Introducing Mystery Class #4 Quito, Ecuador 00.217 S, 78.500 W City of Quito Greetings from Mystery Class #4 This is Mr. Dan Farmer's class from Quito, the capital city of Ecuador! We hope you have learned a lot and enjoyed trying to find this location. Quito has a population of approximately 1.3 million people, and is located about 116 miles from the Pacific coast. Although it is not the largest city in Ecuador (its the second largest), it is the political, administrative, and cultural capital of Ecuador. The city of Quito is situated on the lower slopes of a huge volcano called Guagua Pichincha, in a valley of the Andes Mts. The altitude of Quito is 2850 m (9350 ft) above sea level. Because of this elevation, Quito has a moderate climate even though it is just south of the Equator. We're the Oldest Quito was founded in the 16th century on the ruins of an Inca city, and it is the oldest South American capital. Quito is said to have the best-preserved historic center in Latin America, and is laid out mainly in a rectangle. It has a large central plaza, many quiet parks and flower gardens, and numerous steep, narrow streets. More than any other South American capital, Quito has preserved its colonial atmosphere, with squares, fountains, public buildings, and houses built in the typical Spanish or Moorish style. Most attractive is the main square, Plaza Mayor, with its seventeenth-century cathedral, government palaces, municipal hall, and other buildings. Eruptions of Many Kinds The school for MC #4 is also situated high in the mountains, near the Guagua Pichincha volcano. It's an active volcano and sometimes it erupts ashes all over our city. Sometimes the school is closed because of the volcano. Earlier this year, the school had to close for a different kind of eruption. Ecuador had some political unrest and the president was overthrown. This caused several major changes in life here for a while. Mystery Class #4 is a small class with about 20 students, taught by Mr. Daniel Farmer. Everyone in the class speaks English and Spanish fluently. Some also speak Portuguese. If you visit our city, you also might hear some people speak a language called Quichua. There is beautiful folk music that uses a small guitar made from the shell of an armadillo, it's called a "charango." The music also uses pan flutes and tambors. One fun event here is called ¨Los Toros¨ but some people don't like it because it's violent. The climate here is cool and rainy most of the time because of the altitude, but we are also just a day's drive from a very large rainforest and a day's drive from the ocean. In the mountains here you can find a strange animal called the llama. We hope you enjoyed your search for all the Mystery Classes. Mr. Daniel Farmer's Class Quito, Ecuador Back to Today's Report Copyright 2000 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form