Quito

Quito is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in northern Ecuador (see NG MapMachine satellite map) in the Guayllabamba river basin on the eastern slopes of the Pichincha http://www.igepn.edu.ec/vulcanologia/pichincha/pichincha.htm (4794 m), an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains. At 2850 meters/9300 feet above sea level at the Plaza de la Independencia, Quito is the second highest capital city in the world. The population of Quito, according to the most recent census (2001), was 1,399,378. In 2005, however, the estimated population was 1,865,541 (canton). The area of Quito is approximately 290 km².

Points of Interest

Northern Quito

Museo del Banco Central

This museum http://cce.org.ec/index.php?action=detalle&id_c=45&id_d=30&det_action=detalle is an excellent showcase of Ecuadorian art and culture. On the ground floor it has a marvellous and extensive collection of pre-colonial (including pre-Incaic) potteries, sculptures, gold, lithics, and even a mummified body. There are also some beautiful but somewhat distorted models that help evoke the way various parts of Ecuador must have looked like, from the Pambamarca fort to the Cochasquí tumuli complex. The highlight of this collection is a golden sun mask of the La Tolita culture. The second floor is dedicated to Colonial art; several paintings and sculptures with religious themes are in exhibition. The third floor is devoted to contemporary Ecuadorian art.

Related Topics:
Gold - Mummified body - Distort - Model - Pambamarca - Cochasquí - Tumuli

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Parks

• Parque Metropolitano http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_metro.htm, with its 5.57 km² (1376 acres) is the largest urban park in South America. (As reference, New York's huge Central Park is 843 acres (3.4 km²) large.) The park is located in the north of Quito, on the hillside, behind the Atahualpa Olympic Stadium http://www.ecuafutbol.org/UI/contenido.aspx?page=/asociaciones/pichincha.htm&seccion=5&nivel=0&subnivel=14. The park is an excellent place for mountain biking, walking, running or just exploring the different sculptures that are display for the public. The park has 4 sites where you can bring your family and friends to have a picnic or a BBQ. The backside of the park has a beautiful view of Cotopaxi, Antisana http://www.igepn.edu.ec/vulcanologia/Antisana/antisana.htm and the Guayllabamba river basin.
• La Carolina http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_carolina.htm is a 670,000 m² park located in the Benalcázar parish in the middle of Quito's business and shopping district, between the avenues known as Avenida Amazonas, Avenida Shyris and Avenida Naciones Unidas. Quiteños gather at La Carolina mostly on weekends to play fútbol (soccer), básket (basketball), ecua-volley (an Ecuadorian variation of volleyball with less emphasis on spiking to score; more of a throw and it allows using your feet like soccer), doing aerobics, flying kites, running, snacking or just observing the thralls of people just walking around. The southern part of the park has a small pond where you can rent paddle boats. There are also many artists performing on weekends. In the western part of the park you will find the Quito Exhibition Center http://pequenaindustria.com/ferias_historia.asp with different exhibits every month, the Quito botanical gardens and a Vivarium.
• El Ejido http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_ejido.htm is the park situated between the old part of the city and the modern section. Here you will find handicrafts every Saturday and Sunday. Local painters sell Oswaldo Guayasamín http://www.guayasamin.com, Eduardo Kingman or Gonzalo Endara Crow copies and Otavaleños are selling traditional sweaters and carpets.
• La Alameda http://www.quito.gov.ec/ciudad/c_parq_alameda.htm park has the oldest astronomical observatory http://www.epn.edu.ec/OAQ in South America. The park has a monument of Simón Bolívar and a small lake where families like to rent boats.

Old Town

The "centro histórico", historical center, as it is called, was appointed http://whc.unesco.org/archive/repcom78.htm#2, along with the historic center http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=29 of Kraków (Cracovia) http://www.krakow.pl, Poland, as the first UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Site http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=2 in 1978 and has many appealing plazas (the Independence Plaza being the most important) and manierist and baroque churches, including the Cathedral, the convent and church of St. Francis, which is the largest building of the Colonial era built by the Spaniards in South America, the church of El Sagrario, convent and church of Santo Domingo and the church of the Society of Jesus, or "La Compañía" which was built after the model of the Church of the Gesu in Rome. There are also several museums, many of them dedicated to Colonial art and history; some of the most renowned are the City Museum ("Museo de la Ciudad") http://www.museociudadquito.gov.ec, the Metropolitan Cultural Center http://www.centrocultural-quito.com and the museum of the Convent of St. Francis. Markets are scattered throughout the area.

Related Topics:
Kraków - Poland - UNESCO - World Heritage - 1978 - St. Francis - Society of Jesus - Church of the Gesu

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

El Panecillo

El Panecillo is a hill located in the middle of the city

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

with an altitude of about 3000 meters (9000 feet) above sea level.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A monument to Virgin Mary located on top of El Panecillo

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

is visible from most of the city of Quito.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Aerial tramway to Cruz Loma

Since July 2005, Quito has an aerial tramway, known as the "Telefériqo," from the city center to the hill known as Cruz Loma on the east side of the Pichincha vulcano. The ride takes visitors to an altitude of about 4,100 meters (over 12,000 feet) where they find a number of restaurants, cofee shops and stores of different kinds. The temperature there is many degrees cooler than in Quito itself. There are also trails for hiking.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Besides the aerial tramway to Cruz Loma, the Telefériqo as a whole is a visitor center and tourist attraction that includes an amusement park ("Vulqano Park"), Go Karts, Paint Ball, shopping malls, and various other attractions.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Outside the city

La Mitad del Mundo http://www.mitaddelmundo.com/indexeng.html (the middle of the world) is a small village administered by the prefecture of the province of Pichincha, and is located about 22 miles north of Quito, on the

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

equator, where visitors find a monument to the equator housing a historical museum, in addition to a planetarium, various exhibits, and shops.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Pululahua is a volcano not far from La Mitad del Mundo,

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

with a caldera or crater visible from a spot easily accessible by car.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Quito Zoo http://www.quito.gov.ec/ingles/inquitozoo.htm

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

located near the village of Guayllabamba, about 20 km outside Quito, has the biggest collection of native fauna in Ecuador, including several animals recuperated from

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

the illegal fur trade. The only animals in the zoo not indigenous

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

to Ecuador are African lions.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~