We had to have our bags out by 4:45 a.m. this morning and departed our hotel in Cuzco at 5:15. Todays journey was a flight from Cuzco, Peru to Quito, Ecuador (with a short stopover in Lima Airport, Peru). Sue and Dan were last in Quito in 2021 when we did our Galapagos Island adventure (this is the 1st time for Deb, Charles, Kim & Becky). This year we will be revisiting many of the same places as we did in 2021 and will be interesting to see how it has changed in 4 years.
Our group waited in the small Priority Pass Lounge at the Cusco airport before once again getting to board early as “over 60’s” senior citizens. It was an uneventful flight and we met Pablo, our Ecuadorian Travel Guide at the airport after clearing customs.
We boarded the bus for hour long ride from the airport to hotel, the NH Collection Royal Quito. We are here for three nights, so we unpacked and then had our 45 minute welcome briefing where Pablo shared some much needed information about the upcoming itinerary.
Dinner was on our own, so after the orientation meeting, Sue, Dan, Charles, Deb, Kim & Becky went to eat at a Mexican place around the corner called Taconazu. It was very good and inexpensive. Less than $15 for both of us, including drinks.
Fun fact: Since 2000, the official currency in Ecuador is the US dollar. And while they use US coins, they also mint their own coins with the same size and value as US. This is done because the US coins do not have numbers on them indicating value, while the local minted ones do. They also heavily use the Susan B Anthony & Sacagawea $1 coins, since we never really used in the U.S., they were shipped abroad.
