Author: Troy Knight

A Natural Treasure

We left the city today to visit the Yanacocha Reserve.  This beautiful wooded area is high in the Andes and is privately owned but can be enjoyed by all.  It preserves a high altitude Polylepis forest which in endemic to the Andes and is home to wildlife and bird life.  After leaving there we traveled over the Andes on an unpaved road to have lunch at a private hummingbird garden.  Hundreds of these little beauties entertained us while we had a typical Ecuadorian meal of rice, beans, chicken and papaya.  We learned that their feathers are made of prisms which catch the light and give them their glorious colors.  One on the largest hummers called the sword hummingbird dined next to one of the smallest, the bumblebee hummingbird.  Breathtaking scenery and God’s beautiful creatures made this trip on of the best for us.

Fiesta Finale

 

Viva la Quito ended today with a final dance on the Plaza Square.  Hot sun did not stop these partiers.  They held umbrellas to ward off the sun and danced on.  Museum admission was free and there were lines to get in.  One of my favorite is pictures below.  It was a former hospital where Bethlehemites practiced medicine and helped the poor.  It remained a hospital until 1958 and now houses a record of the growth of Quito from ancient marketplace to Spanish City to modern days.  Watching the families is wonderful.  These children are well behaved and obviously love their parents.  Teenage girls hold hands with their mother and poppy keeps a loving and watchful eye of son and daughter.  They are on their mother’s back or in her arms from infancy so staying close physically is nothing new.  It is a huge city, but there always seems to be time for a coffee and a chat.  Nice

From the Plaza through the “sweetest street”

 

 

 

 

 

Today was another mixture of pageantry and antiquity.  Every month a new Battalion comes to the presidential palace to serve as guards.  This is quite an event.  The old lancers march away from the place, new lancers take their place, bands play and horses carry the cavalry to some mysterious somewhere.  The band plays the National Anthem and a lot of John Phillip Sousa.  A good time was had by all.

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The President and Miss Quito applaud the changing of the Guard.

 

img_9641The band played as the lancers left and new one came on board.  Bet you can spot the secret service agent.  Marines in full attack gear were at the ready.

 

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The funny thing is that most of these officials were waving, blowing kisses and checking their cell phones.

 

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This market sells everything from coffee and ice cream to beautifully crafted clothing and linens.  All at a good price just for you lady.

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The Andean pan flute player depended on technology to sell his haunting melodies.  One of my favorite moments of the day.

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The Arca de Reina that leads to the Ronda the oldest street in the city.img_9674

Plaza San Francisco.  Part of really antique Quito.  The outside does not do justice to the interior of this church.

 

They gathered on the Square

Today was a perfect day for a celebration.  Clear blue skies, warm weather and shirtsleeves, no jackets necessary.  After a breakfast of fresh blackberry juice and toasted ham sandwiches we found a park bench to watch the sights.  Vendadores everywhere and the most popular was the sombrero saleslady.  Her hats sold quickly and the scarf lady did not get so many sales.  Fresh fruit, marshmallow cookies, toasted corn and beans what ever delicacy you wanted was available.  Formal guards stood outside the presidential palace and looked like Napoleonic soldiers in the beautiful red and blue uniforms.  But the most fun to watch was the children.  The played in the fountains, had sack races, ate ice cream and all with childish delight.  Teenagers are the same world wide.  They flirted, took selfies and rolled their eyes at their parents.  Being a poor musician did not seem to stop anyone from playing or their audience from enjoying the music.  My favorite was a violin and trombone duet.  Reminded me of Pat and John Davis.  Parents periodically doused their kiddos in a fountain furiously scrubbing a face and washing a thick head of hair. I made a new BBF.  One grandmother did not want her shoes shined and a young man kept pestering her.  I shooed him off with a wave of a hand and she giggled and mocked my hand motions.  We posed together for a picture and swore that we would be amigas forever.   We visited two of the seven churches in the governmental area.  One had a golden interior and had replicated some of the design in the Vatican.  It was a reminder of the extreme wealth the Spanish exploited from the early tribal people.  Tomorrow we are off to another part of the city called the Ronda famous for its artisans.

Viva Independencia

Ecuadorians are celebrating  their independence from Peru.  The celebration begins the last week of November and will end Tuesday.  The colonial city has taken on a festive air.  Public and private balconies are festooned with bunting, flags and bright mesh ribbons some threaded with tiny lights.  Some balconies have dressed dummies formal gowns and surrounded them with flowers.  All of the hotels feature bowls of red Ecuadorian roses in their lobbies and the city is filled with people either to celebrate or sell their wares.  Yesterday we say open trucks with about 30 or so people each driving through the streets honking the horn, blinking lights, blowing whistles and cheering for their country. Neighborhoods set off fireworks.  There were no arranged pyrotechnics just lots of Roman candles and skyrocket.   Small boys dressed in mini tuxedos and little girls wearing tiaras and gowns was the style of the day.  Old men and women in black fedoras and ponchos have set up stands for corn, candy and tamales.  One tried to see me baby boots and when I told her I had to babies to wear them she was sad for me.  Today the clouds have lifted and we are going back to the Grand Plaza to explore some more.  The Presidents greets    the citizens at eleven every morning.  We hope to see him.  Below are a few of the decorated balconies.

 

 

The Next Morning

This is the sight from our window.  The gold and white building is a basilica and the Gothic cathedral behind it offers the opportunity to climb to the top for great views of Quito.  We definitely won’t do much climbing today.  We walked uphill to breakfast.  We purchased 2 bisochos, 2 empanadas, and 2 ingritos , 2 jugos naranja and 2 bottled waters  for 3 dollars.  It seemed like a good deal to me.  For $1.25 we added two mangos, 4 banana and two papayas from the fruiteria and coffee and milk from the convenience store came to another 3 dollars.  Troy shared part of our treasure with a Viejo who seemed very grateful.  That little trek wore us out.  We are following everyone’s advice and taking these first days at a slow pace.  We are about to check out lunch and the Mercado.

 

 

 

Midnight in Quito

Troy and I arrived in Quito at roughly midnight and took a taxi into the city.  Our landlord met us at a hotel and brought us to our apartment which is in the Zona Colonial.  The apartment has all of the amenities of home, but most importantly a bank of windows and a private patio give us a view of Quito.  Tonight it sparkles with lights.  The Basilica fills one window and the Cathedral another.  The area is very quiet.  Narrow streets do not encourage traffic and of course shops and restaurants are closed.  Our next big adventure will be to find the supermarket and bakery.  Man does not live on vistas alone.  We have been warned to take it easy and stay hydrated.  High altitude is not your friend.  And so to bed.

Living in Cuenca

Cuenca Ecuador is the city of choice for those people who’d dream of living smack in the middle of Paris, Barcelona, or Sienna (or even Manhattan or San Francisco, for that matter) within walking distance of historical, beautiful architecture, culture, and food — at a price that’s affordable for someone needing more living space than a studio apartment.

Apartment in Quito

Quito, a UNESCO  World Heritage Site,  is the capital of Ecuador  and is everything we had hoped it would be.  We are staying in a comfortable apartment in the Colonial section of the city.  Luckily for us, this is the week Ecuadorians celebrate their independencia from Peru.  There is a celebration every night with great music, dancing and fireworks.