Ecuador, Part III: Quito

All I knew of Quito before landing there was that it was about 9,300 feet above sea level (though so topographically mountainous that I don’t know what point is flat enough to measure!). Many people experience altitude sickness their first few days; we were fortunate in that we got away with wheezing up any incline, which we totally attribute to the nearly-two-miles-above-sea-level.

I quickly and whole-heartedly fell in love with the capital of Ecuador. We stayed in Old Town at the beginning and end of our time in this country, and its strong European-Latin American fusion awoke my adventurous self while Dwayne and I urban-hiked (huffed?) our way around this area that was conquistador-ed and colonized in the early 1500s before it won its independence in 1820. Quito has cathedrals like Seattle has Starbucks…if coffee stands were around 300-500 years ago.

We eventually lured our children out of the hotel with promises of dessert. Quito gave me another reason to crush on it– my fruit cup came with Ecuadorian cream (thicker, lightly flavored with berries) and grated mozzarella, which should immediately be adopted by the Global Committee of Fine Desserts.

It’s so fun to explore at Christmas time, with extra lights and energetic crowds. We climbed to the top of the basilica, a newbie at only 100 years old–and it had the first heart-shaped window I have seen, as well as gargoyles that represent the most famous Galapagos animals. (They would have tried Amazon animals but no one could find them…she snarked bitterly.) A city of 3 million people, we explored only the smallest fraction, but we ventured out far enough for some pickpocket attempts. But I was never scared or disappointed, just exhilarated by this historical and beautiful city in the mountains.

On our very last night, Kyla wanted street food for dessert. She and I went out with just a few coins in our pockets to the “largest outdoor dollar store”–everything, from baby chicks, mangos, wrapping paper, and candy, is packaged is dollar-sized packages. Kyla got her cake and strawberries to sweeten the end of our adventure.

Just a last note about Patio Andaluz: our hotel for our first and last nights– oh my goodness! A half-block from the heartbeat of Old Town, the location was perfect, but the hotel was more than location. I love the Spanish-influenced interior courtyards and gardens. I found so many great nooks to curl up and read, and they had two different kettles that always were ready to make me a cup of tea. There were daily arrangements of flirtatious flowers and a place for a game of chess or cribbage, and of course, soft pillows to rest our jet-lagged heads!