Traveshamóckery

November 17, 2011

The busy season doesn’t start until December, but - like last year – Todd and I have been going like banshees since the end of October, with lots of friends, family, and guests in town. And the pace isn’t likely to slow down until April, so we jumped on the chance to take a 3-day vacation in Quito last week to join my brother Jack and his partner Doug (“Big Deck”) for a side-trip while they are here.  Doug went to attend the International Living (IL) conference; Jack is always up for any trip (this is around his 7^th visit to Quito), and Todd and I planned on some much needed R & R and sightseeing.

This is only my second time in Quito (I was there 4 years ago – briefly – on my initial trip to Ecuador, and Todd’s first time there).  Jack and Todd and I stayed at one of my favorite boutique hotels, that Jack introduced me to the first time: the Café Cultura, not far from either la Mariscal (“La Gringolandia”) or the Parque El Ejido. It is on the pricier side, and more than Todd and I would normally spend on a room, but we splurged, since we haven’t had a real vacation in several years. The original plan was to make the 8 to 10 hour scenic drive from Olon, but we ended up catching one of the many available 25-minute daily flights from Guayaquil to Quito (around $80 round-trip). No reservation necessarily required, unless one is on an inflexible schedule (if you are one of those, heaven help you when you come to Ecuador….).

The Café Cultura is a treat unto itself. Every room is creatively and uniquely different, every comfort is seen to and anticipated, the food and the dining room are great, and the staff is stellar. Not to mention the inviting common areas like the main lobby, and an intimate library/den (each with a cozy fireplace) where interesting guests from all over the world congregate and chat, many who are jumping off or returning from the Galapagos. For me anyway, the Café Cultura is a seductive place to hang out and relax, and if we never left the grounds – no complaint from us….Which we kinda ended up doing.

Yes, we had grand sight-seeing and various food sampling plans for our almost 3-day respite in Quito.  

Yes, we were going to take at least one of the many day trips out of Quito to shop in Otavalo during a weekday, or see the butterflies in Mindo, or gorge on leather in Cotacachi.

Yes, as soon as we unpacked, Jack and Todd and I headed to the “La Mariscal” district and Foch Plaza cafés for a few drinks, appetizers, and people-watching.

That was after Jack & I first dragged Todd to our favorite – if expensive – store in Quito – the Galeria Latina, (on Juan León Mera y Veintimill; if Maria Augusta is there, ask to have her show you around) to browse. Todd loved it, which is completely out of character (“who are you, and what have you done with Todd?), since he doesn’t like to shop.

And yes, Todd and I finally got to spend some time around “Old Town” (El Centro Histórico), with its Spanish Colonial flavor, old churches initially from the 1600’s, museums, and the Presidential Palace, among other things, with Jack as our tour guide. But it was rainy and cold day on the morning we made the 20-30 minute walk there from our hotel and we ended up ducking into one of the few places around that area to stay dry and quench our beer thirst with a few pricey Pilseners at the Hotel Plaza Grande.

We did tour the Iglesia de San Francisco with its breathtaking gilt-encrusted ceiling and baroque altar, and the attached museum, but because of the weather, did not see much else and Todd and I planned on returning the next day to poke around Old Town some more.

Did we get back to the Historic District to see more?  Nope.

Did we get to Equator Museum (“Inti-Nan”)?   Nope.

Did we take the TelefériQo cable ride up the Volcán Pichincha? Nope.

But probably the thing that is going to make my friends shake their heads in disgust…..Did we try any of the really great restaurants in Quito?

Well…no…because I discovered (just two blocks from our hotel) a Pizza Hut and ended up eating there not once, but twice. A true traveshamóckery, but – hey! – as a gringa who has missed some of her favorite Estados Unidos pig-out places after a year and a half, I couldn’t resist. That, and we were really enjoying just hanging out and relaxing at the Café Cultura.

We did have a great time, though it went too quickly. We returned to Olon to hit the ground running again, prepping houses for visitors and getting our friend’s Barb and Robert’s house in Curia ready for their permanent arrival later this week. We also helped my brother and Doug host a reception for the International Living tour group that inevitably comes through our area after one of their conferences. The power went out for an hour or two before they arrived, complicating preparations, but Todd and I took a short interlude that afternoon just to sit on our back patio and watch the colorful birds flitting around, and thought: “we don’t do this often enough”…..Another traveshamóckery.

*  Don’t bother looking up the word “traveshamóckery”. It’s not a word in any language. It is made-up word, and we have used it for years (combining travesty, sham, and mockery)....except I thought it might be more clear with the accent mark.