Day 907
Quito
Ask us and we’ll reply, “No we are not city people”, and yet Tom suggested we have three days in Quito. I know what he wanted, 3 days unlimited access to a washing machine! Cycle touring changes you, just not always in the way you would expect. So it was Airbnb for us, with the essential washing machine, which has been used each and every day. We wash because we can. Hot showers came a close second. Then vegetarian restaurants. We know what we want.
Clean, refreshed, and no longer smelling badly we set out to explore Ecuador's capital of Quito. Built on the remains of an old Inca settlement high in the foothills of the Andes it’s pretty impressive. Overlooked by a 41 metre statue of the Virgin of Quito, she stands majestically high on the El Panecillo, a mountain peak overlooking the city. We wandered around the old town, a well-preserved area of colonial building. The streets are full of churches dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, which with the surrounding buildings are a mix of Moorish and indigenous styles.
We only had two days and lots to do and see. We wandered around a few of the churches and as we entered the Basilica del Voto Nacional, I looked high above and thought as I usually do how cool it would be to be able to wander up there and really explore the building. Well, be careful what you wish for. Here for a very small fee, we could pretty much go where we wanted. Up ten flights, we were able to stand in front of the stained-glass windows, peer at the back of the clock, get up close and personal with many a gargoyle, scale endless narrow winding metal staircases, and then there was more. Way, way above, higher than the main roof we could climb some exposed stairs, hundreds of feet high, out in the open to a carved platform open to the elements, just for the sheer hell of it. I wimped, it was a staircase too far, and anyway there was so much more to see. We followed the crowds into the Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus. Built in the 17th century, inside it is a Baroque masterpiece. Every inch of it is carved then gilded with gold leaf. My jaw dropped when we entered and it remained open the entire time we were in there. Tom snuck only two photographs before being told by security no cameras are allowed.
We broke for lunch, meeting up with a fellow touring cyclist, Eddy, who we hope to cycle with in the New Year. Then there was more. We popped into a smaller local church, packed with people attending a service. We stood quietly at the back, just soaking up the atmosphere. For me it was so much better than the overblown display of wealth in the baroque masterpiece. There was no official fee for this church, but we emptied our change into the eager hands of the beggars outside. Feeling somewhat selfish we left the churches behind and entered the ‘Casa del Alabado Museum of pre Colombian Art’. Located in a colonial house built in the 17th century, which in itself is a work of art.
Set out so well, with a ‘less is more’ motto we were again simply blown away. It apparently has a collection of over 5,000 pieces but displays only 500 of them at any one time. There are 8 rooms, with each one having a different theme. The museum’s aim is the treat the exhibits as works of art, rather than archaeological remains, and it works so well. We couldn’t top this. So instead of visiting more museums and churches we strolled around, listening to the cries of the street hawkers, people watched and just slowly made our way back to our apartment and just for the hell of it, put on another load of washing. Tomorrow we camp, but tonight we have an Electrolux 14kg beauty!
