A Good Friday

Yes, that's what I titled this entry. Deal with it.

Had a solid day here in Quito. Got breakfast at a place nearby this morning then walked around town for a while. Enjoyed some nice pastries from the local panaderia, then found a decent spot to watch the Good Friday procession through town. Was interesting, but not a whole lot of fanfare (or variety for that matter) - the procession featured hundreds and hundreds of people in all purple robes, with hoods, walking through the streets and each group of 30 or so had someone dressed up as Jesus who was carrying a large wooden cross within their group. Each Jesus had to take at least one break while I was watching, as the crosses they each carried were huge. And the purple robes were a bit strange as they looked like KKK uniforms (I'm hesitant to say but they did). There were a couple marching bands sprinkled throughout the procession, but overall it was low-key despite an enormous turnout by the local population.

In addition to the sporadic music today one constant of the afternoon was the sound of street vendors yelling out, trying to sell anything you could think of. I'm talking drinks, snacks, ice cream, cigarettes, candied apples, "Happy Easter" picture frames, rosaries, shoe laces, flip flop bottoms (with no thong attached), hats, small children, etc. Definitely the biggest selection of street goods that I've seen in my travels thus far. The list grew to include umbrellas, ponchos, and other rain gear this evening at the outdoor mass I attended in Plaza San Francisco (it started pouring rain shortly after the start). A versatile sales force here in Ecuador.

Next stop tbd.