Lima to Quito - 28th to 29th Jan 2018

Sunday was a travel day: Lima to Guyaquill, Guyaquil to Quito.  All went smoothly and I landed in Quito on time, ahead of Charlotte's plane from Madrid.  Having been diagnosed with Acute Mountain Sickness in Cusco,  I was slightly nervous about ascending from sea level back up to 2800m, Quito's elevation, and thus very happy to sit still in the airport for an hour.  By 7pm she emerged through customs and a big hug and a few tears later and we were in our taxi heading into Quito central.  Quito is nestled in a valley up in the mountains, and our Airbnb was situated on a hillside above the Old Town.  A gorgeous little apartment complete with breakfast items and courtyard.  It was already fairly late and we decided not to go out, but to rest and get used to the altitude.  Plus Charlotte had been up since 6am UK time and needed to get some shut eye!

The next morning we made a plan.  Having arrived in Ecuador with no fixed itinerary other than a flight home in 3 week's time, we located 5 tour agencies which we would go to to get a Galapagos trip organised. First we walked into the Old Town, stopping for a coffee and to watch the world go by.  Lots of people milling about, selling everything from sunglasses to dog coat & booty ensembles... Caffined up, we grabbed an Uber and headed up-town.  It turned out that Quito is really quite big, sprawled up and down the valley with urbanisation creeping up any mountainside that isn't too steep. While the surroundings are stunning, the negative of this valley setting is that traffic is squeezed into a few main roads and absolutely terrible.  Half an hour later (going only a few miles) we found Happy Gringo Tours tucked in an office block.  I had done a lot of research prior to leaving the UK on boats and costs, but it all went out the window once we'd given Happy Gringo our budget and requirements.  They came back with a list of boats departing in the next weeks or so, and the merits of their itineraries.  I knew the itinerary was key - and they were great in explaining what we would get to see at the various islands.  Each boat has a pre-set route and timings, strictly controlled by the Galapagos National Park, so once we'd understood all of that, and what fell into our budget, it wasn't difficult to settle on The Eden with an 8 day itinerary leaving 4 days later.

Quito at night

And as luck would have it, Happy Gringo also found us a horse trek to the Central Highlands, around the Quilotoa Loop which fitted in perfectly, leaving tomorrow and arriving back the day before flying to Guyaquil and onto Galapagos.  Plainly it was meant to be! 6 hours later, we were booked onto both trips and headed back to Old Town pleased that we'd more or less figured out our entire stay; horse riding, Galapagos and then Carnival on the beach in Puerto Lopez.  We found a lovely rooftop bar, overlooking the main square, all lit up at night, for a celebratory glass of wine.  And best of all, my stomach, lungs and head all feel fine.  It's like a whole new beginning....