So the topics around the dinner table revolved around two topics: religion(Catholicism) and food(rodent)…I am adventuresome when it comes to travel, but rather on the strait and narrow when sampling local cuisine. But 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)
So the topics around the dinner table revolved around two topics: religion(Catholicism) and food(rodent)…I am adventuresome when it comes to travel, but rather on the strait and narrow when sampling local cuisine. But 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)
Guayaquil, if you recall is Ecuador’s commercial hub and home to over 3 million people. It is the southern city and the gateway to Peruvian travel. Most people in the past have quickly made their way through in pursuit of more glamorous destinations in the mountains and the coast. But as more more people are straying on, living and working, there becomes a need for a little guide to places to stay, places to eat and places to drink.
The Ecuador Gringo has teamed up with a few other awesome expats to bring you more travel tips. Here is a guest post from N.H.Rosen:
There are few places in Latin America as atmospheric as Quito’s Centro Histórico. The city’s colonial core is the largest and best-preserved collection of colonial architecture in the New World, and it is still the beating heart of Quito. The neighborhood was declared the first UNESCO World Heritage Site, and after visiting its narrow, hilly streets and regal plazas, you’ll understand why.
Any visit to the Centro Histórico, indeed any visit to Quito, should begin at the Plaza Grande. This is the city’s central square, and it is flanked by the city’s cathedral and presidential Read more
Before me sat an empty plate, practically licked clean, where once rested a fine piece of steak, sausage, slices of grilled potato, freshly-made artisan bread….In my post-binge state I was seriously considering the hammock slung from a nearby beam while from the stereo emerged Anthony K’s melodic chant from some Chili Peppers song.
Want to come meet the author of the Ecuador Gringo? Come to Bungalow 6 in the Mariscal. That’s right everybody, I have been working upstairs in the famous Bungalow since I got to Quito 3 months ago. Bungalow is known as the Mariscal’s prime party spot and you can tell by the lines of people waiting to get in outside. Bungalow started becoming a cornerstone of the Mariscal’s party scene about 3 years back when John Ott and Sean Carter, a couple of American expats, took it over and began transforming it into a popular hangout, popular with both Ecuadorians and Foreigners alike. I heard one local Ecuadorian describe its secret as being a sort of melting pot Read more
Last Sunday a large group of us were all sat around a cropping of picnic bench tables ordering buckets of Pilsner. One of the first timers here asked about how much he should expect to spend and Kevin, who lives up the road and comes about every week said: “I don’t know really, I always order a few beers a plate of fish and ceviche and always end up paying about $10. In the end after a few crates of beer– I’m not sure how many beers our group of thirteen drank, but we all had a plate of fish and ceviche and it was a $138 bill. I probably shouldn’t be telling you about the best cevicheria Read more
It was last Sunday in the Mariscal, I walked up to Finn McCools, a popular Irish pub in Quito’s Mariscal with the mind to order a Sunday roast and indulge myself. The waitress tells me there will be no roasts and that they’ll be shutting in 30 minutes. Normally the beer would be flowing at 4:30 in the afternoon, with the mixed crowd of locals, tourists, and expats watching sports, eating, or playing pool, but the new law had kept pretty much everybody at home. Quitos’ new drinking law had gone into effect and we were feeling it here at ground zero in the Mariscal, Quitos main party zone.
I looked back outside contemplating where to get Read more
Few places in La Mariscal, the center for Quito’s gringos, draw me in as does Uncle Ho’s. It goes beyond the food or the cocktails, rather it comes down to the personality behind the bar. Meet Kevin Sheehy: a five foot ten Irishman with a distinctive braided goatee dangling down below his chin who can be found most nights serving up martinis, cracking jokes with the local clientele, and checking the baseball play-by-plays on his laptop. Popular with Quito’s English teacher crowd and local gringo business owner alike, Ho’s intimate bar provides a great place to catch the game and have a chat. Kev’s a typical Irishman with a riotous sense of humor; he quickly friendlies up to anyone Read more
To be honest, there really isn’t a bad time to visit Ecuador, depending on where you want to go and what you want to do. Quito, for example, is spring-like all year round, although its rainy season is from May to September, making it, and the rest of the highlands, more enjoyable from June to August.
The Amazon and the eastern slopes of the Andes are quite the opposite. The wet season there runs from June to August, making the best time to explore the jungle from late August to February. Along the coast January to April seem to be the best time to visit, especially the Galapagos.
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