Saquisili Indigenous Central Market
Eighty kilometres and two hours south of Quito is Saquisili Indigenous Central Market which runs each Thursday morning. It is an active and colourful local market where the indigenous people of the Cotopaxi villages come to sell their animals, produce and handicrafts. The market is buzz of activity and is not touristy.
Many of the people at Saquisili market still wear traditional clothing typical of the Andes with the quintessential narrow-brimmed hat. It is clearly a great opportunity for the people of the area to catch up on the week’s news.
The animal market is on the outskirts of town and starts at the crack of dawn and is finished by 10:00 am. The Central Market runs throughout the day. It has a large covered area and is divided into food sections.
The journey to Saquisili is a treat in itself as you pass the central part of “The Avenue of Volcanoes”. The “avenue” begins about 100 kilometres north of Quito and continues southwards for 300 kilometres. Some of the principal volcanoes reach heights of five-to-six thousand metres. Incredibly, Ecuador has 36 Holocene (active) volcanoes – The Smithsonian Institute. We were lucky enough to have clear views of Cotopaxi Volcano (5,897 metres above sea level) and its white crown.
