Quito Travel Guide

If Quito, the enchanting capital of Ecuador, is your destination, you will need to travel well-equipped and with a good dose of energy and enthusiasm to visit most of the attractive places this little city has to offer. This metropolis is a combination of legend, culture and modern development that can only be appreciated while actively touring the city.

Between the past and the present: a tour through the historical quarter.

When Quito was declared a World Cultural Heritage site by UNESCO in 1978, the houses, monuments, buildings and churches of this beautiful capital became a legend and tradition for all visitors. Visiting the colonial quarter is a must. It is easily reached from any point of the city. If you are in the city, use the trolley bus. If you are in the north, it is recommended you leave from the trolley bus stop located in the crossing of Colon and 10 de Agosto Street. You will need to get off at Banco Central Station and continue your trip on foot.

You will first encounter Plaza San Blas and continue your tour down Calle Guayaquil, the axis crossing the historic quarter. This is a narrow road running from north to south, surrounded by old two- and three-story houses painted in white tones with brightly-colored front doors and balconies. As you make your way along, you will cross several streets, among them Calle de la Soledad, also called Esmeraldas, that will lead you to the popular neighborhood of El Tejar. Shortly afterwards you will reach an important and interesting place, the Plaza del Teatro, where you will find the Teatro Sucre, a beautiful old theater steeped in history.

Continuing along Calle Guayaquil, you will begin to ascend a steep hill that passes through an area with many shoe stores, as well as cafeterias selling quesadillas, aplanchados and other typical sweets and desserts. Walking along this traditional street will not imply a sacrifice. With comfortable shoes and good spirit, you will be fascinated by the beautiful buildings of Quito's historic center. When you get to Mejía Street, where the civil registry stands on one corner, turn down it until you reach San Agustin Street, and you will come across the San Agustin church, an imposing building, currently being refurbished but well-worth a photograph.

Follow San Agustin then turn right where, among street merchants and fast-walking people, you will find the La Cueva del Oso, an elegant restaurant of long-standing tradition in Quito that offers many local and international dishes. Stand at the corner of Calle Venezuela and you will see, on your right, the Municipio del Distrito Metropolitano and on your left, the Plaza de la Independencia, with the Palacio de Gobierno just in front of you. This is a good place to stop for a while, relax and enjoy the very heart of Quito's historic quarter. On the ground floor of Palacio de Carondelet, the government building, and the Iglesia de la Catedral, there are restaurants and food stalls offering good sandwiches, chilled fruit juices and souvenirs.

Crossing Plaza de la Independencia is Calle Garcia Moreno, also known as Calle de las Siete Cruces, an attractive road with seven stone crosses in front of the Hospicio, as well as in front of the Convento del Carmen Alto, La Compañía de Jesús, the Sagrario, the Cathedral, the Convento de la Concepción and Santa Barbara churches. Walking down this road will take you to the Museo Manuela Sáenz and Casa Museo María Augusta Urrutia museums, places created to promote an interest in Ecuadorian culture. At this point you will need to have to take Calle Sucre and then return to Guayaquil Avenue to stop at Plaza de Santo Domingo where you will find the Convento y Museo de Santo Domingo of the same name. These together house a gallery of works by artists predominantly of the Quito school.

Along Calle Bolivar, at the entrance to the Plaza de Santo Domingo, step in to the imposing Iglesia de San Francisco, built in early 1536, just two years after Quito was founded. Surrounded by a large square, this is the biggest and most popular religious temple of the historic center. Inside there are several important paintings of which that of Jesus del Gran Poder is the favorite amongst pilgrims.

End this wonderful journey by returning to Plaza de Santo Domingo where you can take the trolley bus, whether on Avenida 10 de Agosto or at any of its stops located in Estación Norte in Sector Y, and head for your final destination.

Translated by Diego Barriga

Commercial and Touristic Quito

One of the main roads you will get to know if you go to the north or center-north of Quito is Avenida Amazonas that runs from the sector known as Labrador, in the north, up to Avenida Patria. Mostly businessmen and tourists use this avenue because the most important banks, restaurants and shopping centers are located here.

If you tour this important avenue from the north, you will get to La Plaza de Toros Quito, the municipal bull-ring. Traffic on Avenida Amazonas is heavy in both directions right up to Avenida Colón, where it becomes a one way road running south to north. Following this road southwards, you will soon reach Calle Gaspar de Villaroel and, a few blocks from there, the imposing United Nations Avenue, a main thoroughfare with many important shopping centers such as Caracol, Unicornio and Centro Comercial Iñaquito. Following along this busy street lined with large houses, high-rises and parks, you will soon get to Avenida República to find the modern El Jardín shopping mall.

Continuing along this street you will soon come to the Avenida Eloy Alfaro and if returning to Avenida Amazonas and continuing down this road, to El Molinón, the most important bowling alley in Quito. This has a bar, equipment rental, table tennis and pool tables. There is also a small tavern where you can enjoy live shows Friday and Saturday nights, although the whole place closes at midnight.

Once you enter the center-north area of the city, you will find Avenida Orellana and here you can go to the Crepes & Waffles restaurant to enjoy a delicious chicken crepe. Finally, you will reach Avenida Colón, a road near everything of interest and where tourist information is available to you. Walking slowly will allow you to observe that from this point up to Calle Patria there is everything a visitor might be interested in, including hotels, shops and handicraft stores with souvenirs and art work. This part of Avenida Amazonas is the most visited by tourists. Here you will find plenty of places to change money, and small restaurants where you can have breakfast if you start your tour early in the morning.

Ending your tour along this road, you will find the Hiltón Colón surrounded by the expansive greenery of the popular Exposición Artesanal del Parque El Ejido.

Juan León Mera tour

Since the mid 1990s, most of Quito's nightlife activity has been on Calle Juan León Mera. This street is located in the center-north of the city and besides having many clubs, is also home of most important banks and money exchange houses. The entire area is a narrow strip of land that goes from Avenida Orellana to La Patria Street, and from Avenida Amazonas to Avenida 6 de Diciembre.

It is quite easy to get to Juan Leon Mera. The difficult part is to leave. This strip casts an enchantment over visitors. There is a bus route that crosses this street from north to south and leaves you exactly where you want to go.

To start your tour, you may want to visit one of the exhibitions of contemporary Ecuadorian art at the excellent Galería Art Forum. Later, you may wish to visit the El Ekeko, a handicrafts store with souvenirs at the best prices my friend. Products here come from all parts of the country and the main native communities of Ecuador. If you want to take a glance at a local bookstore, visit the Librimundi bookshop. If you want to buy some clothes, options include Pelileo Jeans selling jeans manufactured in a village called Pelileo in the country's central mountain ranges.

If, by this time, you feel like lunch, there are several alternatives. Vegetarians will be interested in El Maple, one of the most popular restaurants of its kind in Quito. Super Papa specializes in stuffed potatoes and Mexican food is served at Tex Mex, the best option in fast food. For a more relaxed, quiet atmosphere, try the The Magic Bean, an American-style restaurant with delicious omelets and a wonderful salad bar.

After lunch, take a stroll through the trees or sit at one of the outdoor tables of Confederate Books, the first and most important book shop chain in Ecuador, selling titles from all over the world. At the Bodega, a large two-story handicraft shop, you can buy beautiful crafts from Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, paintings by the natives of Colombia, and the woven hand-bags, called shigras, from Venezuela, amongst many other fine products.

When the night has fallen, and before going to rest, visit the pleasant cafes, bars and discos. There are many to choose from and suiting all tastes. Some having electronic music like Zulu or Pobre Diablo and others are more eclectic, like the No Bar.

Translated by Diego Barriga

A trip to Guápulo

"Guápulo," in Ecuador's native language, means "place covered by fog." Indeed, this wonderful place, sunny during the day, is shrouded in dense fog during the night, giving it a charm and a mysterious atmosphere. This spot is one of the most beautiful places in Quito, located within the urban perimeter but considered a separate town. Here one feels transported to another time and place. Its narrow streets welcome all visitors.

To reach Guápulo, one has to descend from modern Quito along Avenida González Suárez where the well-known and comfortable Hotel Quito Best Western is located. Then, taking a small street called Rafael León Larrea, the visitor soon finds Tianguez 2, a smallish green space housing several contemporary sculptures. This is a good spot to take a look around you at the mountains that compose this stunning landscape. One of Quito's most exclusive bars, La Hacienda, is located here, and is an excellent place to taste fine liquors while listening to pleasant music.

Continuing the descent you will soon reach Guápulo's main street, Camino de Orellana, and here you will find the statue of Francisco de Orellana, the Spanish conqueror who discovered the Amazon river, as well as another good viewpoint. Before continuing, you might want to visit the popular Café de Guápulo, a small but cozy outdoor coffee bar where you can get an excellent view of the mountain range while sipping a cold beer or a Canelazo—a local drink—and listening to good tunes. This is a favorite place among locals to meet every evening, share the day's experiences and exchange opinions. To the right of this coffee bar is the restaurant La Rampa, which prepares typical dishes from the Ecuadorian mountain ranges and, on request, exquisite raw fish in marinated lemon juice, all at very reasonable prices.

Two blocks down the same road, you will find the residence of the Spanish ambassador, an enormous house of an interesting colonial design. The British, Dutch and Danish ambassadors also live nearby in this pleasant spot.

The sense of history is palpable in Guápulo, where narrow cobble-stoned streets are the setting for a hundred old tales, and ancient but well-kept houses still echo faintly with the voices of their former owners. A distinctive characteristic of these houses is the decorated balconies and old lamps outside them that light your way at night. Head off at random down any one of these streets and you are sure to arrive eventually at the main square, a venue for art shows and expositions on weekends, and an impromptu shopping center for hundreds of artisans who set up their wares on the ground in front of them. The square also serves as an open-air stage for musicians and puppeteers. In front of the square is the Guápulo convent, a building that dates back to the year 1600 and belongs to the order of Saint Francis. Go in to see its beautiful inner gardens that have held, on so many occasions, elegant wedding receptions of the well-to-do. It is also worthwhile visiting the reception rooms, decorated with paintings and sculptures from the Quito School, and listening to a few stories told by the resident monks.

Guápulo is a cultural center par excellence and home to many artists. For three decades, Guápulo has been home to Socavón de Guápulo, an important cultural center where, from Monday to Friday there are live shows with the best musicians of Ecuador. On Saturdays there is theater and on Sundays puppet shows for the kids. It also has a comfortable coffee bar which is the ideal place to enjoy a good drink.

Translated by Diego Barriga A tour around the Middle of the world

Quito is often referred to as "the middle of the world" , due to its proximity to the equator.

If you are just passing by or plan to stay a while in Quito, you should take a thorough tour of the town, very easy to do, thanks to public transport. A trip by bus down the length of Avenida America to the central-north area will take you forty minutes through a landscape of houses, buildings and parks. Once on the outskirts, you will arrive in the more modern urban areas, built on arid terrain. If you traveling by car, you can stop halfway to savor the famous Chilean empanadas or a delicious ice cream called helado de paila from the nearby town of San Antonio de Pichincha.

Once you arrive, you will see an impressive monument with a globe at the top. There is no fee to enter the "Mitad del Mundo" city, although entrance to the Museo Etnografico costs eighty cents. Before doing this, however, take a moment to stand on the equator and thrill at the thought of being exactly at the middle of the world.

Inside the museum, bilingual tour guides will lead you through the various levels, where you will see vestiges of the cultures that inhabited Ecuador, such as clothing, ceramic objects and interesting remnants of the long and diverse ethnic and cultural history of this country. On the top floor of the building there is a terrace with a great view of the Middle of the World city and its surroundings.

Inside the city are several crafts stores selling silver jewelry, typical clothing, leather slippers, bright necklaces, T-shirts, key rings, and many other articles with Mitad del Mundo motifs. Also visit the space where a miniature model of the place is exhibited. There is a small church that remains open during the weekends. Performances of Andean music, puppet shows and clown acts are held here periodically. There is also a small cockfighting ring, called a gallera, for fans of this noble sport.

A tradition deeply rooted in the Ecuadorian sierra, are the toros de pueblo bullfights. Small bulls with their horns removed make mad dashes at the intrepid fellows that throw themselves into the arena, delighting onlookers. In the Ciudad Mitad del Mundo you can experience this exotic mixture of fear and excitement.

After walking, taking pictures, and buying souvenirs, you will not be able to resist the aroma of the typical food prepared here. Restaurante Equinoccio offers countless options for your palate. A fritada (white corn or 'mote', pork, and plantain), guatita (cow's stomach, potatoes and peanuts), or the appetizing yahuarlocro (lamb soup) and other delicacies of the sierra await you. As well, this is a honey-producing area and many jars of it are on sale here. You can also find delicious nougat and specially prepared sweets.

Close to the Mitad del Mundo, you will find the Pululahua viewpoint. You will discover a beautiful natural landscape with mountains, valleys, and pits from which diverse mineral material is extracted to supply Ecuador's industry.

The archaeological ruins of Pucará de Rumicucho, are just ten minutes from here. At the entrance you will receive historical information about this project, and professional staff will explain in detail the meaning and symbolism of the passages and stone compartments.2008-08-02T07:29:22.000 324