Not Now Quito!

(A little Pink Panther humour there)...
Quiyo, Ecuador
March 3, 2015

Quito is a big city, home to 2.2 million plus. When we arrived about 2 am, two nights ago we were able to get to our hotel by cab in about a half hour, but that was with zero traffic and we were moving. The first female cab driver I think I've seen anywhere. Quito has some nice new highways and tunnels. Daylight hours are a different story.

Traffic is crazy. Yesterday we cabbed it to another part of town, no meter, just a flat $7 fee, and we did our share of waiting in limbo. At one point, a bluish black cloud of exhaust floated in through the window and filled the front seat. No wonder the Hop On bus driver today wore a mask.  We thought we'd try the trolleys and found the price a respectable .25 cents US....until we actually tried the thing.

When the trolley stops, and it does for about 30 seconds, everyone jams in and shoves out, the platform swings in, the doors slam shut and you're off, like packed sardines. We witnessed a man holding a baby and the mother didn't make it through the doors so she was left waving from the bus. The exact thing happened to us a minute later as Rainer shoved his way in and the door shut...thankfully I knew which stop he was going to so caught up with him. Everyone warns about pickpockets on the trolleys so I was giving everyone the evil eye, whether it was warranted or not, and hanging on to my purse for dear life. Made it safely, but don't really want to relive that soon.

Today's adventures took us on the Hop On bus on a nice sunny day, not too hot - and to the top of Cruz Loma, Pichincha by teleferico, a 4,784 metre high active volcano. We made friends with a dog up there, who followed us and even posed for photos until we gave him our leftover chicken from lunch. This area is known as volcano alley.

Highlights included, some funky architecture, a 67 hectare park in the middle of the city, and some guys playing soccer on a work break, still in rubber boots! We caught a ride back from the mountain for a buck each, from a guy in a van who just drops people around the city. Can't be making any money at that rate!

Gearing up for the Amazon and Galapogos over the next 2 weeks, leaving Thursday for the jungle for 4 days with no wifi. Looking forward to it!