City beauty and Transport

Here are a few thoughts about life in Quito, Ecuador.  Clouds and mountains, I cannot say enough about how beautiful it is here.  It still baffles me that people built a city up here in the mountains as it looks more like a national park than an appropriate place for a city.  This is never more clear to me than when daydreaming out the window while stuck in traffic.

Transportation here is hectic.  There are three primary ways to get around town: the ecovia/trole formal buses, the informal buses, and taxis. 

The ecovia/trole formal buses are similar to what I’ve experienced in most other cities I’ve lived in.  They have a set route with fixed stops and the buses by-in-large all look the same. 

The numerous informal buses on the other hand offer a very different experience.  Firstly, especially for young men, they don’t really stop.  Rather they just slow down so that you can hop on.  Despite a number of bus entrances in this fashion, it never ceases to raise my heart rate a bit as I hope to time my jump at the right time.  My favorite part of these buses though is the personalization that goes into decorating the bus’s interior.  Furry coverings, tassels, curtains, speakers and stickers are a few of the ways  that these bus drivers/owners express themselves so the rides are never dull.

Taxis are surprisingly plentiful here, and people from all walks of life seem to utilize them.  During the day, meters (which start at $0.35 and count by the penny) are in use but at night its best to negotiate fares in advance.  However convenient the taxis are, they are not always faster than the ecovia/trole which have the benefit of a dedicated lane, and a ride from our place in the south of the city up to the La Mariscal frequently takes 40 minutes or so.  Like the informal buses, there is a great deal of creativity expressed in decorating the cabs.  Aftermarket LED lights, furry coverings and fringe abound; so every ride has a slightly different character.

Overall, considering that Quito very narrow and long, it takes awhile to get from point to point, but at least one can travel in style.