Quito, Ecuador

I was only in Quito for two days but really enjoyed my visit and got to see some fun sights. A guy from the USAID mission took us on an evening walking tour of the old city. I especially liked this pic because of the palm tree on the top of the building and the purple lights!

Friday, May 25 was a holiday celebrating the Battle of Pichincha, an important win for Ecuador in the battle for independence from Spain. I was excited to have a free day and our point of contact at the mission (Luisa) spent her holiday taking us around to some of Quito's popular sights. We started the day at the Teleferico. It is a cable car ride up into the clouds of the Andes mountains with spectacular views of Quito and volcanoes. The height is about 10,000 feet so it was tough to catch your breath hiking around at the top.

Our next stop was an active volcano crater about 20 minutes outside of Quito. It hasn't erupted in many years, so people have settled inside the crater.


We also made a stop at the Equator, which is a bit like a tourist trap because the area has replicated the town of Quito on a smaller scale. There was entertainment in the square in celebration of the holiday. The big attraction is the Equator Line at 000 latitude!

We finished the day off by grabbing empanadas at a roadside stand. I would never have stopped here on my own but they were tasty.