Leaving the wonderful Galápagos.

We had a morning flight back to Quito by way of Guayaquil, "losing" an hour in the process. We got back into the room we had before, washed up, and had a wonderful farewell dinner in the restaurant located in the hotel — Maritane — the chef, Cristian, came out to greet us. Eileen had an eggplant appetizer, Larry stuffed vegetables. Both of us had a nice chicken, with dessert a molten cake for Eileen, fruit in a sauce for Larry.

The next morning we headed to the Botanical Garden in La Carolina Park north of our hotel. Ecuador has a number of climate zones, with a portion of the many trees and flowers represented in the garden. Ecuador has over 4200 types of orchids, all beautiful, in a colder climate room and a warmer climate room, as well as scattered around the park. We walked through, with a commentary by Tomás.

Red-capped Cardinal.

Jim, Jordan, Lyle — funny guys.

We then boarded the bus to Mercado Iñaquito. There we walked around with Tomás as he pointed out all the unique South American fruits and vegetables. We bought plantain chips and spices.

At about noon, we headed south through the Mariscal neighborhood. A number of us got off at the Mercado Artesanal, a large set of stalls with goods from Ecuador, souvenir type items but also some nicer goods. After walking around and buying some coffee, Larry and Eileen walked a little south and into El Ejido Park, enjoying the nice weather.

Tiring, we walked back to the hotel, relaxed, showered, and finished packing.

Wendy, Jim, Elise, Curtis, and the two of us walked about a half mile back to the Mariscal neighborhood, to Plaza Foch, a hopping location with restaurants and clubs, to eat at Miskay, a small Ecuadorian restaurant. We had a fantastic meal, with a nice staff and kitchen crew. We had a trio of Ecuadorian ceviche of poached squid, octopus, and shrimp, with different acidic blends, and of course, popcorn, and plaintain chips; Andean soup with potato, pork, and basil; salad with shrimp, a fish dish, and a goat dish.

Our Quito spots of interest:

We walked back to the hotel, and off we went for the hour ride to the airport for our flights home. We all hugged and said goodbye to this nice group of people and Tomás. Then an overnight flight to Miami, breakfast at Corona House, and then the flight home to Boston. What a trip!