On May 6th we landed in Ecuador! The next morning our Ecuadorian adventure began by exploring the capital city: Quito! At 7:30 am we left to visit the Iglesia de San Francisco. I can’t even explain in words how absolutely beautiful and stunning the church was. Every single gold detail from floor to ceiling was gorgeous and unbelievable. It was the prettiest church I have ever been into. The initial construction of the church was in the 1500s!

After that we walked next door to the Museo de San Fransisco. It was beautiful and interesting to hear about the history of Saint Francis through the displayed paintings, sculptures, and artifiacts. I found it suprising how our tour guide said the shine on the wood carved sculptures was not from a glaze or paint, but instead the artists would use the animal bladders and chew on it and then spit it out and use that for the glaze.

After that we went to this viewing deck of the church where we were able to see the service from the top and were lucky to listen to the live organ being played. Then we went to the rooftop and took some photos and take in the view of the city.

After spending some time in the museum, we went outside and enjoyed some delicious chocolate churros and had lunch. I ate chicken with rice. We walked around the streets and went to the main plaza.

Then we went to our first chocolate tasting of the trip at Yumbos chocolate! As we tasted each delicous chocolate we learned more about the chocolate industry. Cacao is native to Ecuador unlike any other country and its origin is from Ecuador. We tried a variety of flavors, including 100% cacao dark chocolate. My favorite chocolate I tried was the ginger one. We even ate chocolate brownies. To wash off all this chocolate, we drank some more chocolate. It was hot chocolate all made with their locally grown cacao. This hot chocolate was not like swiss miss or anything I had ever had before, it was sugar free and had a rich chocolate taste.

After our chocolate tasting, we had some free time to explore the city on our own. The girls and I walked the streets nearby and purchased some souvenirs. We were able to practice our negotiating skills with the street vendors.

Then we took a long steep walk up to the Basilica del Voto Nacional. It was such a beautiful church both inside and out. We walked up 16 spiral and steep stairs to the top. On one of the floors had the most beautiful stained glass ever I could not stop looking at it. At the top we were able to see a birdseye view of the city and some high rise buildings.

Then we hailed ourselves a cab and it took us up the mountain to our next stop: Virgin del Panecillo. This statue can be seen from far in the streets of Quito and lights up at night. Once we reached the incline, we climbed up to the top of statue to take in another view of the breathtaking city. It reminded me of the statue of liberty.

After that we took a cab back to our hotel and enjoyed a group dinner. Our first day in Ecuador was extremely memorable and fun. I am thankful I have not experienced any altitude sickness yet.