Reasons You Should Visit Ecuador, Part 1

In response to this post about reasons you may not want to visit Ecuador, I'm here to tell you all the wonderful things about Ecuador that Greg and I came up with.

It's Cheap!
How cheap? you ask. It's 25-roses-for-$1 cheap (granted those are for the older roses - the regular roses are $2-3 for a dozen). We calculated it's about 1/2 of the cost of living in the US and 1/3 of the cost of living in Munich (unless you're buying lots of imported goods - then it can be about similar to those prices).

Super-Sweet People
I bet you won't find nicer people in all of South America. Everyone says hello and smiles at you on the street and in the stores. One of my friends asked directions to a street and the Ecuadorian person took them in their car to the exact address. There are some mean people here and there, but mostly they're just really sweet and super helpful.

Nightly Fireworks Show
We met one of my grandma's friends while they were visiting from Israel and she mentioned how the night before there was this huge fireworks show near their apartment. We told her that there are free fireworks shows around the city at least 3-4 nights a week on any given week. Some are more spectacular than others,  but they're not hard to find here. There's always a reason to celebrate!

It's easy to walk dress like this in Quito - perfect temps!

Great Temperature
It's lately just hit in the rainy season, which means we'll often get rain in the late afternoon/early evening, but not every night. Sometimes we get fog, which is my personal favorite! But even in the rainy season, it never gets below (or even near) freezing. During the day, when the sun is out, you can go around in short sleeves and sandals without freezing. And at night, a light jacket and/or sweater is usually warm enough. It's a major plus to being here!

Fruits and Desserts
Greg loves this dessert called quimbolitos, which is a little cake made of cornflour and raisins and steamed in a plantain leaf. It's yummy and something you can't find in other places. I also like one called humitas, which is savory as a cornflour cake with cheese inside and steamed in a corn husk. Ecuadorians eat that for
breakfast with coffee.

pitahaya

And the fruits are ridiculous. I can get fresh strawberries, pineapple, passion fruit, oranges, bananas and papaya any time of year. There's a distinct mango season, which we're coming up to. The vegetables are more limited, but the tomatoes are always tasty and bright red. Plus, there were a lot of new fruits for us to try - guanabana, pitahaya (super yummy), taxo, granadilla, and more.

andean lychee

Greg also wanted me to mention that popcorn is served like everywhere. That's our personal favorite!

Check out Part II of this list next week!