Ecuador is about double the size of Pennsylvania, USA, or about half the seize of France, totaling almost 280 thousand sq km. Most countries in South America. For tourism schedules, Ecuador is quite pleasant, because most distances can be done by road within a day's travel. Buses are cheap and for a bit more money you can buy a really luxurious ride. From Quito one can fly to many cities in the country on flights that usually take 30-45 minutes, facilitating efficient and comfortable tourism schedules.
The mainland has three very different regions, being the Eastern and Western lowlands, divided by the Andean highlands. As the earth is a somewhat flattened sphere, it is wider along the Equator, and there the distance to the center of the earth is greater than from the poles. With 6,267 m above sea level, the Chimborazo , is further away from the center of the earth than the Mount Everest. The Andes and the Galapagos archipelago have quite a few very active volcanoes.
You'll find 7 climate zones in Ecuador, with precipitation varying from extremely wet along the Andes slopes to semi arid in the southern coast and temperatures varying from tropical in the lowlands to permanently cold high up in the mountains. The Central Valley of the Andes is particularly comfortable with a permanently spring-like climate.
Indian cultures thrived in Ecuador many centuries before their lands were conquered by the Incas in the late 14 hundreds. Still quite a number of languages are spoken, besides the official Spanish language and the widely spoken Inca language. Ingapirca is the principle archaeological remnant of the Inca period, as all other pre-colonial buildings have been destroyed by the Spanish. Many Indians died during the first years of Spanish rule from diseases brought over from Europe. During the first centuries of colonial rule many were forced into the "encomienda", the forced labor system for the colonial rulers.
In 1563, Quito had become the seat of a royal "audiencia" (administrative district) of Spain and formed part of the Vice-royalty of New Granada in 1717, which included the territories of present day Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. The territory became independent in 1822 under the name of Gran Colombia.
Ecuador separated from the Federation in 1830. Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador had a number of border wars with its neighbors, each time losing more territory, while several areas along the borders were disputed. Permanent borders were agreed in 1999 following a war with Peru in 1995. That conflict had set off a round of peace talks headed by Brazil and aided by Argentina, Chile and the USA. Ecuador has been a democracy for the last 4 decades.
Ecuador's has more than 15 million inhabitants which, until quite recently mostly lived in the central highlands. Over the past few decades however major shifts had taken place and now the people are equally distributed in the highlands and the coastal lowlands. Many people have migrated to urban areas which now make up 60% of the populations, with Guayaquil and Quito being the largest cities with more than two million inhabitants each. But Ecuador's Amazon, the "Oriente" (East) remains lowly populated with no more than 3%.
The Ecuadorian economy is mostly based on petroleum exploitation, manufacturing - primarily for the domestic market - commerce, and agriculture both for domestic consumption and export. Principal exports are oil, bananas, shrimp, flowers, as well as other primary agricultural products. In 2010, crude and refined oil products accounted for 56% of the total export earnings. Ecuador is the world's largest exporter of bananas and plantains (about $2 billion) as well as a major exporter of shrimp ($800 million) and cacao ($400 million). Exports of non-traditional products are flowers ($600 million), canned fish ($600 million), and cars ($375 million).
Over the last twenty years or so, Ecuador has become major tourist destination with highlights the Galapagos Islands, Colonial Quito, the colonial town of Cuenca, Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Cajas National Park, Cotopaxi and the Otavalo Indian market. Cuyabeno has been rapidly building a reputation as the best place in the world to get to know the Amazon jungle.
The mainland has three very different regions, being the Eastern and Western lowlands, divided by the Andean highlands. As the earth is a somewhat flattened sphere, it is wider along the Equator, and there the distance to the center of the earth is greater than from the poles. With 6,267 m above sea level, the Chimborazo , is further away from the center of the earth than the Mount Everest. The Andes and the Galapagos archipelago have quite a few very active volcanoes.
You'll find 7 climate zones in Ecuador, with precipitation varying from extremely wet along the Andes slopes to semi arid in the southern coast and temperatures varying from tropical in the lowlands to permanently cold high up in the mountains. The Central Valley of the Andes is particularly comfortable with a permanently spring-like climate.
Indian cultures thrived in Ecuador many centuries before their lands were conquered by the Incas in the late 14 hundreds. Still quite a number of languages are spoken, besides the official Spanish language and the widely spoken Inca language. Ingapirca is the principle archaeological remnant of the Inca period, as all other pre-colonial buildings have been destroyed by the Spanish. Many Indians died during the first years of Spanish rule from diseases brought over from Europe. During the first centuries of colonial rule many were forced into the "encomienda", the forced labor system for the colonial rulers.
In 1563, Quito had become the seat of a royal "audiencia" (administrative district) of Spain and formed part of the Vice-royalty of New Granada in 1717, which included the territories of present day Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. The territory became independent in 1822 under the name of Gran Colombia.
Ecuador separated from the Federation in 1830. Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador had a number of border wars with its neighbors, each time losing more territory, while several areas along the borders were disputed. Permanent borders were agreed in 1999 following a war with Peru in 1995. That conflict had set off a round of peace talks headed by Brazil and aided by Argentina, Chile and the USA. Ecuador has been a democracy for the last 4 decades.
Ecuador's has more than 15 million inhabitants which, until quite recently mostly lived in the central highlands. Over the past few decades however major shifts had taken place and now the people are equally distributed in the highlands and the coastal lowlands. Many people have migrated to urban areas which now make up 60% of the populations, with Guayaquil and Quito being the largest cities with more than two million inhabitants each. But Ecuador's Amazon, the "Oriente" (East) remains lowly populated with no more than 3%.
The Ecuadorian economy is mostly based on petroleum exploitation, manufacturing - primarily for the domestic market - commerce, and agriculture both for domestic consumption and export. Principal exports are oil, bananas, shrimp, flowers, as well as other primary agricultural products. In 2010, crude and refined oil products accounted for 56% of the total export earnings. Ecuador is the world's largest exporter of bananas and plantains (about $2 billion) as well as a major exporter of shrimp ($800 million) and cacao ($400 million). Exports of non-traditional products are flowers ($600 million), canned fish ($600 million), and cars ($375 million).
Over the last twenty years or so, Ecuador has become major tourist destination with highlights the Galapagos Islands, Colonial Quito, the colonial town of Cuenca, Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Cajas National Park, Cotopaxi and the Otavalo Indian market. Cuyabeno has been rapidly building a reputation as the best place in the world to get to know the Amazon jungle.
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