16 Nov

Because it was the weekend, Michael decided to stay at the hostal a couple nights. Sunday morning, we met an Australian guy and two Australian girls and anouther girl named Titia, and went to this mountain with a gondola. We convinced this cab driver to take all six of us and the same time to the gondola in a car not much bigger than my Neon. I layed across four people in the back seat. For a dollar a piece, he drove up to the gondola. The gondola was called the telefarico and for $4 it took us to the top of Pichincha. At the top, you can look over Quito. It´s so beautiful. We hiked just a little way up this trail and came to a sign that said, 13,451 ft. above sea level. After that, we came over a small hill and there was a man and his wife letting people wear ponchos and sobreros and letting people take pictures with his llamas, named Inti and Pacha and his alpaca.

We went back down and went to the "Basilica", a Gothic stlye cathedral that we paid $2 to climb up the towers. Now felt so criminal because if you would have fallen, you would have died. First you walk up lots of steps, then you walk over the top of the arches on this Indiana Jones bridge and start taking smalled stairs and latters. You can climb all the way up, past the clock, past the bells, and come out through a little hole in the roof and hang your feet over the edge. Too cool.

After that, we went to a little square where people gather and we had some lunch. Lunch in Ecuador is the big meal of the day. We started with soup, and juice and then had some veggies, rice and some part of a chichen for $1.50. We spent more on a cup of coffee than the meal.
For all you living in Alaska, I have great news, Alaska doesn´t have the worst service in restaurants in the world. I think Quito beats it 10 fold. If you don´t ask for your bill, they won´t give it to you.

After that, we took our $0.25 bus ride across town to the airport where we were led on a wild goose chase to retrieve my bag which had supposedly come in on the 14:00 plane. We went from office to office to office and finally found someone who could help us. Victory!!! My bag was there and it was all good.

Back to the city we went and had some dinner. We ate at this Middle Eastern place called "Alladins" and we sat around a while and caught up on live for the past nearly two years.