Who would have thought the coolest thing you may see in Ecuador would be a cemetery? A maze of cypress trees – sculpted into bulbous, pre-Columbian totems, mythological figures, animals and geometric shapes – lines graves and mausoleums ornamented with candles and plastic flowers. Bushes and hedges take shape as they’re trimmed by the son of the original topiary master and another artist. You'll be gobsmacked.
A map of the different topiary figures is available in the tourism office, on-site.