"The soul of a journey is liberty, perfect liberty, to think, feel, do just as one pleases." ~William Hazlitt
Sunday afternoon in Quito
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Every Sunday in the Historic Center of Quito, the streets are closed to traffic and opened to bicyclists instead. The plaza and surrounding streets are filled with artists, musicians, food vendors, dancers, clowns, mimes and living statues.
We enjoyed all this, plus two art exhibits at the Centro Cultural, for free. Here are some pics of our day.
The street is closed, and you can see a woman in gold costuming on the right doing the ‘living statue’ bit.Live music on the street. There were several small bands scattered around.A living statue (performers who hold very still, but will move a bit if you drop a tip in their box).There were several portrait artists & caricaturists on the street.When church lets out, the square gets even busier.Weaving hats by hand and sellling the results.One of the free exhibits we saw was Bolívar Mena Franco’s work. I loved his maternal portraits.Another of Bolívar Mena Franco’s maternal series.The other art exhibit we saw was a collection of photos called “Sport and Passion” in the courtyard of the gallery.Stores here are tiny. Craig pretty much fills this one up! There’s such an entrepreneurial spirit here, so many mom & pop stores.This woman paints constantly, and her husband sells her work. We bought three small paintings for $1 each.Loved this little girl! She was videotaping the dancers with an iPad, and I snuck this shot of her reflection. She was absolutely engrossed.Detail of dancer’s hairstyle and jewelryThe dancers used skirts and shawls to create color and movementDetail of a dancer’s costuming for another number.Little girls waiting to take the stage for one of their numbersCostume change! More colorful hair ornaments now.Male dancers in colorful costumes with fur chaps!Quechua girls in traditional clothing getting a shoeshine in the square
Here’s a brief clip of a couple of the dances we saw.
This festival environment is EVERY Sunday in the historic area of Quito. It’s actually possible to overdose on art, music, crafts and dancing here!
Published by Lauren
I'm a nomadic freelance writer, out enjoying the world!
Quito is a really affordable vacation. Look into Spirit airfares. I can hook you up with a delightful apartment for $200 a week within walking distance of everything, and advice on what to do once you’re here.
Quito is in recovery mode, it was pretty rundown & dangerous for a while. Still lots of graffiti, litter, etc (but most South American cities are like that). When Craig leaves, I will be going out during the day for lunch & groceries and then staying in after about 6:30pm (it gets dark early here on the equator). But the churches, architecture, and culture make up for that. And the people here are just amazing, truly.
Gotta love the creative use of the bells on the guys! 🙂 Have you really been gone 2 months now Lauren?? ? Seems like it was just last week that you posted on BHUZ that you were planing on doing this!
Holly Parker
July 16, 2013 at 2:43 amOk. Must go to Quito. Seriously, it’s on the list. Thanks for sharing this.
Lauren
July 16, 2013 at 3:40 pmQuito is a really affordable vacation. Look into Spirit airfares. I can hook you up with a delightful apartment for $200 a week within walking distance of everything, and advice on what to do once you’re here.
Quito is in recovery mode, it was pretty rundown & dangerous for a while. Still lots of graffiti, litter, etc (but most South American cities are like that). When Craig leaves, I will be going out during the day for lunch & groceries and then staying in after about 6:30pm (it gets dark early here on the equator). But the churches, architecture, and culture make up for that. And the people here are just amazing, truly.
Cookie Shaw
July 17, 2013 at 5:23 pmI love the pictures that you took ..Thank you for sharing them ..I would love too see more ..
Lauren
July 17, 2013 at 5:33 pmHi, Cookie! I promise there will be more, I love taking pictures. Craig is my bodyguard while I go around the city with my face buried in my camera. 😀
Patricia
July 16, 2013 at 3:15 amGotta love the creative use of the bells on the guys! 🙂 Have you really been gone 2 months now Lauren?? ? Seems like it was just last week that you posted on BHUZ that you were planing on doing this!
Lauren
July 16, 2013 at 3:34 pmIt’s been a little over 2 months, and it is flying by! I have barely begun, there’s so much to see!