Off to Guayaquil

We took the morning bus from Cuenca to Guayaquil. The ride was about for hours to this port city. The ride wove throughout the mountains on this rainy day. On several places along the mountain route their were small rock slides on the road. I think this is a frequent event as we saw some yesterday on the ride with Joe. Once we got out of the mountains the vegetation changed dramatically. As we got closer to Guayaquil we past large agricultural farms. Once we reached the bus terminal we took a 20 minute cab into the center of the city. The hotel is great, Palace Hotel. Very much like a Marriott. After we got settled we walked to the park around the corner. There were hundreds of iguanas lounging around. We visited several churches and took a walk to the river side. They had build a very pretty esplanade along the river bank. It has many bronze statues and garden areas. The city is big, hot and fast. Horns honking, people rushing about, small little stores, large buildings and hotels. It has a "New York in the summer" feel to it. We'll stay one more day and then head west to Olon.