Quito

We have actually been to Quito three times on the trip but decided that one entry would be easier and also properly represent the fact that it was not until our third visit that we had a good look around - the first two visits having been spent relaxing, adjusting to altitude and preparing for our Galapagos trip and pit stop in the UK respectively.

On one of our early visits to Quito, we went for a wander in the new town. It was decidedly underwhelming. A few decent eateries and otherwise not a lot to speak of - at least not in the small part that we visited. It did however have an odd smattering of castle-like buildings. A unique Quito phenomenon, most of these buildings were dilapidated and appeared to be used as regular business premises but I figure warrant a mention solely for how out of place they were.

The old town of Quito on the other hand was lovely and we spent the vast majority of our time in Quito wandering its streets. The central square, like all of the green spaces in Quito (of which there were many) was impeccably kept. It was surrounded on three sides by beautiful grand buildings which could have easily graced the squares of most European cities and were it not for the hideous modern lump of a building on the fourth side of the square would possibly have been my favourite in South America (an honour currently held by Arequipa - more on that later).

The stand out aspect of Quito from a tourist perspective however was certainly its myriad of churches and monasteries. Whilst all South America cities have churches and monasteries in abundance, the difference in Quito was that the majority of them were actually worth visiting (i.e. they had something to offer other than the same old stuff).

The most impressive of all the churches was the Compania de Jesus. A short walk from the main square, the Compania de Jesus had the most ornately carved exterior we have ever seen and if that was not enough, the interior was breathtaking. Ornately carved, like the exterior, the interior had the added touch of approximately seven tonnes of gold covering almost every surface.

Whilst the monastery of San Francisco deserves a mention for its sheer size, the more notable was the monastery of Santa Catalina. This monastery continues to house a community of nuns that spend 23 hours of each day in complete solitude and the most grotesque religious art collection I have ever seen. Although limited in artistic merit, the paintings certainly score on shock factor including amongst them a painting of flocks of blood-thirsty sheep lapping up blood pouring from the wounds of the crucified Christ - nice.

Oddly enough however, I do not think that it will be the culture of Quito which we will remember longest. Rather, Quito will be more memorable for the painful high pitched shreiking of its female street vendors, numerous spontaneous parades (religious and political), woman on woman street fights (screaming and fisty-cuffs) and the crazy eyed owner of our hostel (and his equally crazy runt of a dog).

All in all however, we really liked Quito with its mix of old world architecture and Ecuadorian insanity. It did lack a bit of the buzz that one would expect of a city its size but was a great place to pass a few days nonetheless.