Calderón is a small town on the northern outskirts of Quito, famous throughout Ecuador for its bread dough figurines — a craft tradition that goes back centuries and is still very much alive. The figures are made by hand from a dough of flour, salt, and glue, then painted in vivid colours and varnished so they last indefinitely. You will find them everywhere: nativity scenes, miniature musicians, animals, folkloric characters.
The town itself is pleasant and unpretentious, with an attractive main square and a church worth a look. Most travelers come on a half-day trip from Quito, browse the workshops and souvenir shops, and head back — it is easy to do independently on the public buses. If you have time, wandering off the main strip reveals the quieter residential streets where many of the craftspeople work, and the municipal cemetery on the edge of town is one of the more striking examples of Andean Day-of-the-Dead tradition near Quito.