The Galapagos is a special marine environment known as a convergence zone. Cold water coming up from  Antarctica meets with warm equatorial currents causing upwellings of nutrients that feed a massive food chain which keep all those special fishies floating around to dazzle your eyes. And it’s one of the few places on the planet where you’ll see a mix of penguins diving into the surf and pink flamingos congregating on land.

By land or by Sea

The first decision to make when organizing your trip to the Galapagos is whether to base yourself on the land or to take a boat cruise. The economical choice is land based and would lead you to the tourist hub on the island of Santa Cruz, Puerto Ayora. Here you’ll find a huge range of hotels, cafes, and tour companies offering simple day trips from about $100-$120 per day. The problem with land based tours is that you’ll be limited in scope to the sites you can visit. These sites are obviously more impacted by tourists, that being said, they’ll still blow you away. Alternatively, many backpackers, or anyone with a more flexible itinerary, can choose to try and hop-on a boat here. Many tours during the off-season don’t pre-book so you’ll find boats passing through Ayora on their mid-way point willing to bargain for any potential stowaways hanging about.

Off-season travel

If you head to one of the many travel agencies in Quito’s main tourist center, La Mariscal during the off season you’ll find a wealth of agencies offering the ubiquitous Last-Minute Galapagos Specials. Basically, during Galapagos’ prime time: June to mid-September and mid-December through January, you’ll find it impossible to find last-minute deals. But outside these impacted times, you’ll find great deals. A word of caution, though, ask around and consult bulletin boards like Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree for advice on which boats to take and which not to. Remember, expensive doesn’t always equate with better. Some boats, luxury and budget alike might employ a staff that speaks little English and might have little interest in playing the role as the guide.

I suggest checking Galasam Travel. Their friendly staff is VERY knowledgeable and up front about travel to the Galapagos. They offer three of the more budget  class  boats: the Millennium, and the Estrella de Mar I and II as well as many more luxury class boats. Their agents will not try to sell you on anything and will direct you to other agencies should you want a different class of boat. They can also arrange deals with flights and complete packages including land stays as well. Galasam’s conveniently located in Quito’s La Mariscal at Cordero N24-214 and Amazonas Ave on the corner.

The land of two seasons

The Galapagos experiences two seasons: a “rainy” and a “dry.” Take these terms with a grain of salt. The “rainy” from December to May sees a bit of rain, but ironically the most sun. The air is warmer and so is the water. But while the water is warmer to swim in, there might seem to be less fish around (remember, it will still knock your socks off). The “dry” season, from June to November, is dominated by the colder currents from the south. The cold water brings cloudy days and cooler air temps. But while it might not be as comfortable, the water is teeming with life. Remember those cold upwellings will ignite the food chain. So serious divers might consider the dry season for their trip.

Nuts and Bolts

Flights: Fly from Quito or Guayaquil prices vary season to season.  Check the websites of Aerogal and TAME for  info on booking flight.

 Fees: $100 Galapagos visitors tax, $10 tourist transit card, $41 departure tax from Quito or $28 departure tax from Guayaquil.

When not to go: Mid-December through January and June to mid-September (busy season)

What not to do: Overstay. That transit card serves like a kind of visa stamp. You only have a set amount of time to stay in the Galapagos and should you overstay, you’ll face heavy fines. This limit on tourism is meant to help protect and preserve the delicate balance of this fragile and, unfortunately, decaying eco-system.

SAE is a great resource for those traveling/living in South America. They have locations in major cities all over the continent and a $60 membership fee gets you access to up-to-date travel and volunteer info, discounts on tours, a lenders library stocked with multi-language books, free internet and much more. The best thing about the club is the camaraderie you’ll find. You’ll meet many other travelers at the club’s social events, lecture series, pub crawls and yes, their bi-monthly pub quizzes.

A friend and former co-worker, at Uncle Ho’s, a Vietnamese restaurant in La Marical, Jon Jared has just taken over as Manager for SAE. Jon is a great guy and has been living in Quito for years and years. I suppose by now one should call him an ex-pat as I don’t think he’s heading home anytime soon. He originally came South backpacking and volunteering and is passionate on both fronts. Pop down to see him at Hos for a drink and a good bowl of Pho and he can give you all the skinny on Ecuador travel, living and volunteering. As well you’ll find Jon at the SAE or the Turtle’s head and you’ll find he’s real open and ready to chat to anyone.

The Turtles Head is located at La Nina #626 between Juan Leon Mera and Amazonas, Quito.

Jon also has a great blog talking about life and times in Ecuador, check it out. http://savvyroundtheworld.wordpress.com

Usually I am home for short stints but as I had not been back for the holidays for over 9 years, I promised Thanksgiving and Xmas with the family. This extended stay had me reassessing my health care needs and I found myself on the web seeking out new coverage. My criteria were as follows: maximum coverage for temporary to extended stays in the US, full coverage abroad, full indemnity of hazardous sports, low cost (of course) and any dental plan thrown in would be just gravy. My search through the databases of about 20 expat insurance websites led me through plans that provided cheap per annum premiums (about $1000/year) for overseas plans, but throw in any length of stay in the US and  premiums took a hike of about 250%.

 I finally stumbled upon a unique little plan by the people at Seven Corners. 7C’s Reside Prime plan delivers maximum coverage and flexibility to any world citizen who will spend no more than 6 months out of the year in the US. Basic indemnity will provide you with full coverage while overseas. With Full coverage you will pay nothing out of pocket, once your deductible has been met, for any illness, operation, amputation, etc. while outside the US. Further, Reside Prime will provide, once the deductible has been met, 80% of the first 5k spent and 100% thereafter, for any expense while in the US. The all important catch, though, is that YOU RESIDE NO MORE THAN SIX MONTHS OF THE YEAR IN THE US. Just thought I’d drill that in. They will check your passport’s visas and will want proof of your time outside the US before paying out any claim.

If you will definitely be residing the majority of your time overseas, Seven Corner’s Reside Prime is ideal.

Of interest to overseas residents is coverage for emergency evacuation. Should you be stuck in a place without adequate medical facilities, you will be airlifted to the nearest hospital for treatment. Also, Seven Corners will provide travel expenses and lodging for anyone you specify to assist you during a medical emergency. Another perk is the emergency dental. Fall and lose a tooth, you’ll get a new one right away (gravy).  

A base plan for adults 25-46 is about $1100 per annum.

Reside Prime is a long term solution for overseas residents and their medical needs. Reside Prime can be renewed every year until the age of 75. You cannot be denied ever for renewal as long as you keep your plan active. Payment for the plan is flexible as well. If you can’t fork out your base premium all at once, RP allows users to opt for semi-annual, quarterly or monthly payment plans for a slight incremental fee. And Reside Prime is a sound bet. Underwritten by Lloyds of London, a solid UK financial institution, Reside Prime is guaranteed to be here for years to come.

I love Reside Prime’s plan for it’s strength, flexibility and it’s price tag. But for a bit more, you can strengthen the plan with a few add ons. I chose dental (provides annual coverage for dental exams and surgery), hazardous sports (covers you for diving, surfing, skiing, etc.) and a hospital rider (boosts your daily maximum for hospital stays while outside the USA).  Also offered is term life insurance, good for those with dependents. When all was said and done my plan came out to be $1840 per annum ($2060 paying quarterly). For what it has to offer, my Reside Prime is valued at $113/month.

Reside Prime does have a few drawbacks. I didn’t say it was perfect, just comparatively better, in my opinion, to other plans on the market. RP offers no prescription coverage and will limit your coverage for pre-existing and congenital conditions. I suggest you look closely at this plan and see if it is the one for you. It sure was for me.

Check out Reside Prime here:  https://www.sevencorners.com/insurance/resideprime/

Well, I lived to tell the tale but some haven’t and some may not in the future, though the risk will eventually diminish with the new airport (open any time soon) in the valley adjacent to UIO.  Until then UIO is still one of the scariest airports in the world. I was just looking through Virgin Media’s website and came across some funny rankings I’d like to share. UIO fell between Matekane in Lesotho and Princess Julianna in St. Maartens to take the title of 4^th scariest.

Here are the excerpts from numbers 3 and 5.

 Matekane’s small 1,312ft runway is perched-perilously on the edge of a 7,550ft drop – which is where you quite literally take-off into. This is a base-jump equivalent, for the plane drops down the face of a 2,000ft cliff as soon as it leaves the tarmac. Then the plane starts flying.

Plane spotter: Don’t fear, this is just a case of simple physics and plane aeronautics. Apparently, when you take-off in Lesotho’s mountains, it’s better to take-off downwind and downhill than into wind and uphill, as those mountains are just too high to clear – which makes perfect sense to us.

 And St. Maarten

Plane spotter: Signs dot the beach warning bathers not to lie directly in the runway flight-path. But that looks pretty near impossible considering the width of the plane and the distance to the tarmac. Here’s hoping the pilots don’t get distracted by all that bare flesh.

Well, UIO seems to be in good company here. Aside from being smack dab in the middle of an Urban center complete with skyscrapers, heavy blankets of misty fog, turbulent wind tunnels and surrounded by volcanic mountains all around, according to Virgin there is a big heavy “bump” in the middle of the tarmac that pilots must contend with!  Interesting also, pilots are instructed to fly in super fast to keep aloft of all those skyscrapers in the super thin air. Not scared yet? Well, because of the often damp conditions on slippery tarmac and the super fast landings, planes have been known to slide right off the end of the strip.

Well, don’t worry too much.  I would guess there are probably 50 incident free landings every day and with the eventually-built new airport UIO will be all the more safer for your next flight in.  But for those not up for the adventure, Guayaquil has plenty of international flights and is much, much flatter .

The Fer Mary case was  slated by conservationists to be a landmark. They had hoped that a decision handed down against poachers could have cemented the Galapagos’ court’s commitment to protect Ecuador’s Sharks. Instead the judge in this trial ruled himself “non-competent” to decide on an environmental case. Hmmm, a penal judge rules himself non-competent to rule on a penal case? Didn’t think you’d be hearing that one, huh? Well, you heard it here first.  This isn’t actually the first time a local judge has ruled his own non-competence as grounds for moving a shark poaching case out of local courts.  Earlier this year a similar charge was brought up against the Reina del Cisne which was  carrying 82 poached sharks within the Galapagos reserve.

When a local judge dismisses himself from a case based on non-competence what the judge effectively does is send the case to the mainland, I presume to Quito or Guayaquil, to a higher national court where a (hopefull) competent judge versed in environmental issues will hear the case. But how things work in these cases is that the defendants are released from custody and asked to report on their own recognizance. Will they show? Don’t hold your breath. Smugglers and pirates, criminal scum like these, will slip through the cracks and surface aboard another boat poaching for profits.

So what will be done for the Galapagos’ sharks?

Should Correa not step up with his new powers to remove judges he considers corrupt. And would it be a stretch to say that these judges might not have been “dumbed” down by a little “incentive” from poachers? Hmmmm. Certainly these judges have let down the public and the whole world as the Galapagos is an important national treasure and international bio reserve. Practically thinking,  you’d think the government would look toward the devolution of the Galapagos’ ability to sustain Eco-tourism as reason enough to install judges more competent and knowledgeable on Galapagos conservation issues. Should all the Galapagos’ sharks be annihilated so some limp Asian can enjoy a bit of cartilage in his bowl of broth or do these majestic and ancient creatures not represent a little more to this government?

What Now?

Well, here’s the part when we discuss what you can do to help. I got Ecuador’s international consulate addresses straight from the Sea Shepherd’s website. Yes, the Sea Shepherd of Whale Wars fame is one of the principal players operating in the Galapagos to defend and preserve.

Check out their campaign: http://www.seashepherd.org/galapagos/. These are the good guys and deserve our support and admiration and perhaps a belated Christmas present on behalf of the sharks and in the form of a donation.

Consulate of Ecuador USA
 2535 15th Street, NW 
Washington, D.C.  20009 
Tel: (202) 234-7166 
Fax: (202) 265-9325 
email: consuladodc@ecuador.org
website: http://www.ecuador.org

Embassy of Ecuador USA
 2535 15th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20009
Tel: (202) 234-7200
Fax: (202) 667-3482
Email: embassy@ecuador.org

Embassy of Ecuador UK 
Flat 3b, 3 Hans Crescent
London
SW1X 0LS
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)20 7584 2648 / 1367 / 8084
Fax: +44 (0)20 7823 9701

Embassy of Ecuador Canada
 50 O’Connor Street, Suite 316
Ottawa, Ontario Canada K1P 6L2
Tel: +1 (613) 563-8206 / 4286?
Fax: +1 (613) 235-5776
Email: mecuacan@rogers.com

Ecuador Consulate, Toronto Canada 
151 Bloor St, West, Suite 470 
Toronto
Ontario 
Canada 
M5S 1S4 
Phone:  +1-416-968-2077
Fax:  +1-416-968-3348
Email:  ctoronto@idirect.com

Ecuador Consulate, Montreal Canada
 2055 Peel, Oficina No. 501 
Montreal 
Quebec 
Canada 
H3A 1V4 
Phone: +1-514-874-4071
Fax: +1-514-874-9078
Email: consecuador-montreal@rapidweb.ca

Ecuador Consulate , Vancouver Canada 7388 Lynnwood Drive, Richmond British Columbia Vancouver Canada V7C 5H8 Phone: +1-604-274-7707Fax: +1-604-274-7706 Email: ecuador@telus.net

I went down the list which should have spanned from ’99 to 2010. There were Quito, Ecuador; Montanita, Ecuador; Seoul, S. Korea; Byron Bay, Australia; Jang Heung, S. Korea; Correlejo, Canary Islands(Spain); Itacare, Brazil; Midigama, Sri Lanka; Camarillo, Ca.(Home); Midigama, Sri Lanka; London, UK. Funny to boil down ones life to a series of Christmases in random places as if that’s all I have ever accomplished. But that is the snake-like progression my life has taken. But now that I’ve copied it down I realize that one year is missing. Now, I’ve been going over it again and again for the last ten minutes and I still can’t figure out the missing place as there should be 12 locales and I only count 11. While I regularly misplace car keys and sunglasses and one time lost my passport, I’ve never had the misfortune of misplacing a whole singular day and thus the cumulative efforts and results of an entire year from my mind, except of course under the influence of highly-proofed intoxicants(which judging the likelihood of my actions and whereabouts on any given xmas away from home, it could provide a plausible explanation).

But the dawning question, eclipsing this singular loss is an over-coming pondering, similar to Jimmy Buffet’s pirate as I look back at 35. Where the hell has it all gone? If you want to judge any current ennui, boiling down your last 12 years into the whereabouts for the holidays. If you arrive safe and sound back to the current year then you’ve won, but if you end up singing Buffet’s lyrics through your mind “ I made enough money to buy Miami, but I pissed it away so fast” you’re gonna end up wondering where it all went. Fortunately for my liver I’ve never grossed enough to buy a descent car over the years, let alone buy Miami in a million years.

Boo-hoo, huh? I have celebrated in some pretty great spots with some pretty wonderful people over these last years. And for the moment it’s good being home. I have my family and my health. My grandfather is with us after a couple years fighting cancer. One year ago, they took him off chemo and told him, “Go home and prepare to die.” He was given only two months to live. Back then he was a skinny radiated charactature of his former self. 160 gaunt pounds, a reduction from his solid former 300 lb self. The chemo had taken it’s toll. Sitting here with him now, you have to almost admit to the strange possibility of divine intervention when an 87 year old slighted for the big turkey dinner in the sky devours a big plate of it with all the trimmings and pie a la mode at the end. He’s up to 200 lbs these days and I dare say this holiday fattening fest will leave a slight loosening of the belt when he walks away. For me, that’s lightning enough.

Unapologetically, I’m going to drop a cliche— you have gotta give thanks for what you have. Look at the headlines on any given day lately. Death squads in Syrian and Egyptian streets. The dragging out of Afghanistan. Republican debates. It’s all mostly bad news. If you’re reading this, you’re somewhere safe and warm hopefully with powerful broadband. And hopefully with the people you love.

How do you feel on the holidays when you travel?  Do you like being home or do you like being somewhere on holiday?  Let me know and share a comment!

Being a surfer, I know how frustrating it can be negotiating the rising and often restrictive baggage policies of major airlines. The so-called handling fees for your surfboards, snowboards, musical instruments can be annoying and at times preposterously high. In the wake of competition, rising fuel costs airlines are hitting the adventure seekers firsts. For most, it doesn’t matter. Most travel with just a carry-on and a check in and the savvy backpackers can get away with just a carry on by shedding weight. But any kayak or orbitz search for flights should be tendered with a search of baggage policies to see what kind of tariffs are placed on you equipment.

So for your convenience I have made a comparison of current fees for all the international carriers routing through Europe and the US. All flights to Ecuador will pass through these airlines either directly or via codeshares. Connecting legs to the airlines particular hub might be coded with a different airline so you will have to do more research. For code shared flights(a flight that is booked under one airline, but actual operates with another airline) you might be subject for the “hidden” airline fee. I recently booked a multistop flight with LAN via orbitz.com. The flight went Quito to Guayaquil and Guayaquil to San Salvador. Now while I booked the flight because LAN is the sole airline operating out of Ecuador that DOESN’T charge for surfboards, the GUA to SAL portion actually turned out to be coded with Taca/Avianca. So I got hit with $150 fee! My bad for not checking up!

Many airlines allow extra baggage for their business and frequent flyer member. Some airlines measure baggage weight limit by the number of pieces, weight, dimension or any combination of the three. Some airlines charge extra for surfboards, some don’t(LAN). Some will allow you to include it with the aggregate of your other bags if you’ve not yet reached the limit. But some heinous airlines will charge you per board and some evil airlines won’t allow any at all. The all important thing is to check the policy before you book because if you show up and refuse to pay the fee, well then they will simply refuse your boards.

The savvy travelers only weapon besides solid research? Charm. Show up early, show up lightly packed and show up prepared to brown nose that over worked and under paid airline representative. The check in agent is the key. I tend to spend my time in that “Disneyland” waiting line checking out the agents. Who is grumpy, who is bubbly, who is the most flirtatious and likely the most single. These are the ones that I wait for, even going so far as to let others pass me by so I can check-in with them. Then a little bit of charm and viola! I have maybe paid board fees 20% of the time on average over the years.

So here’s a breakdown of airlines by region, the hubs, policy and fee. Note: any flight originating outside Europe or the US must route through these airlines eventually. Check your originating airlines policies for their restrictions and fees.

I hope this is helpful.  Remember that these prices are subject change.  Please check out this other post as well.

Cheap Flights and Reduced Fares to Ecuador

I’d like to think that I am adventuresome when it comes to travel, but I’m rather on the strait and narrow when sampling local cuisine and didn’t budge an inch here in Ecuador. For those traveling in the Andean regions of Ecuador such as Banos, Cuenca and Otavalo, you will eventually see one of those oversized rats being skinned, butterfly split and skewered, roasting in the open air markets. I am referring to the Cuy(a Quechua word, pronounced Kwee) or as we call them, guinee pigs.

Hailing from the same famed family of the fabled bringer of middle age European population control, the black rat,  rodentia are so-called for their large incisors. The root of rodentia, the latin verb rodere, literally means to gnaw. And so it is that when you see them skinless and brazen, it’s their white shiny incisors shinning out at you that will  turn your head away and shy from any inclination to adventuresome experimentation.

Now, I’ve been confronted with fertalized chicken eggs in Cambodia, crispy cockroaches in Thailand, raw chicken in Japan, from which I have always balked, so why back from a good system. It’s kept me alive thus far.  Look, I know, meat is meat and the Donner party would not have shied away from eating these vermin in the stead of each other.   Neither would your average starving Somalian and neither would I if it came down to munching on rat or  the shank of  Uncle Steve. But should you want to partake and do as those Quechuans when in old Quechua, then just say the magic words: “Kwee, por favor!”

Anyhow, when not being roasted, Cuys will be found roaming around the homes of Andean People. They are said to bring good luck, heal the sick and help keep the house warm. A survey amongst most who have eaten Cuy is that it tastes like(Yes, you guessed it, chicken, albeit very oily and chewy chicken). A plate is popularly served up with potato and cholclo(corn) and the meat is actually very healthy and low in fat, though in some areas they do deep fry it which sort of nullifies that nutritional fact.

A plate will set you back from 5 to 10$ depending  whether you eat on the streets or in a restaurant.

For a bit more on cuisine in Ecuador check out these related articles:

Uncle Ho’s: West meets East way down south in Quito’s Mariscal

Don Carbon—A Vision for Restaurants in Montanita

There are many programs on CRE Ecuador which will make you aware of the people, practices and traditions of this place. Once you tune in, it is hard to stop listening. CRE Satelital, also popularly known as CRE Eucador is one amazing place which will help you learn with fun, and adventure about various events that are taking place locally. CRE Ecuador is a complete package of entertainment and the latest news as well. It is a comprehensive channel where you can easily learn how the local people speak Spanish , their accent, their pronunciation, speed and way of speech, each of these things is very important if you want to learn how to speak Spanish like a native.
CRE Ecuador can also be accessed from the comfort of your home, your ipad, iphone, mobile phone or any other wifi devices. This radio station can be tuned in with any internet connection by going to http://www.cre.com.ec. There is a schedular as well, which can be used to schedule the things you want and listen to whenever you want. CRE Ecuador has a Mobile edition as well, you can use this and listen to the online radio from anywhere using your mobile phone. You can use your mobile hotkeys to get tuning of your favorite radio station. To know the frequency where you can tune in just click on the city of your interest . It provides services like Live CRE, CRE on your mobile , CRE mobile edition, Live scores , RSS (Really Simple Syndication) , Programming and much more.
CRE was founded on 1st September 1940. On the frequency of 1050AM CRE began its broadcasting with 1 kilowatt of power in Guayaquil city.
The name of the owner is Don Rafael Guerrero Valenzuela. He came to the industry as a storyteller and sports commentator. Soon, in 1946 he became the Managing Director.
Later in 1954 , he came into partnership with polo champions Voltaire. And he (Mr. polo) bought the radio station and became its owner and Managing Director . At the beginning of the 70′s , CRE changed its frequency from 1050Am to 560 AM  .
Now its headquarter is located in the city of Guayaquil and the signal for the city and the rest of the coast remains at the current frequency of 560 AM .

CRE Ecuador is one of the leading Spanish language News Broadcast Service from Ecuador. This channel has a General Interest media focus which makes it even better, faster and accurate. Live streaming and quick updates of this news broadcasting service makes it even better and relaible source of news.
CRE Satelital is amazing radio station of Ecuador. It is a 560 AM online radio station, with Live Radio Online everytime. When ever you are working on your computer you can tune in to CRE Ecuador from the comfort of your home. You can relax and rejuvinate when you listen to the CRE Ecuador. If you are a student or a professional working in here, CRE Ecuador will make you comfortable in speaking and understanding the local language. There are many programs on CRE Ecuador which will make you aware of the people, practices and traditions of this place. Once you tune into this, you would definitely want to listen to it for long. CRE Satelital, also popularly known as CRE Eucador is one amazing place which will help you learn with fun, frolic and adventure about various events that are taking place around the place locally. CRE Ecuador is a complete package of entertainment while work as well. It is a comprehensive channel where you can easily learn how people speak Spanish , their accent, their pronunciation speed and way of speech, each of these things is very important if you are associated to this place in any possible way.
CRE Ecuador is a popular radio that can be accessed from comfort of your home, your ipad, iphone, mobile phone or any other wifi gadgets. This radio station can be tuned an internet connection by just a click. There is a schedular as well, which can be used to schedule the things you want and listen to this radio station whenever you want. CRE Ecuador has a Mobile edition as well, you can use this and listen to the online radio from any place using your mobile phone. You can use your mobile hotkeys to get tuning of your favorite radio station. To know the frequency where you can tune in just click on the city of your interest . It provides services like Live CRE, CRE on your mobile , CRE mobile edition, Live scores , RSS (Really Simple Syndication) , Programming and many more.
CRE was founded on 1st September 1940. On the frequency of 1050AM CRE began its broadcasting with 1 kilowatt of power in Guayaquil city.
The name of the owner is Don Rafael Guerrero Valenzuela. He came to the industry as a storyteller and sports commentator. Soon, in 1946 he became the Managing Director.
Later 1954 , he came into partnership with polo champions Voltaire. And he (Mr. polo) bought the radio station and became its owner and Managing Director . At the beginning of the decade of the 70 , CRE changes its frequency from 1050Am to 560 AM  .
And now its headquarter is located in the city of Guayaquil and the signal for the city and the rest of the coast remains in the traditional frequency of 560 AM .

I have lived in Quito about a year now, and to be honest, this is the place for me. I like having a bit of action and Quito has Ecuador’s largest concentrate of ex-pats stationed here. Like any city, you need to get the heck out every now and again. And getting out is easy; to the north and south lay Mindo, Papallata, Banos and Otovalo—all great little respites of naturalness. The main question for anybody coming to live in Quito is where. Quito proper has two parts worth living in: the new town or central historical. Here follows a little guide that might help you decide between the three places.

Quito new town

Probably the more fashionable choice is Quito’s new town. If you move out here, you’ll find yourself within minutes from great shopping, eating, cinemas, nightlife, fitness and moving from north to south, the New town is connected with the central historical, bus stations and the airport terminal with excellent public transport. Some of the nicer districts to look into ar Gonzales Surez, Bellavista and Parque Carolina.

Most folks end up living in condos which are all very modern now and up to codes on par with what we have in the US, so have no preoccupations there. Most have 24 hour security and onsight parking so your personal safety is also not a concern. I’ve always rented in shared housing which will run very cheap—like 200$ per month, but for $500—wow–one could get a real nice single apartment!. To buy– think 60-100K.

Quito Central Historical

Ah, the Historical center. It is a crazy meandering neighborhood of shops and cobblestone streets. Street vendors, children running about, tourists and politicians. It is Ecuador’s, and South , best preserved historical district having gained UNESCO’s world heritage status. Imagine passing the presidential palace each day on your way to get a carton of milk and imagine living in an old colonial mansion. Well, here you can. The best thing about property here is that a large portion has been renovated inside while preserving the historical facade. This means you can live in a fully modern building with updated heating and plumbing, all structurally sound.

It’s actually good value here to rent and buy—generally 25-30% lower rent wise than the New town. And to buy—wow! What about living in a colonial mansion or running a quaint B&B? Here you have 7+ room/5 bathroom converts for between 140K—350K that are modernized and ready for you alone or renting out to guests.

Whichever way you go, it’s best to get some local advice before you rent or buy. If you want my advice, take a room in La Mariscal—or “Gringolandia” how it’s known to the locals. Here you can meet a lot of local gringos living in Quito. Go check out Finn McCool’s, Uncle Ho’s, The English Book Shop or Bungalow 6—all gringo run and all popular with gringos. Talk to folks and get the real scoop. You’ll probably find a place to live in one night!

If you have anything to say about this article or would like to voice your opinion about living in Quito then leave a comment below!