Quito, Quito, Quito

I haven't had much of a chance to see Quito, besides walking to and from school everyday. And even though my bedroom has possibly the best view in town, I set out yesterday to check out other views by visiting some churches in the Old Town. Among others, I learned two things: Ecuador does not have the same safety regulations we have in the States (I'll explain) nor do they have emissions standards. I'm pretty sure I inhaled a years worth of carcinogens in one day.

It was quite a hike from my house to Old Town. My first stop was the Monastery of San Francisco, the oldest church in South America. The elaborate altar was under construction, so I was a bit underwhelmed, but the floors were some seriously old wooden, very creaky planks, and there was a stray dog wandering around inside. (There are stray dogs everywhere in this city.) Next was the Monastery of Santa Catalina, an actual working monastery. There have been nuns living there for over 400 years, and they have always spent the first 5 years in complete seclusion. It's kind of strange, because you know the nuns are there, but you can't see them. They even sell goods from behind a revolving door so you can't see them. I was given a guide, who was a girl of about 13 years old. At first she didn't do much but turn on lights for me, but then I started asking her questions, and she offered to show me the bell tower. I was so glad she did. We climbed up a scary, winding staircase, and came out in the bell tower, where there was nothing to do but sit on the ledge and hang out over the city streets. Because of the lack of safety standards, it was a completely unique experience. I took the opportunity to practice some of my Spanish on my guide (Como te llama?), her name was Daisy, and I thanked her for bringing me up to the tower. After we climbed back down the scary staircase she offered me a taste of (non-alcoholic) wine made by the nuns. "100% pure blood of Jesus," she told me. I can drink to that. Before I left, I asked Daisy to help me buy some sugary nuts from the nuns. I knew I did not stand a chance of communicating with a Spanish speaking nun behind a revolving door. She did, and I offered her some of my sweets before I thanked her and set off for my third and final church of the morning.

Bacilica de Voco Nacional had, what Lonely Planet claimed to be the "deadliest view." They weren't kidding. In order to get to the basilica, I had to cross a creaky wooden plank, then climb a ladder to get up outside. I thought that was it until I realized the guy in front of me was nowhere to be found. That's when I looked up and realized there were more ladders. I climbed up those, and the view was definitely one of a kind. It was going back down that gave me second thoughts. When I did get back down, I found stairs up to the belfry while looking for el bano. It was kind of cool to be behind the huge clocks that you see from the street. That was good enough for me when I discovered more ladders. They definitely give you your money's worth. Unfortunately, I had to call it a day. I was wheezing a bit (the altitude still gets me when overexerting), my legs felt a bit like jell-o, and I did have to get to class by one o'clock on the other side of town.

While I did discover other views of the city, I still say mind isn't half bad.