Day 8: Quito, Ecuador - Part 2: Views from Above

After this morning's "best of the coast" update we proceeded to the airport for the short flight to Quito. We experienced a travel delay of about 90 minutes due to aircraft mechanical issues. Our aircraft this time was a Dornier 328, which is a twin-prop very similar to the Bombardier Dash-8. Once airborne our flight time to Quito was about 40 minutes.

The first picture is just above Manta minutes after take-off. The turquoise waters were absolutely stunning to see set against the coast line with mountains in the distance. Again, I can only hope my iPhone camera captured this effectively for all of you readers.

Cloudy skies prevailed for most of the flight, and continued once we arrived in the Quito area. The temperature is now 60 degrees instead of the 80s on the coast. It has been great to see all of the different geographical variations that Ecuador has to offer.

The next picture shows just how big these mountains are and how high up in the Andes we are. The rather large peak off in the distance is a good representation of the terrain up here. As we arrive into Quito you can see how the city is built in a valley and up the sides of the surrounding mountains. As I wrote last time we were here (a week ago), this place reminds me of San Francisco, only more dramatic in elevation changes and of course no San Francisco Bay or Golden Gate Bridge to speak of. The Quito airport is cruelly placed right in the middle of the city. You just don't see this in North America. Flying into the city is quite an experience as we dust the tops of many high rise buildings. This is actually a major safety hazard, and this airport would not be allowed to function in North America. The buffer zone around this airport does not exist whereas our airports have a substantial buffer zone. The new airport is nearly finished and will be placed at a lower altitude and 15 miles to the east of the city.

We returned to the Hotel Quito for our second stay, this time for 5 nights. The picture is from the balcony of the 5th floor room at Hotel Quito. We are in the "new" town which has a number of hotels, restaurants and bars. We are just north of the Historic Old Town which we plan to visit over the coming days.

Did you know: The current Quito International Airport is located at an altitude of 2,850 meters above sea level and its runway is only 3,120 meters long, therefore larger airplanes can only take off with 60% of their maximum capacity.