Ecuador - Quito

August 24, 2009, Quito, Ecuador

We'll be traveling in South & Central America the next 3.5 months

It’s been 4 months since our Southeast Asia Trip, and it feels good to be back on the road. At home South America seemed so far away, but after getting our lives packed into carry-on luggage and small backpacks, we arrive in practically no time at all. At touch-down, a kid in the back of the plane cries out, “Hola Quito!”.

Ecuador, South America

We arrive at the Hotel Viena International. It’s a simple comfortable and elegantly decorated hotel in the heart of Quito’s Historic Old Town. We walk around Old Town in the evening. The travel book wasn’t joking about Quito’s beauty; old Spanish Baroque architecture in a spectacular Andean valley flanked by volcanic peaks. The city gives me the tingles, as does the 2850m elevation.

Basilica above the city, Goth at its core

Plaza Grande, El Centro Historico

We choose to start in Ecuador on the equator for our first trip to the southern half of the world. My college friend Matt told me about a famous comic strip in Spanish, where these South American kids find a world globe and freak out because they live on the bottom of the world. They spend the next several days upside down on their hands, with their feet up in the air, making sure they don’t fall off the earth.

I told Matt about my work college David who has a Russian map of the world in his office, with the North Pole in the center. Russia is prominently displayed above the North Pole “upside down”, with the other continents difficult to recognize without thinking about it for a minute.

It seems there are many ways to look at the world, and for us, that’s what travel is all about!


August 25, 2009, Quito

Today, we tool around Quito, visiting churches and taking in views from the hills. We meet a nice elderly gentleman after a taxi ride to one of the view points. I complain that the altitude make my feet fall asleep when I sit down. We then go through some kind of Andean Tai Chi routine to fix the problem.

Quito valley view from El Panecillo hill top

We meet a med student from California on the way down, who is happy to have company. The walk back into town is pleasant during the day, but the book advises not to take the steps at night. We feel quite safe so far, with police or military in every plaza in the tourist zones.

walking down the hill with our new friend - Matt from CA

There is a very little English spoken here. So, Kevin is rocking out the High School Spanish; booking hotels, ordering food, and buying bus tickets. It’s frustrating because Chinese words come out for every Spanish word I don’t know. Vana is caught somewhere between hopelessness and laughter over Kevin’s Spanglanese and Changlish. After finding it difficult to book a room with a gringo name, Kevin decides to drop his first name, and mix in the middle; Arturo Roberto.

In the evening, we have a tasty meal of Ecuadorian specialties; Locro soup (milk, potato, cheese, and avocado) with meat and cheese Empanadas.

Ecuadorian special soup: Locro (delicious!)

meat and cheese Empanadas

August 26, 2009

Today, we take a bus ride outside of town to Mitad Del Mundo (Middle of the Earth). The theme park dedicated to the equator is a bit cheesy, but it’s neat to stand on the equator line, and see the interesting ethnographic museum. We also enjoy being 0.3% lighter, since the rice, beans, and fried plantains are starting to weigh us down.

Kevin in the Southern Hemisphere, with Vana in the North

Middle of the Earth

August 27, 2009 Quito to Otavalo

In the morning, we visit the Monastery of Santa Catalina, which includes an excellent tour. The Monastery is fully active with 20 nuns, who spend five years in seclusion, and speak to each other for only one hour each day. Their oldest nun is 98 years old! The tour starts by explaining the many art pieces in the Monastery. The English is not so easy to understand, but there seems to be two schools of Ecuadorian artists as follows; the shiny skinned extra bloody Jesus, and the matte skin Jesus with less blood. Actually, it seems someone is bleeding in at least half of the artwork.

Monastery of Santa Catalina

Next, we visit the church, and climb the bell tower, which fits at most three people. On the way out, we sample the nun’s homemade non-alcoholic wine, which is outstanding. I don’t know how they get that kick in the chest without the booze.

bell tower above the Monastery of Santa Catalina

After checking out, we take taxi and bus to Otavalo in the northern highlands. The bus drops us on the Pan-American Highway. We felt a bit awkward towing our luggage into town, while asking for directions. We pick the Samay Inn Hotel, which offers a great deal; friendly owners, clean new rooms, in a perfect central location.

road to Otavalo

While across the street at the internet café, the nice fellow running the place uses a yahoo translator to warn us to be careful with our computer because a thief is in the street.

Vana and I say; “Really? Let’s see”. We are slightly disappointed to see only a police officer, who must have scared him away. This was at least the third time we are warned to watch our stuff. So far, the Ecuadorian people are very friendly and helpful.

CLICK HERE to see more Quito pictures.