We leave Napo at 4.55. It is pitch dark and the paddle across the jet black water seems unearthly. Bats skim the water, frogs chirrup and there is the occasional bird wake-up call. The trip takes an hour to the village where we change onto the fast motorised canoe for the journey back to Coca.
The weather changes from a mist rising from the jungle to thick fog.
Visibility is appalling. At times it is only a few yards. How the driver can see and continue to drive so fast is beyond me. He slows occasionally to negotiate sandbanks or avoid floating logs but it is a somewhat unsettling experience which lasts for the best part of 3 hours. Despite being on the equator the air is cool and I am glad to be wearing my fleece.
We are served breakfast on the boat. Coffee and a partitioned box with scrambled egg, cold meats, bread and fruit.
Transfer from the dock at Coca is efficient and we are soon in Coca airport awaiting the short flight back to Quito.
For ease we stay at the Wyndham airport hotel. We arrive at mid-day and our room is not ready so we sit on the patio with a drink.
We spend the afternoon in a lazy manner and have early supper in the restaurant where they served an extremely good all you could eat buffet. Tomorrow will be another early start for the 08.04 flight to Baltra in the Galapagos.
Today, of course, we wake up ridiculously early as there is a 5 hour time difference from the UK. This gives time for leisurely showers and hair washes before breakfast. Having overheard a conversation about the strange items on menus we were not holding out high expectations for breakfast. We were wrong. It’s a tiny hotel but everything was available. Fresh orange juice, super selection of fruit, cereals, breads and pastries. We had the fluffiest omelettes cooked and served in cast iron pans, which meant they held their heat. They were delicious.
Fatima meets us at 09.00 for our morning tour. The weather is good with reasonable visibility, though a little hazy and the sun trying to break through. It’s not on the itinerary, but Fatima thinks it will be good to drive up to a viewing spot by the winged virgin statue. The statue was built 60 years ago and is constructed from 7000 pieces of aluminium.
The Winged Virgin
There are extensive views over Quito.
Our next port of call is 20km away – the middle of the world. Aptly named as this is the equator. We drive through the south of Quito which is a much more affluent area and markedly different from the north where we have just been.
On arrival at the equator museum, we were told a little about the indigenous people. One interesting fact that we didn’t know was why the tribesmen wear twine around their waists. It is tied extremely tightly to grip the foreskin and prevent the candiru (a small catfish), sometimes known as the “penis fish,” from lodging itself in the urethra of people who are in the rivers. Our guide says it is very uncomfortable. I imagine it is!
We were also shown a replica of a burial chamber and told about the burial ritual. If a high up indigenous married man died, his wife was entombed alive with him. She would be given a hallucinogenic drink and then crammed into a pot that was sealed and placed next to her husband in the same way as valuable items would be. Grim times indeed!
We visited an original indigenous house built 150 years ago and still intact. The picture on the post is of the woman who was the last person to live there. She was about 110 years old. The house is surprisingly cool – noticeably cooler than outside.
We then had fun at the equator. We were shown various sundials and told about the shadows and coriolis effect form the earth spinning. We tried balancing a raw egg on a nail head. It is tricky to say the least but two people managed to do it. We were shown how water drains through a plug hole. The vortex spins in opposite directions north and south of the equator, with little visible vortex on the equator.
We also tried walking in a straight line with eyes closed along the equator. That was very difficult and very funny. Everyone looked liked they had been dinking a lot….and we had not touched a drop. Yesterday was the equinox so the sun is almost completely overhead in all directions.
We finally headed off to the old quarter of Quito with strict instructions to take few belongings and take very good care of our phones. We pass very steep streets that rival San Francisco for length and incline but the power supplies are very much Ecuadorean!
First we visit the Monument of Independence which commemorates the battle for independence in 1809.
Across the square is the Church of La Compania.
It looks overly ornate outside but inside is beyond belief. Gold leaf covers everything, although much is gold paint, there are 52kg of gold behind the altar. We were not allowed to take photographs but I have found this online….
Our next port of call is Convento y Myseo De San Francisco. This is a monastery that is still in use though only 12 monks remain. The courtyard is beautiful and peaceful. The church is a little more understated than the previous one though still there is a lot of gold.
By now it is 13.15 and we walk back to our hotel which is very close. We decide to lunch at a rooftop bar across the road. We order a simple lunch of nachos and chips. Very healthy!!! The chips are quite excellent made from a giant potato and sprinkled with paprika and herbs. We admire the excellent adjacent roof renovations whilst I sup a G&T and Jane a white wine.
We return to our hotel where we are invited to a chocolate tasting talk. We are told how chocolate is made and get to taste lots of samples. I would say this has been a pretty good and educational day. A true travel experience.
A horribly early start with the first flight to Madrid at 06.20. We sensibly have stayed at the Aerotel in Terminal 3 at Heathrow. It is basic but clean and very convenient. We rise at 03.45 and arrive at the checkin at 04.15 to find it is not yet open. We could have had a bit longer in bed but only quarter of an hour. Never mind. We join the queue, check in and then have to wait again for the BA business lounge to open at 05.00. BA seem to have upped their game and breakfast is good.
The flight is on time, the transfer is smooth and our Iberia flight to Quito takes off on schedule. There are great views as we fly across Spain.
It’s a long day though with the second flight taking 10.5 hours. We are in business so it is comfortable but the food really leaves a lot to be desired and the staff did their best to be invisible. No change there then from my last experience, last month, with Iberia. They downgraded me and are making it very difficult for me to obtain a refund. They are definitely not my favourite airline…..
The skies are fairly clear as we approach Quito so I am able to catch my first sight of it and the surrounding landscape.
The great thing is that we land early, clear customs in record time, our suitcases are first off the plane and we are out of the airport 20 minutes after landing. That must be an all time record.
We are warmly greeted by our guide Fatima and she takes us to meet our driver Santiago for the 45 minute ride to our hotel. Fatima is very efficient and thoroughly checks our itinerary and talks us through our schedule. She emphasises safety of (a) wearing sunscreen at all times however cloudy. We are after all on the equator and also at altitude. Sound advice and (B) security of us and belongings. We have put everything in the safe and will take the bare minimum of things out with us.
The hotel is in the old sector of Quito in a traffic free area. Porters meet us at the car and take our luggage. Not strictly necessary as it was only 20 yards or so but of course the tips are important for the local people. The hotel has a central courtyard and is quite characterful. I’ll take some photos tomorrow. We are exhausted but feel 18.00 is too early for bed. We sit in the lounge drinking tea, lots of water and homemade cookies and make it through to 20.30.
The lounge
Night view from our room to the winged virgin below.
