Quito

We moved into a 'mostly' finished new home in late March of this year. We only had enough time to unpack some boxes, settle in somewhat and then prepare for a 3 month road trip that would take us as far north as Tuktoyaktuk on Canada's Arctic coast. When we returned in late September, much of the home's unfinished exterior work, (that was the developer's responsibility), had been completed. We spent most of the following 3 months finishing some landscaping and decking, in addition to minor improvements and detailing of the home's interior. 

So now, we're eager for a new adventure!  

Let's begin this one at ... 

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' The Second Highest Capital City in the World '

Neighbours shuttled us 30 kilometres to our nearest bus station. From there, we travelled to Toronto, spent the night and the next morning boarded a flight to Panama City, PANAMA then to Quito, ECUADOR.

The aircraft approach, (close to an hour of descent) through the Andes Mountains and the landing at Aeropuerto Internacional de Quito is quite spectacular. We were fortunate to fly on a day with quite clear visibility. If you look closely you can see a portion of the landing strip in the upper left section of the photo. (The following 3 stock photos are much better than any I took from the plane's window)

And as our Boeing B737-800 descended even further ... 

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ITINERARY

Our itinerary includes multi-day stays in old Quito, the Maquipucuna Cloud Forest, Banos and Cuenca. These locations give us access to ... the history and culture of Ecuador's capital city, to rural areas, national parks, 3 UNESCO World Heritage sites and an established expat retirement community. We'll also be sailing around the Galapagos Islands on a live-aboard, the Yacht Angelito, with another couple for 8 days. This will allow us access to 4 of the islands in that archipelago. We'll end our stay on the Pacific Coast in the beach area near Olon. 

You can follow our route using the map below. To view in detail, begin by clicking on [  ] (top right corner) for full screen. Use the hand to pan and +/- to zoom and reduce, as needed. (The map also includes our preliminary planning for trips to Cozumel, MEXICO and the Atlantic Provinces of CANADA, later in 2019)

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QUITO

We'll spend our first 3 nights here and wander the old city throughout the day. Quito is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The stay here, will give us an opportunity to acclimatize gradually to a higher elevation.

 

CASA HOTEL las PLAZAS, where we are staying, is a three-star hotel, located in the historic center of Quito, in the center of downtown, just one block from the Presidential Palace of Ecuador. 

Staff are exceptional, the building and all rooms are historic but clean, breakfasts are exceptional and included in the cost.

Front Lobby

Kitchen

Balcony outside our room

Sitting Room

Mario, Helen and Lucia

There is a rooftop terrace at the hotel with a prominent view of  the twin bell towers of the ...

BASILICA del VOTO NACIONAL The Basilica of the National Vow is a Roman Catholic church located in the historic center of Quito, Ecuador. It is the largest neo-Gothic basilica in the Americas. (The second photo that follows is stock.)

Legend says if this neo-Gothic basilica is ever officially completed, the world will come to an end. 

 

 

 

 

The terrace also provides good views of the city below and the mountain hillsides beyond.

PLAZA de INDEPENDENCIA ... walkabout

Stock Photo

Independence Square (Spanish: Plaza de la Independencia, or colloquially as Plaza Grande) is the principal and central public square of Quito, Ecuador. This is the central square of the city and one of the symbols of the executive power of the nation. Its main feature is the monument to the independence heroes of August 10, 1809, date remembered as the First Cry of Independence of the Royal Audience of Quito from spanish monarchy. The square is flanked by the Carondelet Palace, the Metropolitan Cathedral, the Archbishop's Palace, the Municipal Palace and the Plaza Grande Hotel. 

Carondelet Palace (Palacio Presidential)

Carondelet Palace is the seat of government of the Republic of Ecuador, located in Quito. Access is by the public space known as Independence Square or Plaza Grande, around which are also the Archbishop's Palace, Municipal Palace, Plaza Grande Hotel, and Metropolitan Cathedral. 

Iglesia La Compania

The Church of the Society of Jesus, known colloquially as the Company, is a Jesuit church in Quito, Ecuador. It is among the best-known churches in Quito because of its large central nave, which is profusely decorated with gold leaf, gilded plaster and wood carvings.

 

Independence Square / Plaza Grande

Several restaurants in the area offer very good traditional Ecuadorian dishes at reasonable prices. We enjoyed all meals at ... Diosolopay Restaurante, Fonda Quitena and Cafe Plaza Grande. However a highlight of our stay here, was a lunch prepared at the pizza franchise PizzaSA in the old city historic district. An Ecuadorian styled pizza that combined sweet figs, basil, local mozzarella cheese and pimientos picantes on a thin crust. 

... and we added our names to those, of the thousands of travelers who got here before us!

 

 

PLAZA de SAN FRANCISCO 

The Plaza de San Francisco (“Saint Francis Square”) is a major public square in the Historic Center of Quito, Ecuador, upon which faces La Iglesia y Monasterio de San Francisco (the Church and Convent of St. Francis) from which it takes its name. 

We were here during the celebration of ... Día de Reyes (Epiphany’s Day) 
Epiphany, also Theophany, Denha, Little Christmas, or Three Kings' Day, is a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus Christ. In Western Christianity, the feast commemorates principally (but not solely) the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child.

Tomorrow, we board a shuttle to the Maquipucuna Cloud Forest for a 3 night stay at a Reserve & Ecolodge ... see you there!

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We're LOAFin Around  

... but without LOAF this time (he's in his winter spa). 

Follow along, if you like.

Our latest route is included on TRAVELMAP 2019.   

For all posts from this latest adventure
click Trip 146 

Wikipedia and others have provided backlinks. 

All photography is by LOAFin Around, unless otherwise noted. 

Wry and Crusty ... 

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