Quito
Quito is an elegant city in an Andean valley, surrounded by volcanoes and mountains. Although the city is the capital of Ecuador, it is not the largest in the country (that is Guayaquil on the Pacific coast). The city is divided into the colonial old town and the modern new town.
Inhabited by several tribes during pre-Columbian times, Quito took its name from the Quitus tribe, who lived in the area before the arrival of the Incas. In the mid 15th century, the Inca Pachacutec and his son Tupac Yupanqui extended their empire from Peru in the south, and began conquering Ecuador. By the end of the 15th century, despite fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian tribes, Huayna Capac, Tupac Yupanqui's son, conquered all of Ecuador and parts of Colombia, and Quito was chosen to serve as the capital of the northern half of the Inca Empire. During this period, the Ecuadorian tribesmen assimilated agricultural practices and the social organisation of the Incas, but they maintained their traditional religious beliefs and many customs.
In 1533, the Inca General Rumiñahui destroyed Quito so that it would not fall into the hands of the advancing conquistadors. Just a year later, after the Spanish conquered the Inca, Lieutenant Sebastián de Benalcázar began rebuilding Quito from the rubble and named it San Francisco de Quito. The Spanish promptly established the Catholic religion in Quito, with the first church (El Belén) built even before the city had been officially founded. The Spanish heavily evangelized the indigenous people and also used them for construction, especially in the initial stages.
In 1809 the first proclamation of independence was made, after nearly 300 years of Spanish colonization, in Quito a city of about 10,000 inhabitants. A year later the movement was ultimately defeated, when Spanish forces came from Peru, and killed the leaders of the uprising and about 200 inhabitants of the city. In 1830 the republic of Ecuador was finally proclaimed, and Quito announced as its capital.
Modern Quito is a city of two halves, old and new. The old town remains much the same as it did at the end of the colonial period but the new town bears no marks whatsoever of its colonial past. However, this area has the best hotels and restaurants in the city.
Attractions
Quito old city is a beautiful area, with cobblestone streets and beautiful colonial buildings, and a tour is a must. The Plaza de la Independencia is the main square, and contains the cathedral and the Archbishop’s palace. Of the many churches in the town, the most impressive has to be the Jesuit church of La Compañia, with an incredible ornate gold-leaf interior. The Monestary of San Francisco is the oldest church in Ecuador, and the nearby Santo Domingo church is also worth visiting. A trip to the top of the Panecillo (little sugarloaf) offers the best views of the city and the surrounding volcanoes.
Quito’s setting is very impressive, with snow-capped Cotopaxi visible unless it is covered in cloud. It is easy to visit the volcano, and many activities are possible on the mountain, including horse riding and mountain biking. Closer is Pichincha, another volcano. A cable car from Quito can take you up the mountain, from where there are incredible views.
One of the most popular excursions in Quito is to the Mitad del Mundo, literally the centre of the world. This is where a French expedition in 1736 established the location of the equatorial line from which the country is named. There is a monument to the equator here, with a museum within the monument. The area has been built as a colonial town and there also restaurants and other leisure activities here. Very close by is the Inti Ñan museum, which claims to be on the exact equatorial line, and has different experiments and exhibitions relating to the equator.
Further from Quito, approximately 1.5 hours away, are the hot springs of Papallacta, located on the slopes of the Volcano Antisana.