Breakfast, taken downstairs in the cafe, was lovely. Fresh fruit, juice, eggs cooked how you like them, fresh bread rolls, jam and coffee/tea, pretty much perfect for a day out in Quito.
The sky was clear blue as we set off with a copy of the hotels walking tour map in hand, deciding to tackle the Red route.
In the Plaza del Independencia we once again popped in to the adjacent Cathedral this time it was rammed with people, wall to wall, standing room only and in the middle of a Holy Friday service hosted by the Archbishop of Quito.
Across from the Cathedral we visited a couple of museums, Centro Cultural Metropolitano and the Museo Mena Caamano. Great to get some insight and depth to Ecuadors past. Really nicely done too.
Next up on our red route was a tiny chapel, Capilla del Senor de los Milagros. This chapel was delightful, calm, peaceful and adroned for Holy Week. We spoke to a lady who in broken English wished us a happy day and an enjoyable visit.
Next up on our grand tour was the Museo de Arte Colonial, a very interesting collection of religious paintings and artefacts.
Last up on our route and near our hotel was the Museum of the San Francisco Cathedral. This cost us a couple of dollars to get in but was practically a private viewing as pretty much every visitor was queuing up to take confession with one of four monks seated around the quad.
After a brief siesta taking some tea and fruit, we unfolded our walking map and headed back out in to Quito, this time following the blue route.
One thing we found disappointing was a lot of the religious buildings and museums didn’t allow any photography whatsoever! We understand their reasons and we politely obliged, but this generates problems when putting together a travel blog!
mrandmrsyoung 