There are so many little markets in Quito. There are lots of textiles, pottery, leather goods, and cheap souvenirs. I bought several leather wallets for friends, and my husband bought some Alpaca scarves and an Alpaca blanket. Almost everyone seems to sell embroidered shirts and dresses, and there are lots of cute little dolls that I was tempted to buy. I look forward to visiting more of these markets.
This is the view from the rooftop deck of our potential house in Campo Allegre. We love the house, it is newly remodeled with great living spaces and huge floor to ceiling windows. I am happy that it is right across the street from the playground and park. It will be a great house for having guests, and I hope we have many.
I just had to include a picture of some of the fruits we have purchased in Ecuador. My favorite, of course, are the avocados. We bought six for $2.00 and they are huge and sweet and delicious. We put them on everything. We really missed avocados in Tbilisi, so I’ve been craving them for some time now. We make smoothies every day with the fruits. We use some fruits we know (mangoes, bananas, and papaya) and some we have never heard of and can’t remember the names. They are all very sweet, though. This is definitely a huge benefit to living in Ecuador! (This picture is misleading because the apples come from California!)
We had dinner in this restaurant, El Canyon del Chiche. It is a farm in a canyon with a swift river running through it. The canyon is outside of Tumbaco, a city in the valley outside of Quito where it is noticeably warmer. The restaurant was simple but delicious. The steaks were some of the best we have ever had. In addition to the restaurant there are pony rides, a chicken hutch, and friendly golden retrievers to play with. There is also a trampoline and jumpy castle. The mountains rise on all sides and are heart attackingly steep. I kept my eyes closed as we inched down the mountain pass in our cars. However, once you are there, it is truly beautiful.
I looked at a lot of apartments while searching for a home. This is a picture of the laundry facilities on the roof of the building. There are about ten different walled rooms with wire lines strung in them for hanging laundry up to dry. I thought this was a great idea! You get the sun and the wind on the roof, so I’m sure laundry dries quite quickly. The apartments that I saw were all phenomenal. They were huge, with wood floors, his and hers closets, and panoramic views of the city. They often had a “social area” including a living room, dining room, and bathroom, plus a “family area” that included a TV room, personal living room, master bedroom, and three or more bedrooms with their own huge bathrooms and closets. Then, the kitchens were usually very large with lots of cabinets. Off of the kitchen you would find the laundry room and a small maid’s bedroom and bathroom. The maid’s area would have a private entrance so as not to disturb the people of the house. Many of the building’s had a pool, exercise room, and common area. Beautiful places to live, I’m sure.