Blogs from Quito, North, Ecuador, South America - page 10

Ecuador will be the last country we explore on our South American adventure. Starting with a quick visit to Quito, were we toured the city visiting a few museums and had a interesting tour of the presidents home. (Ecuadors version of the White House) We learned that Ecuador is the 3rd largest exporter of roses in the world. It costs $2 for 25-30 roses. Also huge exports of bananas.... read more

23. März, Panama City - Quito Am Flughafen in Quito nahmen wir den Bus in die Stadt, wobei uns dieser nur zum Stadtflughafen fuhr. Von dort fuhren wir mit einem Shuttletaxi bis zum Hotel. Wir haben zwar ein paar Dollars gespart, dafür dauerte es einiges länger. Das nächste Mal würden wir direkt ein Taxi nehmen. Das wäre sicher einfacher gewesen. Nach dem Checkin im Hostel haben wir im nahegelegenen hipster Restaurant ein feines „Menü economico“ gegessen. Den Nachmittag verbrachten wir mit Planen, Tagebuchschreiben und skypten mit Fabians Schwester, Anja, wegen der Tage auf Galapagos. 24. März, Panama City - Quito Mit dem Bus sind wir Richtung Altstadt gefahren. Als erstes besuchten wir die Basilica National. Die Kirchenfenster waren sehr bunt und zeigten nicht nur religiöse Motive sondern auch Tiere und Pflanzen, was wir sehr schön fanden. ... read more

Geo: -0.373471, -78.1363There was a fountain in the courtyard outside our window, which you could hear during the night. When we awoke in the morning, the fountain sounded much louder. We then realized that it was a heavy downpour we were hearing -- not the fountain. The forecast had been for rain, but we'd hoped it too would prove wrong. The widower on our trip -- Sally -- was a real pistol and we all enjoyed getting to know her. We had already taken to calling her "Sunshine Sally," as she was taking credit for our fine weather to date. As we gathered for breakfast, after making the mad dash through the mud to the restaurant, we all gave her a good ribbing for the rain. Ever confident, she praised the "liquid sunshine" and assured us ... read more

Tababela - Day 22 Breakfast was included in our stay at the hostel. Very friendly and accommodating place. They later gave us a a ride to the bus station. Tonight we stay in Tababela, a small town close to the airport. We leave for home at 7am tomorrow. The time has gone quickly. We decided to avoid the traffic and buses in Quito, and go around the east side of Quito, from Otavalo to Cayambe to El Quinche to Tababela. We found the buses quickly from Otavalo to Cayambe, and from Cayambe to El Quinche. A few minor problems asking for directions to the bus stop in Cayambe. People gave us conflicting directions, but we finally got settled on the bus. On the way we saw a beautiful view of snow-covered Mount Cayambe (5790M high). It ... read more

I ended up having a pretty low key day for the most part. After sleeping in to around 9:30 I first got breakfast at my regular spot. I then headed out the the park Edijo to do some people watching, reading, and writing. It started raining so I gathered my stuff and started to head back to my hotel. Eventually it started to down pour (very very hard) along with thunder and lightening. I ducked into a whole in the wall to have lunch and wait for the rain to stop, but it never stopped. After lunch I threw on my rain coat and quickly walked back to my spot. I then took a nap and did some reading. Before I knew it, it was time to have drinks and dinner with my two Argentinian friends. ... read more