Swing in the Clouds

The swings were installed on the eastern slope so that, when swinging forward, the ground would disappear from the frame: only the person, the sky, and Quito far below would remain. The name “Swing in the Clouds” was invented specifically for this photograph. Behind it lies the story of people who had planned to make money here in a very different way.

In two thousand five, Galo Hidalgo, the manager of the concessionaire company, expected to turn Cruz Loma into a large paid entertainment complex. Private investors put about thirty million dollars into the first phase. They were given ten years to recoup the investment, while the site itself was obtained for twenty-five. The organizers expected forty thousand people a day to come here in the first days.

Twenty-two mechanical rides, movie theaters, restaurants, a concert venue, and an enormous parking lot were supposed to bring in the money. But the calculation did not work out. The complex was divided among several independent operators, the owners changed, and the project never reached its intended scale. TelefériQo's administration now reports about three hundred sixty thousand visitors a year—the number the original forecast promised in nine days.

By November two thousand eighteen, these swings were already standing on the slope. The name of the client or maker has not been preserved in the public record. But what they did is clear: they hung wooden seats from chains, aimed them toward the city, and turned the swing itself into a ready-made shot. One person swings, another takes the picture; that is why a queue forms here. Tourist programs began to single out the swings as a separate stop, and the TelefériQo operator included them on its official list of activities and set a fee of one dollar per person.

Below, an expensive park with dozens of machines had been planned. At an altitude of about four thousand meters, a crossbar with chains became a separate urban landmark: the ground disappears from the photograph for a few seconds, and the swings fulfill the promise written in their name.