Quito, Ecuador - Old Town May 8 to 10

We arrived in Quito yesterday and had about a day to adjust.  We landed at 9000 feet and had to readjust to the altitude.  It was a little easier this time for both of us.  We rested after getting to the hotel and then went to the market down the street.  We looked around but wanted to wait and do our shopping at Olatambo in a few days.  We will be in Quito for about week to explore it. 

We explored a museum or two and got a feel for this part of town (new district).  It was difficult to figure it out and to get a feel.  Quito doesnt offer itself up like other cities we have been to but one thing is for sure there are people here from everywhere and although at first we thought the people here were not as friendly it soon became evident it was just that they were not as outgoing in general as the Peruvians.  Ecuadorians are actually very warm people.  

We went into Old Town which was the first World Heritage Site and of course still is.  The buildings were amazing.  It was like being dropped into the middle of an old Italian/Spanish/ Southern France town with tight streets and winding streets and boulevards.  The architecture was beautiful.  We were there on a weekend and the whole town was down in the main squares.  Families were gathering with extended families and friends.  It has been our most enjoyable time while travelling in Latin America to go to the Plazas of the towns we visit.  They really are the lifeblood of the city.  Any city we have visited anyway.  Whether weekend, holiday, festival or just a simple pleasant evening.  It is where people gather.  And the old town district of Quito was no different.

After enjoying a wonderful lunch at an outside cafe on the square, we found a shop that works for sustainable practices and fair trade.  Then Forrest had heard that one of the great cathedrals was one considered the "Cistine Chapel" of the Americas.  We found it one block over from the main square.  We didnt know if it was accessible at first but the guards let us through the iron gates.  When we walked inside both of us gasped in awe.  I am hit and miss when it comes to churches and feeling spiritual energy and Forrest says he tends not to but we were both in agreement this cathedral was full of some kind of spirit.  Especially one of the chapels which we later found out was where the Saint and patron of the church was buried.  The architecture outside was a baroque and the inside was completely guilded with gold.  It sounds gaudy describing it like that but the reality is it is nothing short of spectacular.  Of course that is not the reason why it is so spiritually inviting.  

The scale, the history, everything together made it all not too much if that makes any sense.  I know i went back to the chapel at least four times.  i havent had that kind of experience since Westminster's Chapel for Poets.

Anyway we really enjoyed our visit in old town and want to go back during the week to visit.