Friday, August 30, 2013

Two days - one in the City one out

Another two casual days, yesterday we spent in the City, well a bit of it considering that this place is sixteen kms long. Three taxi trips and we now may be veterans of that mode. The first was a negotiated price, the hotelier jumped in and made his buck and skimmed one off a four dollar ride, the next one was a surprise. We had made our way to the largest Mall in Quito, also the poshest one, so that meant we didn't buy but looked really closely. After a couple of hours and a cheap coffee from Dunkin'Donuts we wended to the Banos and then looked for an exit. Coming across what we thought was the valet parking the suited gent said he could get us a taxi. Paying four dollars to the neatly dressed female valet, remember this was a swanky mall, a large new SUV pulled up driven by an equally smartly dressed older man who spoke no English and had not been told where to go. Broken Spanish managed to tell him we wanted to go to the Artisans' market in Marisco. And we did!


We have been to many many markets in our travels and this has been the best - price location, cleanliness, the lack of aggressiveness and overall enjoyment we will recommend this market to the world. All of us bought something some of us bought a couple of things and we all received value for our money - cheap, cheap. Note the first purchase of the day shown in the pic below - a Panama Hat for the burnt head.

The first ripoff, of the trip,came at this market but not by the marketeers. I was accosted by a scruffy looking street urchin who had spotted that I was wearing leather shoes. Producing his shoeshine kit he mumbled a price and proceeded to work away. At the end he very clearly stated - in English; "Three Dollars", somewhat shocked I paid.

Leaving the Market we walked a couple of streets looking for a cab, finally spotting an empty one I asked "Cuanto a Plaza Santa Domingo" he just pointed at the meter and said, "Meter". OK we were in heavy traffic so we feared the worst. Turned out to be cheaper than we had wanted to pay. 

Of course we wanted to eat at the time the eateries are closed - beween lunch and dinner. Finally finding a pizza shop we entered and ordered Calzone for me Lasagna for the girls and Pizza for Stuart. All too much food and less than ten bucks apiece with drinks. End of day four.

Day Five
Today was a trip out of Town, using our trusty guide and getting in the middle of a dispute about the fares - Hernan, the hotelier, put the price up but kept the difference for himself cutting out the driver - Charlo. We fixed that by upping Charlo's tip. 

Off to Mindo a town eighty kms North and famous for being a mecca for backpackers who want to zipline or tube down the river. We went for the Butterfly farm and the Chocolate factory tour.

Stopping halfway for a pee stop Charlo took us to his friend who owned the "Armadillos" Cafe. This was an immaculate facility famous for its birds. The humming birds were plentiful and demonstrative. but the piece de resistance of this place was the WCs - the cleanest and most hospitable any where in the world. Arriving in Mindo after leaving the main road and driving seven kms down into the valley we found a small Town in the early stages of tourist overload, but very nice.

The Butterfly Farm was small compared to others but it had a table that actually showed the chryssali emerging from the case. Hundreds of varieties were there but we only appeared to see a few different varieties. Staying awhile we then crossed the road o look at the river. This is the river that the 'tubers' ride on and we were glad not to have done that considering the speed of the flow, the size of the rocks and small width of the river.

Onto the Chocolate factory but not before inspecting the lunch facilities in a magnificent lodge by the river. The Chocolate factory is world famous despite being a very small producer. Wikipedia description here. The tour cost six bucks and lasted an hour where we were shown every aspect of the production and given a comprehensive sampling session, it was probably that long to induce guilt and to ensure purchase of the product from the small sales shelf.

Driving back, on the same road, it seems that all of the trips we have taken are in the North and there is only one road out, the ninety minutes passed quickly - I fell asleep! Back to the hotel and a bit of relaxation and then an exploration of the La Ronda, the street that the hotel is on. It is a short street but the cultural resurrection of the City. Four years ago it was the seediest place in Town but having cops and social thrown at it has made it the place to be seen. One hundred yards long in each direction the stores and cafes inhabit little cubby holes or are entrances into larger patios each containing a restaurant of some kind. We entered a place three doors down from the hotel and were immediately greeted by English, "Hello what would you like?". Didn't even have to attempt broken Spanish, but I did. Sucking back on hot chocolate and striking up conversation with a couple from Phoenix who were backpacking through Ecuador by bus or cheap planes. Nice folks.

Onto bed.




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