Ecuador’s constitution provides for religious freedom. Nonetheless, the country is predominantly Roman Catholic. Twentieth-century missionaries left behind a small Protestant population, and in recent years Mormon and Seventh Day Adventist missionaries have been traveling to the region in ever greater numbers. In many cases, indigenous populations have merely incorporated Catholicism into earlier belief systems; the resulting syncretized religions intertwine the properties of indigenous gods and spirits with those of Catholic saints. Some traditions, however, have weathered the years of colonial rule. Many indígenas in the Andes still worship mountains where mighty spirits (or apus) that control rain and fertility reside, and in some areas shamans (curanderos in Spanish) are called upon to cure the sick.
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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