Quiet time in Quito

We arrived for our week long stay in Quito on Saturday.  We found out our hotel is next to a hopping discotecque which rocked until the wee hours.  However the next day and for the following two days it was incredibly quiet.  Why you ask?  Its because its Carnival time in South America.  Everyone has left town!  We wandered our way to a local art market that is only open weekends.
 Tons of vendors selling everything from Panama Hats (made in Ecuador and shipped to Panama) to blankets, bags, socks and some interesting knitted hats that look suspiciously like Sponge Bob. 

We also made our way to the Old Town of Quito.  An incredibly beautiful area with winding cobblestone streets, about a billion churches built from the 1600's to the 1900's, and one or two million people trying to sell you the winning lottery ticket or some coca leaves.

This beautiful area is, of course, on our world tour of UNESCO sites.  It has the distinction of being the first one ever designated.  The city of Quito is surrounded by old dormant (I hope) volcanos and mountains.  The climate is as variable as Calgary.  We wandered our way through a number of the cities many parks and found our way to the botanic gardens and the natural science museum.  Now, we as Canadians expect in a museum that everything is behind glass. Not so in Quito.  In the science museum we were suprised to find a mastadon fossil out on display.

 I mean the actual rock, not a cast or mold.  You can see how much it takes to hold it up.  On a clear day we walked up the spires of La Basilica to see the city from a birds eye.  Neat to see, including El Panecillo (the Quito Madonna) which overlooks the city from a volcanic hill.

We also noticed on this church that the "gargoyles" were not your typical demons that you see on European churches.  They were turtles, lizards, alligators, sloths, etc.  We found out church construction began in 1892 but was not finished for 100  years. 

An enjoyable relaxing week was a nice change before we head off on our next wildlife adventure, the Galapagos.  Until then.
A&D