Well we had a good night sleep and slept until 8:00 am and then showered and went for breakfast.
I hadn't really planned much for the day but since it looked to be a clear morning we decided to head up to the viewpoint at El Panecillo which is located on a hill overlooking Quito and is a statue of the winged Virgin. We got a taxi because it is quite a hike and I heard that it is not safe to walk. When we arrived at the top of the hill, the taxi driver offered to stay and wait for us. We paid $1.00 each to go into the base of the statue where we climbed up the base till the second floor where there were windows to view outward. There was a stairwell to go up to the first balcony but it looked small and steep and I was getting claustrophobic just looking up it so we didn't go any farther. The view from up there was amazing and we were both surprised as to how many houses there were within and near Quito. After a while we had the taxi driver drop us off at the Plaza Grande.
Walking the streets we were overwhelmed first of all by how many people there were around and second by the number of stores and how they were placed. It seems like the lower level of each building had store after store after store. The width of each store is not more than 10 feet and the depth may have been double that for some. The mixture of stores was so diverse as well. The would be a small store, next to a party store, next to a store selling underwear, next to a small cafeteria restaurant. It really does make your head spin.
Aside from all these streets filled with all these stores and all these people, there are of course the sites to see in the historic center of town.
We saw the Presidential Palace, and we toured the Cathedral Primada de Quito which was also in the same square. We walked up to the Basilica and also toured inside here as well. This cathedral was very large and there was a small mass going on at the time but they allow you to visit and not disrupt things so we walked around and admired mostly the stained glass and the view from the back of the church to the front made it seem almost endless.
We walked around a bit more trying to get our bearings and it was around lunch time so Dave saw one of the small cafeterias that was quite busy with locals so we decided to eat there. For $3.50 for the both us of us, we got a local Ecuadorian soup that had yucca, meat, corn and broth and a plate of fried chicken, rice and beans plus a glass of juice....really, it was $3.50!!!!!! For the both of us....
After this we walked around a bit and were sitting in the Plaza Grande when we spotted two of the kids that were on our Galapagos cruise. We called them over and talked for a while. They were trying to decide if they were going to go to Columbia first or just travel south through Peru. I envy them being so young being able to see so much but at least Dave and I are able to do some things.
We headed to the room for a little while to chill a bit before deciding what to do for dinner.
The receptionist at the hotel gave us recommendations so we will try one of those out tonight.
We headed out about 6:30 back to the Plaza Grande to the Palacio Arzobispol which houses a lot of shops and restaurants. We ate at Hasta la Vuelta, Senor where we had empanadas, and Dave had the grilled chicken and I had the shrimp in garlic sauce and everything was very good.
We left full and waddled our way back to the hotel. It was only about 7:30 and not too dark and there were still plenty of police around so we walked back to our hotel and made it without incident.
Another great day in the city.
I hadn't really planned much for the day but since it looked to be a clear morning we decided to head up to the viewpoint at El Panecillo which is located on a hill overlooking Quito and is a statue of the winged Virgin. We got a taxi because it is quite a hike and I heard that it is not safe to walk. When we arrived at the top of the hill, the taxi driver offered to stay and wait for us. We paid $1.00 each to go into the base of the statue where we climbed up the base till the second floor where there were windows to view outward. There was a stairwell to go up to the first balcony but it looked small and steep and I was getting claustrophobic just looking up it so we didn't go any farther. The view from up there was amazing and we were both surprised as to how many houses there were within and near Quito. After a while we had the taxi driver drop us off at the Plaza Grande.
Walking the streets we were overwhelmed first of all by how many people there were around and second by the number of stores and how they were placed. It seems like the lower level of each building had store after store after store. The width of each store is not more than 10 feet and the depth may have been double that for some. The mixture of stores was so diverse as well. The would be a small store, next to a party store, next to a store selling underwear, next to a small cafeteria restaurant. It really does make your head spin.
Aside from all these streets filled with all these stores and all these people, there are of course the sites to see in the historic center of town.
We saw the Presidential Palace, and we toured the Cathedral Primada de Quito which was also in the same square. We walked up to the Basilica and also toured inside here as well. This cathedral was very large and there was a small mass going on at the time but they allow you to visit and not disrupt things so we walked around and admired mostly the stained glass and the view from the back of the church to the front made it seem almost endless.
We walked around a bit more trying to get our bearings and it was around lunch time so Dave saw one of the small cafeterias that was quite busy with locals so we decided to eat there. For $3.50 for the both us of us, we got a local Ecuadorian soup that had yucca, meat, corn and broth and a plate of fried chicken, rice and beans plus a glass of juice....really, it was $3.50!!!!!! For the both of us....
After this we walked around a bit and were sitting in the Plaza Grande when we spotted two of the kids that were on our Galapagos cruise. We called them over and talked for a while. They were trying to decide if they were going to go to Columbia first or just travel south through Peru. I envy them being so young being able to see so much but at least Dave and I are able to do some things.
We headed to the room for a little while to chill a bit before deciding what to do for dinner.
The receptionist at the hotel gave us recommendations so we will try one of those out tonight.
We headed out about 6:30 back to the Plaza Grande to the Palacio Arzobispol which houses a lot of shops and restaurants. We ate at Hasta la Vuelta, Senor where we had empanadas, and Dave had the grilled chicken and I had the shrimp in garlic sauce and everything was very good.
We left full and waddled our way back to the hotel. It was only about 7:30 and not too dark and there were still plenty of police around so we walked back to our hotel and made it without incident.
Another great day in the city.
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