Manta, Ecuador

Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011    86 degrees                                          6:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Manta is a mid-sized city in Manabi Province, Ecuador.  It is the second most populous city in the province, the fifth most populous in the country and, economically, the third most important city of Ecuador.  Manta has existed since Pre-Columbian times.  It was a trading port for the Mantas.  The city has 192,322 inhabitants.  Its main economic activity is tuna fishing.  It possesses the largest seaport in Ecuador.

The Murcielago senic boardwalk- craft market in Central park.  Saw tagua carvings – a vegetable that looks like a nut and when carved in jewellery resembles ivory.

It serves as a geographical look-out point for the United States for any war craft heading North from the middle East and Asia.  A regular stop for US Navy warships.