Cotton candy, Abba and Elderly dancers: Fiestas de Quito!

Today, December 6th, marks the anniversary of the founding of Quito in 1534 by the Spanish conquistador, Sebastián de Benalcázar. It was interesting for me to see that while the country celebrates its independence from Spain every August, the city of Quito celebrates, with equal enthusiasm, the conquering of this city by the Spanish in the 1500s. 
We decided to stay in the city for this long weekend and check out the festivities - and I'm glad we did.
Some highlights:

• A 6-hour long parade along Shyris, one of the main avenues, featuring marching bands, Flamenco dancers, papier-mache giants and an endless number of merchants selling homemade ice-cream, potato chips, and cotton candy (on enormous poles, of course).