Ecuador (Quito to the Peruvian border)

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Arrived in Quito from the border crossing with Colombia pretty tired (been travelling from Cali for about 24 hours) and took a taxi to my hotel. Quito is really nice, took a walk around the city and really liked it. Full of history and colonial charm I spent hours walking around the city centre. You can visit inside the Presidential palace (when el Presidente isn't there), you just need your passport and they will give you a guided tour for free (it's part of the Presidents "the country belongs to the people" thing). Did a day trip to the equator (in case you didn't know Ecuador is equator in Spanish) which was really interesting (although the actual equator is about 200m away). Plaza Foch is the place to go to in Quito at night, it's where most of the backpackers/ trekkers are has a great night life. Also loads of camping/ trekking shops but are a bit pricey. There are also loads of bars just near the city centre as well. The trek up to and the views from El Panecillo are well worth doing which is just to the south of the city centre. Got a bus to Guayaquil which a necessity to get to the tiny surf town Montanita on the South West coast. I found Guayaquil hot, sticky and noisy and was quite glad to leave the place. Montanita is a nice little surfing town which has loads of bars/ restaurants catering to a holiday crowd. Got the bus from there to get to the border crossing with Peru. Border crossing was again fine and had no problems at all. Welcome to Peru! 😊

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