urbaneer: Quito – 2nd week of Spanish class

Quito, Ecuador: 16 July - 26 July

Whilst weaving our way from one UNESCO World heritage city to another we stopped for a week in Quito, Ecuador’s capital, for some additional Spanish lessons. From the relaxed vibe of Cartagena, Quito is an entirely different kettle of fish. As per most big cities in developing countries, everything is hard work here. The Spanish school was great and we learnt a lot, but it feels more like a language boot-camp as we were immersed in 4hrs of lessons, 3hrs of excursions and then homework every day. We originally booked to stay at the residence of the Spanish school, but due to some volunteers at the school requiring to stay together we were forced to stay with an Ecuadorian host family. Staying with the host family was fine and was good practice to be forced to speak Spanish during mealtimes and around the house. The only down-side was the hot water situation, there was only ¬ 2min of hot water at any one time to have a shower before the cold spell would start again. The stay also served as a reminder to never own three dogs.

Quito itself has great vistas from the Panecillo Mirador, Basilica and the Teleferico as the city stretches in a long thin corridor from North to South between the Andes and foothills. The historic old town has picturesque buildings, many churches, museums and squares. The public bus system is very efficient and cheap, but the pollution in the town is really bad. Poverty is clearly visible everywhere and we were warned about pickpockets and robberies from the very minute we landed in Quito. After having been here for ¬1 week we have come to the conclusion that Quito is pretty but seriously compromised by the sense of unease that prevails. It must be said that the Lonely Planet completely over-hypes the town. Whilst in Quito we also visited Mitad del Mundo, the equator line which is just outside of town. On our 'school excursions' we visited the house of the local artist Gyasamin, South America’s Picasso, as well as Quito’s Botanical Garden. Our next stop will be the train ride from Quito to Guyaquil before heading towards Cusco, Peru.

Basilica