Staying in the shadow of the Sangay impresses us. In the afternoon we reach Riobamba. It’s rainy and foggy again. We learn that it should actually be hot and dry in Ecuador at this time of the year. But the opposite is true. A pity.

Day 4 without a Breakdown

The city has very beautiful downtown streets, but we don’t find any personal connection with them. For us, this city remains without a face. Friendly people approach us in a restaurant – who of course have also been enchanted by Leon; but these people also warn us to be careful in the streets of Riobamba even in daylight. It is dangerous and there are also raids during the day.

Even if nothing happens to us, an uncomfortable feeling remains in the stomach, which takes away the joy of exploring the city. In addition, the weather is cold.

I take the chance to be in a city and buy new headphones again. Sara buys new sunglasses. It won’t be the last, Leon will make sure of that.

The city is at 2791 meters and is not as beautiful as you might think, but there are a few parks downtown that are worth seeing. The biggest attraction comes in the evening of the next day, when it finally clears up a bit and the view of Chimborazo, a volcano 6263 meters high, opens up. It is the highest mountain in Ecuador and the top of the volcano is the point on the earth’s surface furthest from the earth’s core.

When we see the volcano it is not clear to us. It is only very tall and as impressive as it is menacing when seen looming over the city.

Soon we will leave Riobamba and find extraordinary waterfalls that are wearing faces.

Chimborazo’s summit is the farthest point on the Earth’s surface from the Earth’s center, given that it is located along the planet’s equatorial bulge.^[5] This is despite not being the tallest mountain in the Andes or on Earth. Based on the average global sea level, the height of Chimborazo is 6,263 m (20,548 ft), well below the height of Mount Everest (8849 metres). Nevertheless, Chimborazo is the highest mountain in Ecuador and the 39th highest peak in the Andes.

Wikipedia: Chimborazo