Quito has a new airport so one no longer has to touch down essentially in the middle of the city, avoiding the surrounding volcanos! The old airport had quite a number of accidents!
This now means a one hour trip into the city from the valley! Much safer however!
We were booked into the Swissotel in a newish area of the city....not the old colonial part.
My window view of the Pichincha Volcano ...which is still active. It is very close to the city and apparently they are all prepared with emergency meeting points etc.
On the first night we were taken into the center to have dinner in the Theatrum.........
This was a beautiful old building and the food served was definitely very good.
Next morning we went to have a view over Quito from a vantage point in the Inchimbia parque.........
OpenArt with a view......
Our first stop en route to the Colonial downtown was to the Basilica del Voto Nacional which has interesting gargoyles in the shape of Galapagos animals! Preparing us!
The interior was also quite interesting.......
We then had a tour of the old colonial part of town... the first UNESCO city of South America.
The main plaza was beautiful...overlooked by the presidential palace......
While there we were lucky to see a practice run of the changing of the guard!
After a quick visit to an art gallery. on the corner of the Plaza.......
Lunch was arranged at the El Crater restaurant....on the edge of a crater. However there was NO view...... weather did not co-operate!
The owner is an artist and we were amused to find that he had had fun with the indications for the restrooms!
On the way back we stopped at the equator line...... as did many others!
This now means a one hour trip into the city from the valley! Much safer however!
We were booked into the Swissotel in a newish area of the city....not the old colonial part.
My window view of the Pichincha Volcano ...which is still active. It is very close to the city and apparently they are all prepared with emergency meeting points etc.
On the first night we were taken into the center to have dinner in the Theatrum.........
.....in the National Theatre... one of the oldest theaters in South America..........
Next morning we went to have a view over Quito from a vantage point in the Inchimbia parque.........
..... in front of a Convention Centre which started life as a market hall in Hamburg and was moved to Quito where it also started life as a market hall..... now it seems to be a wedding/convention venue..
We then had a tour of the old colonial part of town... the first UNESCO city of South America.
The main plaza was beautiful...overlooked by the presidential palace......
While there we were lucky to see a practice run of the changing of the guard!
The Plaza was surrounded by old colonial buildings.....
....... we were really just there to check out the interior rooms......
Then on to the local church...... San Francisco Monasterio.......namesake of the city!
The owner is an artist and we were amused to find that he had had fun with the indications for the restrooms!
On the way back we stopped at the equator line...... as did many others!
and the time was correct!
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