R. Doug Wicker's Blog, page 133

Fun Photo Friday — Quito Hop-on/Hop-off Favorites 1

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Palms and Streetlights

In this final Ecuador series on Quito we’ve discussed some of the many things to see and do in this city of nearly 2,700,000 people. So, for this week and next I’m going to some images do the talking. Here are some of the many shots taken from our Hop-on/Hop-off tour aboard the red double-deckers of the Quito Tour Bus company. Here are today’s Fun Photo Friday images from that tour:

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Traffic Jam

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The Rooster

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Knights

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El Panecillo above the Street

Filed under: Fun Photo Fri...

Ecuador — Quito, Hop-on/Hop-off Part 2

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Quito Tour Bus sights

In this final Ecuador series on Quito we’ve discussed some of the many things to see and do in this city of nearly 2,700,000 people. So, for this week and next I’m going to some images do the talking. Here are some of the many shots taken from our Hop-on/Hop-off tour aboard the red double-deckers of the Quito Tour Bus company.

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Quito Tour Bus sights

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Quito Tour Bus sights

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Quito Tour Bus sights

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Quito Tour Bus sights

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Quito Tour Bus sights

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Ecuador — Quito, Hop-on/Hop-off Part 1

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Quito Tour Bus sights

In this final Ecuador series on Quito we’ve discussed some of the many things to see and do in this city of nearly 2,700,000 people. So, for the next two weeks I’m going to some images do the talking. Beginning today and for the next five articles after I’ll be presenting some of the many shots taken from our Hop-on/Hop-off tour aboard the red double-deckers of the Quito Tour Bus company. Of course, the favorite photos will be reserved for the next two upcoming Fun Photo...

Fun Photo Friday — El Panecillo Favorites

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Virgin of Quito

Today’s Fun Photo Friday gallery of el Panecillo favorites:

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: Ecuador, El Panecillo, Fun Photo Friday, photography, Quito, R. Doug Wicker, travel, travel photography, vacation, Virgin of Quito

Ecuador — Quito, More of El Panecillo

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Vibrant colors of Quito

The Virgin of Quito statue is winged, which is unusual for depictions of the Madonna until you read the plaque on el Panecillo. It is then that you realize the symbolic nature of the figure. This is the Woman of the Apocalypse. This is the Mary described in Revelations, Chapter 12, and the wings were granted to allow her escape from the attacking dragon (Satan) beneath her feet.

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Virgin of Quito standing on a dragon coiled around a crescent moon atop a globe

Unfortunate...

Ecuador — Quito, El Panecillo and the Virgin of Quito

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Virgin of Quito atop el Panecillo

The day after our tour officially ended and our group disbanded, Ursula and I decided to tour Quito on our own on Quito’s version of the Hop-on/Hop-off bus. The Quito Tour Bus company has a fleet of red double-deckers, as you can see here:

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Quito Tour Bus — Hop-on, Hop-off

One of our stops on tour included el Panecillo (the Little Bread), a 200-meter/660-foot volcanic hill that overlooks central Quito from the southwest. The elevation here is a lofty 3,016 met...

Fun Photo Friday — The Middle of the World

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Indigenous woman

Here are today’s Fun Photo Friday favorites from our visit to the Middle of the World:

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: Ciudad Mitad del Mundo, Fun Photo Friday, Middle of the World City, photography, Quito, R. Doug Wicker, travel, travel photography, vacation

Ecuador — The Middle of the World

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Middle of the World monument

As noted on Monday’s article, the Middle of the World monument located here near Quito is actually about 787 feet/240 meters south of the equator. The French miss-measured just a tad way back in 1736, and the Ecuadorians never got around to correcting them.

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Latitude 000° 00′ 00″ give or take 747 Feet/240 meters

But, it’s close enough for most of us.

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Middle of the World monument

While we were here I got to view a couple of really old automobiles. For those of you y...

Ecuador — A trip to the Middle of the World

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The Middle of the World — off by about 787 feet/240 meters!

As Agent 86 would say, “Missed it by that much.” Today we visit the Middle of the World City (Ciudad Mitad del Mundo). The Middle of the World is about 16 miles/26 kilometers north of downtown Quito, and our group arrived here after lunch and the Changing of the Guard (see last week’s articles).

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Our Ecuador tour group

This site was determined to be at the Equator by a French expedition in 1736, and they missed. The marker in the back...

Fun Photo Friday — Quito Basilica and Cathedral Favorites

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Basílica del Voto Nacional

Hop-On/Hop-Off buses make a great way to tour an unfamiliar city:

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Ursula looking toward the Basílica del Voto Nacional from the Hop-On/Hop-Off

Here are this week’s Fun Photo Friday favorites from Quito’s basilica and cathedral:

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Basílica del Voto Nacional

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Catedral Metropolitana de Quito

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Basílica del Voto Nacional

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Catedral Metropolitana de Quito

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Catedral Metropolitana de Quito

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: Basilica...