Baños, Ecuador

From Quito I traveled 3 hours south to the town of Baños, Ecuador. It was a small town set in a beautiful valley with steep green mountains on either side. Its claim to fame and namesake derive from the thermal springs that created thermal pools or “baños”. Other than the thermal pools there are number jungle hikes, rafting trips, and gorgeous waterfalls in the area. There are also a number of day spas and massage parlors to go with the relaxing hot springs. I spent a couple of days in Baños, but I could have easily spent more.









Besides its tourism Baños had a few other unique items to offer. There were the taffy candy stands where they mixed it and streched it right on the street. Then there were the sugarcane stands with bundles of cane to chew on. Between the both of these products and all of the soda consumption it was easy to see why there are so many dentists in Ecuador. Finally, the most unique and grusome treat was the roasted guinea pig, skinned with gnawing teeth on display. What you see is what you get.











Besides visiting the thermal pools during the day and then at night I rented a mountain bike to ride out of town where it drops off towards the upper amazon basin and leads to a number of impressive waterfalls. The first day I got out of town and managed to get two flat tires. The next day I made to the falls without a problem and got to see the gorgeous “Pailon de Diablo” waterfall. There were stairs almost up to the top with a niche behind the falls to see the wall of water.




















Wood paneling

Quito, Ecuador

Arriving at the northern end of Quito I decided to check out the touristy "Mitad del Mundo" (Middle of the world) since it was one that side of the city. It was cool to stradel the line and have some fun with the equator, but that was about it. In Quito I found a great place to stay and life just seemed to work out. I stayed in a perfectly fine hotel room with my own bathroom for $6 including free water, coffee, and internet. Perfect! On top of that I was due for a dental cleaning and found a dentist that took me in right away. 15 minutes and 10 dollars later I was back on the street with a fresh set of polished teeth. Perfect!






Quito was great city. The historic center was cool and there were plenty of plazas, churches, and colonial architecture to see. It had a great feel to it and the people were friendly. The main cathedral was a great site with a terrific view from the top of the steeple.















Quito is the capital of Ecudaor and the home of the Ecuador's President and Congress. One day while I was wondering around I saw the military lining up, then a huge crowd of people gathered to see something. Apparently I arrived right in time for the President's State-of-the-Union address. It was so cool that I could just walk up and see the Pres, Raphael Correa, on top of a building going on about what has been happening in Ecuador in the last year.








Most of my time en Quito I was just wondering around the city. Beyond the colonial architecture in the city center there were plenty of parks and sculptures to enjoy. The botanical gardens were great as well.


















Red sculpture in fountain