In the past two weeks I’ve had the chance to explore two cities: Quito (capital of Ecuador) and San José (capital of Costa Rica).

Quito

In Quito I spent a night in the old city before heading to the Galapagos Islands. It wasn’t quite what I was expecting as it was the first city to be granted the status of a UNESCO world heritage site but, whilst there are lots of nice, historic buildings, it was not the most easily accessible and everything closed very early in the evening. However, I did have a lovely, traditional dinner in the old Archbishop’s house in the main square with some friends I met in the Amazon.

The following day didn’t get off to a great start as I tried to go to the Panecillo (there is an angel statue on top of the hill) but it turns out it’s a pretty sketchy area and I was chased away by stray dogs! But I did visit El Campanario, which is a lovely chapel completely covered with gold inside. I also tried to go to the Cathedral, but there was a protest in the main square so I couldn’t go in.

Quilotoa

It’s not actually in Quito, but it’s nearby so I’ll count it! On Tuesday I went on a very long bus journey with some friends I met in the Galapagos to visit Quilotoa crater lake. It was very impressive and the water was a myriad of greens and blues. Walking down to the lake was easy, but walking back up out of the crater was a lot harder due to the altitude and heat. But we managed it and have the pictures to prove it!

Cotopaxi

On Wednesday I did a tour to Cotopaxi volcano. I, along with a group of travellers from various countries, was driven to a lovely lodge where we had a good breakfast before making it to Cotopaxi national park. We were driven to about 4000 metres and then hiked to 4864 metres. It was very tough going and sadly there was a lot of cloud so we only got brief glimpses of the volcano, but we made it to the refuge and I found the Irish flag and Union Jack!

On the way down we had the chance to take mountain bikes and had a bumpy ride to a small lagoon in the foothills with a nice view of the volcano. We then went to the same lodge for lunch before coming back to Quito.

Quito again

During my final day in Quito I did a museum trawl, which I hadn’t had the chance to do yet (I’m a massive museum nerd!). In the morning I explored the National Museum of Ecuador to learn about the country’s history from pre-Columbian to conquest to present day, as well as view some interesting artwork. And in the afternoon I hiked a big hill to reach the Capilla Del Hombre. This humanist Chapel was created by the artist Guayasamín as a testament to pain and suffering to remind us all to strive for peace. The impressive, architectural space is filled with his largest pieces of work (although sadly he didn’t get to finish all the pieces he had intended for the space) and a flame which must be always alight. I also had a tour of Guayasamín’s house in which are exhibited his impressive collection of artefacts and paintings as well as his studio. It was a very enjoyable day.

San José

Now I know the way to San José! I arrived on Friday evening to be greeted by my Mama Tica (the mother of the host family I’m staying with). On Saturday morning I did a walking tour of the city and learnt about the interesting history of the city and country. Costa Rica is one of the most peaceful places in South America: they didn’t actually fight for independence and only found out about it a month after Mexico defeated the Spanish army in 1821 (the news reached them from Guatemala that the Central American Republic was free from Spain). And surprisingly there is no national army, a fact of which Costa Ricans are proud. It is common to hear them say ‘Pura Vida’, which can be used to say hello, goodbye, what’s up, etc. It encapsulates the idea of living simply and happily, not stressing or focusing on the negative. It is a way of life for Costa Ricans and is the reason they have been declared one of the happiest nations on Earth!

After the tour I visited the Museum of Pre-Columbian Gold, which was really interesting, houses loads of golden artefacts and has some cool interactive features. However, I bought a ticket that has combined entrance to 3 museums in the belief that it would be cheaper. But, upon entering the National Museum, learned that students can get much cheaper rates and the ticket was more expensive for me. Despite an annoying series of return journeys to try and get my money back, I was unable to, which is frustrating. So, if you’re a student this is a reminder to ALWAYS ask if there is a student discount!

On Sunday the other girl staying with my host family arrived. She is from Norway and is called Sara. We went into the centre again to meet a Belgian girl who is also attending CRLA (Costa Rican Language Academy). Whilst we waited for her we used a hot tip from my tour guide: to tour the National Theatre you have to pay around $7, but if you go to the cafe you can get a nice coffee for $2 and ask to use the toilets, which are inside the theatre. That way you can have a sneaky peak at the beautiful marble staircases, plush, velvet seats, and the uniquely designed stage (but shhh! don’t tell anyone I told you!).

We then were trying to find things to do and ended up at an indie concert in a place called El Sótano (the basement) despite being above ground. The music was a fusion of reggae, rock and cumbia (a dance style from Colombia), which I really enjoyed. I also loved the bathroom which was covered with rebel stickers, slogans and graffiti, plus it housed a giant bathtub and strange tree!

Time to learn

This week I attended lessons at the Costa Rican Language Academy, which I really enjoyed. After a brief oral “exam” on Monday morning I was placed in an advanced class with 2 other students. Our lessons mainly consist of chatting about random things and learning about life in Costa Rica with grammatical points thrown in here and there. We had a very exciting moment on Thursday afternoon when our teacher received a phone call and had to rush off as his wife was having a baby!!

After classes we were able to attend dance classes (in which we learnt Bachata and Salsa!) and I had some meetings to arrange my volunteering project for next week.

More museums

I had another museum day on Friday when Sara and I visited the National Museum. We explored an exhibition on the history of nursing and one about indigenous folklore surrounding animals before embarking on a journey through Costa Rica’s history that was so vast we didn’t have time to get through half the rooms before closing.

Now, I don’t want to speak badly of the city as I’m sure it has lots to offer if you take the time to look, but San José has the reputation of being a stopping place on the way to other parts of the country and I’m inclined to agree. The museums were very good and there are some others, but the city centre is fairly small and my friends and I found it hard to find things to do of an evening. Costa Rica has an amazing array of national parks, beaches, volcanos and cities and whilst the capital is nice to visit for a day or two, I wish I had had more time to see more of the country.

23rd February 2019