November 4, 2016

Yesterday was our first full day in Quito. It was a beautiful sunny day - not too hot - and we walked about familiarizing ourselves with this area that we will be living in for the next two weeks. We stopped for coffee at a little bakery then wandered around a huge park before we found our way to the MegaMaxi, where we shopped for a few grocery items.

Today was a different story. We boarded a bus and made our way to the Historical area of Quito where we visited two of the top tourist attractions that we didn't get to see last January - The Basilica and El Panecillo. 







Firstly, we walked up this steep hill to the Basilica. It was a very long walk but we took our time and I had to stop for a rest about half way up.  My knees are just not what they used to be. 








The Basilica is a Catholic Church and it is the largest neo-Gothic basilica in the Americas. 

When we arrived at the Basilica we realized that the $2.00 entry fee was to go up the towers and that there was no entry to the church area itself. 

So Michel went up and I waited. It's a good thing he's got good knees - lol - or we wouldn't have any pictures. 



The path up to the top of the Basilica's towers is through a series of stairs.  






You'll walk across a narrow wooden bridge which is directly over the Basilicas interior arches.  









At the end of this bridge are these 'stairs' to the top.  This is only about the middle of the tower. 







Many, many stairs leading you to the top of the towers 115 meters above the ground. Don't look down!! Pretty scary for me. 










Michel enjoyed every moment of it. 


He said it was just fantastic, the views were awesome. He's so very glad he went, and I'm quite happy I chose not to. 







A few fun facts about the Basilica: 
There are 22 chapels inside.
It is 115 meters in height.
It opened in 1924.







We caught ourselves a taxi for the ride down this steep hill and up yet another steeper hill to our next destination - El Panecillo. It is a 200 metre-high hill; its peak is at an elevation of 3,016 metres (almost 10,000 feet) above sea level.



The statue, built in 1976, is a 45-meter tall stone monument of the "Virgen de Quito". It is made of 7,000 pieces of aluminium and stands on a high pedestal on the top of Panecillo.


Views from the top of the pedestal were wonderful. 










A nice restaurant awaits at the summit of this hill, so we "topped" off our day with this view of the city of Quito and a small glass of wine (beer for Michel)!