South America was wonderful. The restaurants typically had very generous portions, so we generally split an appetizer and entrée—and, sometimes, dessert. In addition to ceviche, I also was able to eat cuy (guinea pig) which I had fallen in love with on our first visit to Peru.
On our way to Quilatoa Crater the next morning, we stopped by Tigua, a village of indigenous people, almost all of whom are painters in the naive style. The beauty of the colorful fields of plants covering the steep terraces like a magnificent patchwork quilt blanketing the mountains, kept us looking out the windows.
Literally, hundreds of dogs line the road waiting patiently for tidbits from passersby—heartbreaking for us.
Quilatoa Crater is the result of a massive earthquake a short, at least in the earth’s time, 800 years ago. A giant fissure in the ground that winds through the town shows the strength of the eruption and the subsequent earthquake. The water color of the crater changes with the sun and wind. We hiked around the top of crater with a very brisk cold wind whipping around us. Our elevation gain was relatively small, but at a beginning altitude but at roughly 12,467-12,841 ft. above sea level, it was still difficult. There are some souvenir stores before entering the crater area, but not everything may be open so we had picnic lunches. We enjoyed the day, but the drive was long. I would definitely recommend staying closer to Quilatoa or perhaps skipping it and seeing more of Quito.
We did have a traditional treat on our way back to Quito when we stopped at a drive-in ice cream shop for ice cream originally made by nuns in Salcedo. The ice cream bars always have four flavors: leche, blackberry, naranjilla, and a type of passion fruit. These inexpensive treats are worth a stop!
Another wonderful dinner, this time at La Gloria, before flying the next day to Lima and then on to the Amazon!
Our voyage on the Delfin 1 on the Amazon River is just a click away!
Our day in Lima, Peru is here.
For info about Quito and our short trip there, click here.
To read about our stay in Bogota, click here.
In the meantime, please click here for info on Cartagena.
I'd love to have you subscribe to my blog. Just click here and add your email address.
Comments