Arriving in Quito

Finally getting closer to the southern hemisphere. The arrival in Quito was straighforward enough. I had pre-booked a hostel (woohoo me!), a place called Secret Garden. This was a great hostel, owned by an Aussie-Ecuadorian couple with a great terrace and a make-shift fireplace (ie. take a wheelbarel, add wood and there you have it!...highly recommended!). I opted for a dorm room again (clap clap) and ended up sharing with 3 other guys, all english...one lawyer, one MBA to be and a traveller bum. Interesting mix. The terrace was a great place to meet other travellers. In an effort to be sociable I even went out with everyone on Saturday night to "hit the town of GringoLandia" in Quito. Due to the fact that I had no idea where I was i thought it preferable to abstain from taking any alcoholic beverages, which expectedly made the evening a lot less fun. Ended up in the local meat market where gringos tried to get it on with the local gals!. Tiger Tiger Ecuadorian style....nice!

The next day I ventured out on public transport to La Mitad del Mundo ie. the equator. I felt very courageous for going solo. My spanish skills saving me more than once as i literally only had a few notes scribbled on a piece of paper to help me find my way. Yes, I straddled the equator!

The following day I wandered around the old town in Quito. Quito in itself is not a very nice city. I felt slightly unsafe most of the time and given the altitude (2850m) walking up a few steps left me panting like an overweight texan. So not a great combination. But the Old Town was nice, colonial (again!) and I was lucky enough to be there for the change of the guard. The ecuadorian change of the guard would put Buckingham Palace to shame. There is an orchestra, loads of colourful guards with spears, a speech about protecting the democtratically elected president and to finish it all a few "Viva Ecuador" emerging with pride from the congregation in the square.


Next stop: Banos for a few hot springs.