Tutorial Hijab Ala Paris

A group of young women in hijab talk animatedly as they await the start of their weekly Islamic class. This is a scene that could easily be from a mosque in London, Cairo, Indonesia or New York. However, this is happening in Quito, the chatter is in Spanish and the ladies are all Ecuadorian.

Here in the heart of an overwhelmingly Catholic South America, an unmarked building in an affluent suburb in the centre of Ecuador's capital city provides a focal point for the country's few thousand Muslims. White walls, geometric designs, sumptuous furnishings and shelves arranged with Islamic literature complete the spacious interior of the Centro Islamico del Ecuador.