Day 5 in Ecuador!

 Today we did so much! We went on a tour of Quito, starting at the middle of the world. We did a tour of the site near the equator, and while we were there we did a lot of really cool tests to see how the equator is different than the rest of the world. We walked on the equator to test our balance, we did the egg test to see if we could sand an egg straight up, and we tested to see our strength on versus off the equator. Afterwards we took a trip to see the Virgin of Quito who represents a famous religious figure showing a woman with wings stepping on a chained dragon symbolizing her triumph over evil. After we made our way down from the mountain and stopped for lunch where we were all able to try Cuy! Which is Guinea Pig a staple Ecuadorian food, it was their primary indigenous source of protein. Some of us really liked! Then we did a walking city tour around the historical street of the 7 crosses, which was the first world heritage site declared by UNESCO. We were able to tour two of the churches with some very gorgeous architecture featuring a lot of baroque style. We saw the painting of hell, where Ecuadorians would bring their children to teach them about the sins of the Bible. We were able to go up into the towers of one of the churches to see all of Quito close up, it was stunning! After visiting the churches we went for a chocolate tasting at Yumbos chocolate factory, it was such a great and immersive experience! We all were able to buy our favorite bars after the tasting. Ending our day in Quito we went to a traditional artisan handcraft market, where we were able to shop along local venders. When we were done shopping, we drove back to Quito to finish our day at dinner! We learned so much and were able to experience an incredible different culture, we are all so grateful and excited for what’s to come next!!