0130 Quito - An exciting city

30^th Oct.
We had to wait till 2 pm to get our tickets and travel details from Adriana at the Travel Agents, so we decided to go on a hop on – off bus tour of Quito in the morning, and then continue our journey south after we had our tickets.  It was bright and sunny in the morning, so after our complimentary breakfast at the hotel, we walked the 4 blocks up to the Hilton Hotel to catch our tour bus a 9.25 am.  While waiting for the bus there was an older lady selling a few cheap trinkets who had a lovely smile. The vendors are not pushy here – If you politely say “No gracias” and smile, they usually smile back and wander off.  But I always like to keep a few coins in my pocket, and when I gave this lady a little change and declined the offer of chiclets or whatever, she smiled and it was just lovely to see her face light up. A million dollar feeling for me for just a few cents.   There was another lady there sweeping the street, and she had a baby in a sling strapped to her as she swept – Hmm, they do have a really tough time here, no doubt about it.  I am very aware of it, and sometimes I almost feel guilty because I can’t help them all.  We have a lot to be thankful for sometimes…….And we should never forget it.

Eventually the bus came, a topless double decker, and as it was such a lovely sunny day, it was perfect, and off we went up the wide Avenida from the hotel.  Almost the first thing you start to see are the tall spires of the incredible Basilica del Voto Nacional.  I can’t tell you a lot about this incredible except that it was designed by a Frenchman, started in the 1926, and still unfinished.  Just an amazing sight, visible from almost everywhere in the city.  From the Basilica we went down some tiny cobbled streets into the Old City, and you have to stay seated because some of the overhead wires are so low they would chop your head off if you stood up !! In the distance we could see El Panecillo – A hill nicknamed the Little Bread Loaf due to its shape – And upon which stands the huge statue of The Virgen de Quito.

We passed on, and from the bus saw some interesting sights.  A lady with a big burden on her back provided an amazing photo which I only realised when I downloaded it later onto my computer. To me, the expression on her face portrays all the hardship and struggle of the local people – I find the photo very sad and moving to look at now.  Then there were two painters perched at the top of a ladder, supposedly painting a house, but seemingly more interested in chatting and waving to passing tourists like us !! And a balcony with metal sculptures of armour clad horsemen and soldiers !  After that, we went through the beautiful Plaza Grande, with the Catedral, Presidential Palace, and the Archbishop’s Place surrounding it.  Then it was past the Jesuit Church La Compania de Jesus (of which more later) and the imposing Bank of Ecuador building.  Then it was up the winding road to the top of the Little Bread Loaf, with amazing views back over the city all the way, and even more stunning views from the top.  You can even see the snow capped peak of the 5897 m high Volcan Cotopaxi, the highest active volcano in the world, and one which we will get closer to as we head south.  There was also still some snow on the peak of the 5704 m volcan Antisana which we could also see in the distance.  We really had a perfect clear day for sightseeing !

While up on the hill we found the usual collection of people selling local artefacts or playing Pan’s Pipes, and all of them are very polite and pleasant to chat to. Janet stated talking to one particularly striking native who turned out to be just the most quiet and gentle and lovely person you can imagine – Tranquil, as they might say in Spanish. He just had an amazing aura about him, and it was a pleasure to talk with him for about 10 minutes.  His name had something Lobo (wolf) in it – Unfortunately we can’t remember the full name he told us.  But we won’t forget him easily.

On the way back down the hill into the Old City, we continued to see fascinating sights – A house with the ground underneath it being eroded away, and supported on wooden pillars, 3 men playing cards on some steps, and an enormous cemetery now surrounded by houses and busy roads.  Eventually we returned to the other side of the Plaza Grande, and we decided to get off the bus here for an hour to go and explore the Jesuit Church and the Plaza more fully.  Originally we were going to go on a chair lift up to the top of the Volcan Pichincha at 4100 m, but we decided that the views from El Panecillo had been enough and we would rather explore this church about which we had heard so much.

So we jumped off the bus in the Plaza Grande, and enjoyed walking though it – These plazas are just great places for people to just sit, talk, think, and enjoy their city. One of the nicest things about Quito is that it is about locals being locals, being themselves, and getting on with their lives.  As we pass through their city, it is almost as though we are looking through a one way window at them – They pay us little notice, and just get on with their lives. Wonderful.  And the plaza is a perfect example of that.  Old men on benches snoozing in the sun, young children running around excitedly with their mothers, business men taking 5 minutes in a busy day to sit with a coffee, or young lovers sitting together, holding hands and chatting with their heads close together.  I love these central Plazas.

And so to La Compania de Jesus church. It is almost entirely gilded, and was begun in 1605, and not completed for 160 years. It has Moorish elements, perfect symmetry (right down to a painted staircase on one wall to match a real staircase on the opposite side), and red walls as a reminded of Christ’s blood.  Locals call it the most beautiful church in Ecuador.  It is certainly the most stunning visually.  Unfortunately no photography is allowed inside, so I was only able to take a few not very good ones – It is hard to look in the opposite direction while you take a photo and still focus on the target !!

Then it was back through the Plaza Grande to catch the bus again, grabbing an empanada and a fruit cup from a little vendor to snack on as we waited. Eventually we completed our tour and got back to the travel agent to pick up our Galapagos tickets, but by the time we had enjoyed a few quick tacos and a Margarita at a local Mexican restaurant for lunch, it was mid afternoon, and there was no way we were going to get to the Equator monument, and then south out of the city through rush hour traffic before dark.  So we decided to try to book back into the same hotel as last night, stay one more night, and leave early in the morning.  We managed to do this, ended up having a picnic supper in our room (we have to eat our own food because when we got to Galapagos we will have to turn the car fridge off), and then read up on Galapagos and did my blog and fings like that.

I will post these tow entries but although I have uploaded my photos to Picasa, for some reason the internet here will not let me link them to here, so you will have to come back another day to see the amazing photos of Quito.  A busy, bustling, capital city, but one that has some wonderful sights and attractions, and more importantly, some wonderful people.  We are SO impressed by the friendliness of everyone, there is always a smile and a “hola” from everyone you pass on the street.  We have really enjoyed Quito, even if we only managed to skim the surface.

Here is photo link but no time yet to polish them for public consumption !!  https://picasaweb.google.com/117739775480775657932/0127Quito?authkey=Gv1sRgCLLnmIHQnOHoJw#