We flew over the Panama Canal with Copa Airlines again. Weirdly, we’d flown this route to get to Costa Rica, doubling back on ourselves after a brief stop at the airport, but this time we were there briefly to transit on to Quito. Annoyingly not a country we can claim to have been to, though. Stewart had arranged a taxi to take us to The Secret Garden Hostel in Quito through the Whatsapp group chat you join when you book. It was $17 and an Uber would have been $30 something in that moment.
The Secret Garden Hostel is a great spot with a fantastic view of Quito (a literally breathtaking 2850m above sea level) in the terrace restaurant, great music (for me!) and 50% off food and drinks for guests. The terrace is frequented by locals as a smart place to go for brunch or dinner but the backpackers are just all mixed in, journalling, scrolling and sharing stories. It works well. It also has a sister hostel ‘in the sticks’ which was our next destination.
On our first day, we took the free walking tour from the hostel and it was so much fun. The two guides were upbeat and chatty as they took us through mainly the culture of Ecuador with a sprinkling of history and politics. We drank shots, wore masks, learned some salsa moves on the roof of the University and had a chocolate tasting session. It was highly entertaining.
Some interesting titbits we learned was that the current economic situation in Ecuador is really tricky as they are massively in debt to China, who promised infrastructure work in return for oil and copper (and some say cheap shrimp!). This bill is in the billions and Ecuador can’t pay it back; the dam China built and other infrastructure has not been completed well, leaving some very dissatisfied people in the country. The government’s only solution has been to raise taxes (obviously) hence the protests that foreigners are so often warned about when travelling to Quito. Asking about the healthcare situation elicited a story from one guide about her sister’s cancelled operation that week, because anaesthetic couldn’t be sourced and the other guide being asked to go and find disinfectant from a pharmacy in town for his friend who was in hospital with a wound. The hospital has the staff and the facilities but no day-to-day medical supplies.
The only ‘protest’ we did see was an International Women’s Day March, which was epic. Thousands of women of all ages marching through the streets with placards declaring the need to live without fear: protection from domestic abuse; need for police protection not abuse and abortions allowed for rape victims, amongst other things. It is very hard to really ‘know’ the issues of the Ecuadorians but it was great to see so many young women organised and excited about the possibility of life improving for their families and friends. And a little bit terrifying watching disguised and masked women plastering walls with posters which asked you to consider that all women are not the same.
Some of our time in Quito was spent replenishing our own supplies. After wandering around La Floresta, a so-called bohemian part of the town, we hit up the supermarket and amassed a trolley of products that were unfortunately cheaper with a loyalty card. Unintentionally, I ended up chatting with an English guy (Scouser) in the tea aisle (how very British, you say!) and realising he was local, cheekily borrowed his loyalty card, getting us a whole $11 off the bill. Stewart was a little bit impressed at my skills… well maybe!
Stewart had a lot of fun at the Church in Quito. For $4 they let you climb the towers with no health & safety considerations! He was literally in the tops of the steeples, above the clocks, doing his Fred Dibnah steeplejack impression. He was like a kid in a candy shop asking for one more minute each time they said they had to close. It was very amusing watching him trying to maximise every set of stairs. He wasn’t the only one, in fact there was a child up there with their parents putting me to shame, but climbing backwards down stepladders hundreds of metres in the sky is not in my repertoire!
Later that night we noticed there was a cool bar over the road called ‘La Oficina’, who had a band and salsa night on. We were the only Gringos there and our salsa dancing after a single demo was ‘interesting’ but we braved it out and had a laugh.
On our last day, we travelled to Middle (of the) Earth – the Equator Line. It felt like a school trip, helped along by the fact we were taken there in a yellow bus. There were various stations of explanation about Ecuadorian life and history before we hit the spot: 0’00’00. It was quite the adventure with demonstrations of water travelling down plugs in different directions a few feet each side of the line (North and South) but straight down when on the equator line. Stewart got an ‘eggmaster’ certificate (he was thrilled) for balancing an egg on a nail head (it’s an egguator thing apparently!) and then we had to see if we could balance and defeat pressure in the same way, on and off the line. But in case we weren’t impressed before we left, we were treated to another cacao demo … which meant more chocolate tasting. Excellent! Weirdly, this line is about 200m from the original ‘middle of the earth’ monument which is ‘historic’ but inaccurate, according to today’s GPS. Good job, else all that water, plug, eggs and walking the line would have failed!
Foodwise, we had some very pleasant experiences. One night we ate a pizza bigger than both of our heads put together, each! It was the charm of the pretend Italian, Colombian owner. He was a blast and cooked the pizzas in his make shift restaurant, on the table next to you! Gluten free too. Another night we tried a cafe called ‘Cuscungo’ that captured our eye with the promise of Stewart’s favourite bread – sourdough. But this place turned out to be incredible. I had mushroom risotto for $6 and it was stunning – chocolatey, glazed and with a range of mushrooms. Stewart had a focaccia veggie sandwich and fried potatoes for $4.50. The quality was insane for the understated nature of the place. He gave us a free drink that they are trying to launch – Horchata Latte.
