After an easy flight, we arrived at our hotel near midnight and noticed when we got there (via a shuttle the hotel provided) that there was an armed guard with a bullet-proof vest at the front door. Huh.
We slept well and had breakfast (included) at the hotel (a Marriott Courtyard in the business district) the next day - it was very good - eggs made to order, fresh fruits, lots of Ecuadorian breakfast items, breads, rolls, cheese, ham, etc... Originally our plan was to spend our "fluff" day taking taxis to the tourist areas and meandering on our own. When we asked the front desk person about getting a taxi, she balked and told us that Guayaquil is not safe, especially for tourists, that we were clearly not Ecuadorian thus would be targeted, and we need to hire a guide. Huh. Being cynical by nature (Suzanne more than Brad), we thought she was just trying to make a commission from obtaining us a guide, but an Ecuadorian man in line with us waiting to check-in, also explained that Guayaquil is a dangerous city and is not safe to be on our own. Huh. So we hired a guide! (While waiting for the guide, we went across the street to the pharmacy to buy some sunscreen - yup - armed guard with bullet-proof vest there as well - and at pretty much every place we went that day there were guards with vests and either a gun or billy-club.)
So this is how we met Guia the Guide and Freddy the Driver. It actually was good that there was a driver, as there is no way we would have been able to get around the city on our own. Honestly, some of the tour stops seemed to be included simply to pad the itinerary, such as the "Giant Monuments"
We then went to the viewpoint of the city called Bellavista. Guayaquil is a sprawling city of 3 million people. There are very few tall buildings as there has been no need to build high as the city simply builds out.
We walked along the Numa Pompilio heritage street....
The Las Peñas Neighborhood......
Eventually making our way to an inner-city garden......
Other places we walked though we did not take pictures:
- Plaza Municipal de Guayaquil - basically their government building area
- Malecón 2000 - shopping/restaurant area along the water
- La Rotunda - an historical monument
- A coffee museum tour which was actually quite interesting - it was part of a coffee shop. The electricity was out, so it was dark.
Guia did a very nice job of educating and touring us; Freddy was a good driver who always had the car - and more importantly the AC - ready. (It was hot and humid!) Honestly, not sure the tour was worth the money, but it was the easiest (and perhaps safest) way to get around and see the sites. Guayaquil is not a nice city - it's dirty, smoggy, uninteresting. Oh, and apparently dangerous. However we wanted that "fluff" day so there it is.
We went back to the hotel, crashed, and had an early dinner in the hotel (it was very good) and got ready for our flight to the Galapagos the next day!
Hello from Ecuador!!
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