Quito Ecuador
Well as usual we were up at O:Dark Thirty to start our trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. First leg flew us from Seattle to Houston for a lengthy layover before heading to Quito in the northern part of Ecuador. We helped kill time in Houston by searching for a Geocache inside the airport. When we got to ground zero we were greeted with this:
Not sure if this was an omen or if we just lucked out finding a TSA convention going on right next to the statue of President George Bush. Either way we grabbed this photo before drawing attention from the crowd and stealthily headed back to our gate to wait out our flight to Quito. On time departure and we found ourselves in Quito at the end of a long long day. Below is what Quito looks like at 11:30 pm.
After a quick nap we got up early and had breakfast at our hotel in Downtown. WOW, when they say breakfast included they really meant it. The spread was fantastic with many new to us items hiding under the covers:
After breakfast we were heading north to Old Town with our guide. Our first stop was at a chocolate factory for a cool tour and sampling. One thing we did not realize is that Cacao pods grow out of the sides/bark of the trees. We thought you would just pick the pods like a dangling fruit but that is not the case. Anyway, after the chocolate demo we spent the morning walking around the area.:
After the morning tour we boarded a bus for a 6 hour ride through the Andes mountains, 14,000 feet elevation heading to the jungles of the Amazon basin. From the highlands we descended through many regions, mainly the cloud forest and finally the rain forest of the jungle. One thing we all agree with is that the drivers in Ecuador are FLIPPIN CRAZY, and the roads are even worse! After a lunch in the cloud forest we headed to the town of Tena where we stopped and tasted one of the delicacies of the rain forest (pictured below). Then we continued into the rain forest to a fantastic spot, Suchipakari Amazon Lodge in the Amazon jungle. WOW, is all we can say, what a fantastic spot, and in the middle of the jungle, crazy good. OK, now we must inject that a 5 star rating in NYC might be pictured one way, while a 5 star rating in the Amazon jungle might be interpreted a little differently, but still, this place was over the top! After a fantastic dinner we ventured into the dark forest to check out the creatures that are hidden in the dark. After a couple hours exploring the darkest jungle you can imagine, we headed into our room to fall asleep to the eerie sounds of the jungle in the background. No glass for windows, only screens so you got all the hoots and hollers the jungle had to offer.
After a couple days in the rain forest it was time to head back to Quito at 9000 feet and out of the sweltering humidity we enjoyed around Tena. The next day we headed north on a trip to see Laguna Cuicocha and the town of Otovalo. While on a boat trip in the Laguna Cuicocha we learned that the Ecuadorian Coot is special as it has no web between their toes, and therefor can not dive like most Coot's, but instead it "Bob's" with it's head down. We also stopped at the Mitad del Mundo which is the monument set at "The Center Of The World" where you can stand with a foot on each of the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere at one time!
Just north of Quito is a sort of valley that sits at about 6500 feet. Right on the equator so it gets the perfect amount of light per day, and the climate is just perfect for growing roses. We kept seeing these huge bouquets of roses in the hotel and restaurants and were thinking what the heck, that's gotta cost a ton of money. But. turns out that this area is one of the worlds leading producers of roses in the world and the valley and surrounding area is covers with thousands of greenhouses that grow only roses. Turns out, the wholesale cost of roses in Quito is only $5.00 us for 100 roses! No wonder they are everywhere!
And with that we spend one more night in Quito and in the morning it is time to board another airplane to fly to Guayaquil and then puddle jump another flight to Isla De San Cristobal, Galapagos. Click the links above to continue on with our Galapagos portion of the trip!