Getting lost in the park

Quito is filled with gorgeous parks, one of my favorite parts of the city. While they are dangerous to walk through at night, during the day, you can see people exercising and walking to work. In some of the parks, they hold aerobics classes-which mostly involve stretching and other non strenous movements. Ive heard that on Sundays, the park across the street from my office holds one of the largest aerobics classes, which uses a loudspeaker and takes up at least half the park, or about the size of 1.5 football fields.
One of the routines Ive started here is running in the morning before work. Its a way to see some of the city while enjoying the amazing weather, and time to think. From the hostel I currently am staying at, there is a park about a quarter of a mile away, which is perfect for running in-at least it would be perfect if they werent doing construction on the pathways.
They have put up a green tarp along the outside of the park, making a fence about 6 ft. high. People are still alowed in, as long as they avoid the construction, which isnt difficult. However, what is difficult is being aware of what part of the park you are in, as the paths curve, making it difficult to know which directions you are running in. The first morning I went, I returned without any problems (probably because I was more cautious since I had never been in the park before). When I returned the second morning, I felt more adventerous and did not stay on the same path the entire time, but felt I had a sense of where I was relative to my hostel. However, at the end of my run, I found out I was completely wrong-I had no idea what part of the park I was in. Luckily, its a small park, and by retracing my steps, I was able to find my way back within 15 minutes, but I definitely learnd my lesson.
Im moving today to a friend´s apartment closer to my office. Hopefully the parks near my new place will be easier to navigate, although knowing my directional skills, Im sure I will have problems again.