The Centro de Aves (aviary) in the gardens of Pumapungo has lush displays of Andean and Amazonian birds. There are parrots, parakeets, macaws, eagles, and hawks, all birds that play an important role in Cañari and Inca culture. At one point, I was walking past the brightly colored macaws and I heard a loud voice call out ¡Hola! I turned to see one of the macaws looking directly at me. ¡Hola! it cried out again. I stopped to talk for a while and the two of us stood there greeting each other enthusiastically. I tried out a few other phrases, such as Buenos dias and ¿Cómo estas? but the bird kept repeating ¡Hola!