Loja

Loja, founded in 1548 in a valley at 2,060 metres near the southern border, calls itself the musical and cultural capital of Ecuador on the strength of a conservatory that has produced a large share of the country's composers and of a pasillo tradition still performed in its plazas. Its other claim is botanical: quinine bark from the surrounding forests was exported from here from the seventeenth century, and the region's plant diversity remains exceptional. The centre has restored streets, a mock city gate at the entrance, painted churches and a long park along the Zamora river. Podocarpus national park begins on the city's edge, and Loja is the gateway to Vilcabamba and to the Amazon road east.

History

The Spanish captain Alonso de Mercadillo founded Loja definitively on 8 December 1548 in the Cuxibamba valley, after an earlier site in the Catamayo canyon proved unhealthy, damaged by earthquakes and struck by malaria, and he named it after his birthplace, Loja in Spain. About a century later an earthquake destroyed the town and it was rebuilt on its present site. In colonial times it lay on the royal road between Quito and Cuzco, an administrative centre for the southern highlands near the gold district of Zaruma, and from the late 16th century expeditions to the eastern Andean slopes and the Amazon set out from here. Loja is credited as the first city in Ecuador with electric light: a small hydroelectric plant began working in 1897 and the Loja plant was inaugurated in 1899 as the country's first commercial hydro station. The city marks 18 November 1820 as its declaration of independence (Wikipedia, Loja, Ecuador).

The main sights

• The music conservatory tradition - the city's composers and pasillo.
• The quinine bark history - the trade that carried Loja's name.
• Restored centre and city gate - painted streets and the arch.
• Podocarpus at the city edge - the park beginning on the outskirts.

When to go

Year round; the climate is mild and even. A day. The August and September festivities around the Virgin of El Cisne fill the city.

What to expect

It is a provincial city with modest sights; the appeal is atmosphere and music rather than monuments. Rain comes in most months. The airport at Catamayo has frequent weather cancellations.

Nearby

Vilcabamba is south; Podocarpus park lies east.

Key facts