Ecuador Roses

We were wonderfully surprised with our accomadations in Quito. Actually, we are in the suburb of Tababela near the airport. Casa D'Campo is a boutique hotel with 4 cabins and 3 rooms in the main house.  They serve breakfast as part of your stay but, for an extra charge, they have prepared two wonderful dinners for us. The house is beautifully decorated and the lawn surrounding the house is neatly manicured. 

Today Henry, our guide, took us to straddle the equator then we toured a rose production center. The growing and selling of roses worldwide is Ecuador's 4th largest income producing business. 55% of Ecuador's roses are sold to the US with Russia and Japan following. 

Our next stop was at Otavala Market. This is an open air market in the town of Otevala that spans 10 blocks one direction and 3 blocks on both sides with a large square in the middle. They sell mostly textiles with art, crafts, jewelry and food. It was crowed with booths and people. 

After a very late lunch at a 300 year-old hacienda we visited the shop of a native who weaves wall hangings, scarfs and sweaters the way it has been done for generations in his family. He worked not only on a loom but on the floor using sticks to seperate the strands of yarn. He has been doing this since he was 10 years old. Very fine work.