The capital city of Ecuador, and at an elevation of 2,850 metres above sea level, it is the highest official capital city in the world.

Arriving in just two hours after leaving Otavalo, we make our way to our hostel and we are overwhelmed by the size of this city, with a population of 2,671,200 it is the most populous in Ecuador. Our hostel based near the old town south Quito which is the safer area of this said to be dangerous city. We are a stroll away from good food, shops and historical sites, although after searching the whooole city for some canned tomatoes there's not a supermarket to be seen. We walked miles!

There isn't masses to do in Quito so we took it as a place to chill out and stay for a few nights, our hostel was £6 a night and was like a hotel, private room, clean with our own shower with HOT WATER!! :) Paul has also got a bit attached to the bakery up the road so getting him out of Quito could be hard.

Our first stop was on the outskirts of the city at the Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World) monument, which marks the "official" equator dividing the Northern and Southern hemispheres. A replica village has been constructed, complete with restaurants, souvenir stands, and cultural exhibits. It really all did feel like a bit of a tourist trap.

There's a challenge to balance an egg on a nail, which is supposed to be easier to do directly on the equator. They also had some demonstrations to show how our strength is diminished directly on the equator or how it's easier to walk in a straight line with our eyes closed.

Back in the city, we strolled around the historical centre, which is packed with impressive colonial buildings and some dazzling churches. You can also climb the towers.