The Decision
I had a round trip, United Airlines ticket to use before 1/15/15, and it had to be booked by 11/22, so I finally stopped thinking about it and decided I would use it to go to Ecuador.
Now, I am going to Quito, Ecuador on December 4th for a week.
In planning, I was surprised to see the weather forecast - highs only in the mid 60s (F) and lows in the 40s. I was under the impression that Ecuador was closer to the equator and would be much warmer.
On further inspection, I found that Quito is much closer to the equator, at 14 degrees south latitude, while Phoenix is at 33.27 degrees north. And it now being December, the sun being south of the equator, I was more surprised.
Until I saw that Quito is at 9,350’ elevation. I don’t think I’ve ever been that high in my life, so this will be an experiment in altitude for me.
But the main experiment is to find out what it’s like there. I have no real plan. I am flying to the capital city and staying in a B&B, and I plan to interact as much with the local people as my lack of Spanish language will allow me.