Ecuador is primarily a Catholic society and has it's share of large, extravagant cathedrals and churches, especially in the capital cities. Quito has several remarkable churches. The Compania de Jesus is the city's most ornate and is said to have been decorated with more than 7 tons of gold (sounds like a lot and I haven't been able to find a verification of this). Built by the Jesuits in 1605 it took 160 years to complete.
We visited a few churches, but the most memorable was the Basilica del Voto Nacional. Memorable because you can see this church from almost any point in Quito and for an entry fee of $4.00 per person, you can climb and explore almost every corner of the church.
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| Walking over the top of the cathedral. Notice the safety ropes! Yes, safety is important. |
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| A view from the clock tower. |
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| View from the steeple. In the far distance you see the statue of the Virgin Mary with wings. |
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| The last set of stairs up to the steeple viewing platform. |
Traveling around the world, we realize that safety standards are quite different. In some countries I don't think the word safety is even in their vocabulary. But, it does allow us to do a lot and probably see a lot more. This church is one example. The areas that we explored would have been blocked to tourists in most other countries.
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