Quito, ECUADOR

I spent almost all day yesteday (my birthday), flying from São Paulo to Panama City and then back south to Quito, Ecuador on Copa Airlines.

My first impressions of Quito are good. A lot more developed than I thought. This morning is cool (12 celcius) but sunny. While Quito is less than 13km south of the equator, at an altitude of 2850 metres some people suffer from dizziness until they´re used to the low oxygen level. So far I have only seen the "New Town". Later today I will explore the "Old Town" which is a UNESCO Heritage site packed with post-Inca Colonial buildings. First I have to plan and book my trips to the remote Galapagos Islands and the Oriete (Amazonian Jungle).

Note that my mobile phone has no connection anywhere in Ecuador (so no SMS messages). All correspondence via email please. While at the Galapagos I will spend most of the time on a boat, and in the Amazon jungle in huts...so no Internet connection either.

Adios!