My Two Week Trip to Ecuador

I am by far not an author at all, but I love writing about my trips, so please excuse any grammatical errors. I chose not to use AI, lol. This will also be very informal, so please bear with me.

My family is from Ecuador, and I have the privilege of visiting once a year. This is my favorite country ( not being biased), it is filled with culture, beautiful mountains, villages, a colonial city, and delicious food. I believe Ecuador is very underrated, and I am here to convince you to put it on your travel list!

Typically, the best season to visit Ecuador is from May to October, however, this year I went in March ( the rainy season). Despite the rain, it was absolutely beautiful, and everything was luscious green. Lets begin!

First Stop: Dulles Airport

First stop is Dulles airport to Panama, our airline had mechanical difficulties and we ended up having to stay overnight at the airport ( it was a whole mess, but at least we got meals). I took these shots around 2am wandering around.

My Willitas House

This is my Willitas house where my family and I usually stay at. It feels emptier since she passed away but her memory lives on through the walls of this house. I've fallen inlove with this house and the green yards with overgrown grass.

Goodies

Pictured above is from a bakery at UKO bread bakery, highly recommend their sandwiches and pastries. The second place is Cyril pastry shop in Skala shopping mall, their tiramisu was bomb and everything else looked so good too.

Visiting my Willito

Watching your grandparents get old or anyone in your family is devastating, especially when they have an illness. This was a hard day, but I am happy I could take a picture of him and my mother. The second picture is Lomo Saltado from Hilton Colon in Quito. The saltado was super good, but my mom was as impressed with her dish, so maybe skip on the location unless you're heading for their international buffet! The third picture is one of the many flowers you may see around Quito.

Down Town Quito

We only visited down town quito once so I had to get as many photos as I could, there are more on my Instagram for you to check out! I love colonial quito, its beautiful and the beauty of the buildings are unbeatable. There are many restaurants and cafe shops to choose from. During the day, it is very safe, especially for tourists, but the night time you may want to opt out.

Otavalo

Otavalo is a must-see city in Ecuador. I felt safe here and the views were beautiful. Highly recommend dining at Puerto Lago, it is a short ride from the main city and the food is delicious a long with the river and mountain views. Otavalo is known for their Plaza of Ponchos where many vendors come and sell their beautiful work and hand-made clothing items.

Atahualpa

By far my favorite little town in Ecuador, of course, there are numerous little towns to visit, but Im happy we came across this one. This is Atahualpa, we have a family friend who lives in this beautiful mountainous region. It is filled with waterfalls, fresh air, long drives along the mountain, and lots of cute animals. This place is heavenly, and if you ever get the chance to go horse riding, TAKE IT!! It is an amazing experience, and don't forget to try all the fresh fruit you see while driving by ( and the ice cream).

Food!!

The holy trinity of Ecuadorian food ( in my opinion): Tripa, Fritada, and Espumilla. The Tripa had plataño con queso, which was the most amazing meal I've had this year. The Fritada is from Puerto Lago in Otavalo and the other two places were just a random location on the side of a street. Dont miss out on street food!!

The first food pictured is named Bolon, it is fried plantain that is mashed together with queso and chicharon, and oh my god, is it amazing. It is incredibly filling and huge ( eat it with salsa!!). The second pictured is from Il Matto, by far the best pizza I've had ( crazy, right?), Now I've been to Italy, but this pizza takes it home. It was fluffy, the crust was chewy and perfectly salted, the balsamic was delicious, and the ingredients were fresh. The third picture is from a cute cocktail bar in Cumbaya, the ambience and cocktails were amazing and super affordable. I love getting this meat platter every time I go.

I feel like I've said this for every meal, but I didn't have one bad meal! This ciabatta was made in-house, fluffy and perfectly textured bread with shredded juicy pulled pork with a house-made BBQ sauce, and it was AMAZING. I am a sandwich connoisseur, and this one is at the top of my list! Along with the sandwich, I had a passionfruit coconut cake, which was also delicious and moist. I will say, a lot of places in Ecuador miss with their cakes, but I'm happy to say I found a good slice. The third pictured is, of course, the crepes, you can never go wrong with crepes in Ecuador. You can find crepes anywhere and I am sure they'll be delicious.

Crepes again! I could have these crepes every day. Pictured above is a place in SKALA shopping mall called "Crepes and Waffles" with mora ice cream and house-made chantilly cream. The second picture is one of my favorite desserts and dear to my heart, quimbolitos. Now, NO ONE makes quimbolitos where I am from, so every time I go to Ecuador, I have to fill my body up with as many as I can. A family friend made the third plate, and it was the best fritada I had. The avocado and choclo were picked from their garden, and the pork was juicy and tender. I could eat it everyday!

Other pictures and closing :)

To those that read, thank you very much! I hope it was informative and you were able to add Ecuador onto your list a long with the recommendations I gave. If you have any questions feel free to reach out and ask me for more recs. 2 weeks is too short, i'd recommend atleast a month to be able to fully enjoy the country and eat however much.