ON THE ROAD AGAIN!So with Justin back at the wheel, we leave Popayan (where Johnny decides to stay and give San Agustin another try by bus) and we head to the Ecuadoran border. We stayed in Pasto, Colombia one night just before crossing the border and then we stayed in Ibarra, our first night in Ecuador. The Andes never fail to stun us along the way. Boys hitching a ride along the PanAmerican highway.We stayed in Koala hostal in Pasto, where there was some boy-band or something staying in the hotel next to us. We were kept awake part of the night by rowdy fans outside singing and chanting. No other photos of Pasto, but it was beautiful, and yet another town that surprises and enchants in Colombia.
WE REACH ECUADOR!VERY busy border crossing!!Once in Ibarra, our first Ecuadorian town...we decide a little drinking is on order. The guys introduce me to drinking good rum...well the Ecuadorian stuff fell a little short, but the karaoke bar was fun still...and yes, of course, those who know me and my standing rule, I sang. The machine actually had a scoring system and out of the 5 different songs I sang, I never came under 92% accuracy! Back in the room, this is the better rum.Eli tries the Ecuadorian stuff, again...he later throws up.

Finally in QUITO!!!


Basilica de Voto Nacional in Quito...you can actually climb all the way to the top...
...which we decided to do during a thunder/lightning storm. Smart huh? But it was always raining in Quito!
View from the top
We actually watched the storm come in and then we started to climb.
The Pope was here in 1985 and declared it immaculate or something like that.

Inside the clock tower.
The view of the Basicilica Voto Nacional in Quito from the rooftop of a nearby Monastery where the nuns only have 1 hour a day to mix and converse with one another. The rest of their day must be spent in solitude and in SILENCE! Good God indeed!
Inside a church in Quito- San something, I forget. Too many churches.


Night out in Quito
We ended up at a cool Irish pub, Mulligans, our first night out. Leonardo was our very friendly and fun bartender. Beer, tequila, even the worm were on the menu that night.Our second night out in Quito found us upstairs at a cool club with live music. Great salsa and merengue with a splash of cumbia. Fun!Cheers to good Ecuadorian beer, good Ecuadorian music, and good friends!OUT AND ABOUT IN QUITO








This lady was making those sweet crunchy peanut snack-things. I stopped to watch, buy a pack for 30¢ and to snap a photo. She was really sweet. (no pun intended)
GUAYASAMIN MUSEUM IN QUITO
Oswaldo Guayasamin was a hugely famous painter/sculptor from Quito, Ecuador. He was inspired by the people of not only his country but those of other countries in South America...the hardships and social inequities spoke to him especially and it's clear to see that translates in his artwork.
Guayasamin at work, I guess sketching.A photo of him in his studio.Huh, who knew those two were acquainted?!Translation: "I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a child that had no feet."
Inside the Capilla del Hombre (The Chapel of Man-Guayasamin Museum) These paintings are part of a collection of Rostros de los Americas. (Faces of the Americas) Personally, my favorites. I bought a reproduction, thinking I could protect it in something like a plastic tube or something purchased in a papeleria...I must have tried half a dozen papelerias before I came upon a hardware store. A piece of plastic piping did the trick!