Cuenca, Ecuador: Perceptions, Misconceptions and a Third Look

During our exploratory visit to Cuenca, we wrote a post about "Preconceptions, Misconceptions and New Viewpoints". In January 2014 we updated our thoughts in this post, "Perceptions, Misconceptions and Living Here". I thought it was time for another review so here is "Perceptions, Misconceptions and a Third Look".

1. Noise, pollution and traffic
   We notice the noise less and less all the time, I guess we have adapted to city life. The sporadic building alarm behind our new apartment bothers us the most (well, it bothers Stu).
   
   The traffic hasn't changed much, we still walk a lot as well as take the bus.
   
   Pollution is worse due to the construction for the Tranvia and our new location close to it. We expect 2015 to be the worst since construction will expand into El Centro.
    
2. Conservative dress
   I now feel quite comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt when going out but I have also added more solid color shirts (not blouses) and a couple pairs of Duluth Trading pants. Stu has done the same. We still wear athletic shoes most of the time although I love my Ariat slip-ons for days when I'm not walking a lot.
   
   We are seeing more and more casual dress in the teens, even shorts, so I anticipate the continuing trend towards this as those teens grow up.
    
3. Bad Coffee
   Very rarely do we get served bad coffee here. We love the coffee in the restaurants and love the dark roast beans we get at a local shop, Nucallacta.
    
4. Weather
   We still love the weather here and in our new apartment with almost wall-to-wall windows, even an overcast day doesn't seem gloomy. But we know the weather isn't for everyone. It can be a bit cool at times and of course the temperature FEELS warmer or cooler at times due to the altitude.
    
5. Stray Dogs
   Not much has changed here although there are several more rescue groups for dogs. Cats aren't seen as much...mostly with expats. We have seen more locals treating dogs as pets rather than an alarm system. We sometimes wonder if these are part of the influx of Ecuadorians returning from the US and Spain.
    
6. Finding our way around
   We're doing much better, the addresses make sense to us now and we can finally pronounce most of the street names. Of course, we still never remember the address of places we see...thank goodness we have friends that do!
    
7. Language Barrier
   This will be a continual learning process. Our two weeks of Spanish class helped and we both plan to keep working from our notes and workbooks (as well as using the online resources). I get compliments on my pronounciation, even when I'm not sure what I'm saying. So I guess that's a good thing.
    
8. Safety/Security
   We really don't worry about this, as we've stated before, we use common sense when we are out and about. Since we are now in an 8 floor building, we have security at the entrance 24/7. We still don't go out a lot in the evenings, but then we didn't do that in the US either.
    
9. Graffiti vs Street Murals
   We continue to see new murals around town and enjoy snapping photos of them. They are constantly changing. The tagging type graffiti continues but it also moves. Some of it has an artisitic quality, others, not so much. Part of city life...sigh.
    
10. Street/Road Condition & Pedestrians (Walking)
    Nothing has changed here, it's still dangerous to be a pedestrian and you have to continually watch where you walk as well as watch the traffic. But we have had several folks motion us to cross in front of their cars and we even had a bus driver do so. We thank them gratefully!

What we love about Ecuador...this list hasn't changed from our first post other than the addition of #10. Oh, and the list is in no particular order, that would be hard to do. There is something for everyone here in Ecuador whether you plan to vacation or retire. Give it a try!

1. The People 
2. The Greenery
3. The Climate 
4. The Fresh Fruits & Vegetables 
5. The Lack of Stress 
6. The Little Shops  & Markets
7. The Artisans 
8. The Family 
9. The Country 
10. The Diversity

Needless to say, we still love living here. This year we plan to take a mini-trip every month, out to a surrounding town or tourist attraction. We will continue to expand our Spanish vocabulary (grammar and tense are at the bottom of our list). We see something new and interesting daily, whether from our apartment window or traveling around town. Life is good! C'mon on down for a visit...

I got it! My custom made sofa slide table!!

A few weeks ago a local business that is about 7 km outside of Cuenca advertised they were opening a shop in town. In the comments I posted a photo of a slide-under sofa table that I wanted. I've had several over the years and they come in so handy.

Imagine my surprise when I got an email letting me know they would have one for me to look at soon. I asked if they could do it in a dark stain and they said sure. The price was right and I anxiously waited for its arrival.

Well, it's here and I absolutely love it! I works as a side table for my side of the sofa as well as a slide-under table. The top even folds down!

Thank you, Sole, for all your help in making this table EXACTLY the way I needed it!

La Yunta
Ave 1 de Mayo 2-73 and Pasaje 1 de Mayo
AND
Panamericana Sur KM7. Sector Zhucay Via a Tarqui, 01-03-072, Cuenca, Ecuador

+593 7-248-5224

Time for a mini-vacation!

I know, our whole life is a vacation to most folks but in reality we still have all the usual things to do: shopping, cooking, cleaning, paying bills, etc. Since our move to Ecuador we have spent a lot of time getting settled - dealing with paperwork, buying furniture and decorations, opening our bank account and more.

So when we read about the February special at Madre Tierra Resort in neighboring Vilcabamba, we immediately booked a room. Three nights, four days that included two one hour full body massages, a bottle of wine to accompany a Filet Mignon dinner, breakfast each morning and round trip transportation from Cuenca to the resort.

We had heard about Vilcabamba and even knew one friend we met last April had moved there. What we didn't know was how far away it was! We packed for warmer weather but also for possible cooler evenings.We grabbed a taxi into El Centro to the location of the van service. We had been advised to be there early as they left promptly at 2:30. There were two other couples when we arrived...by the time the van FINALLY left at 3:45, there were close to 18!!!

We were in a larger van so there were a couple of empty seats. The ride wasn't too bad...if you don't count the speeding in fog where you could barely see the road, slamming on of brakes when a slow moving farm vehicle was encountered and the subsequent fishtailing and hydroplaning. Good thing I keep my eyes closed when in the fog...can't take the feelings of panic when the drivers speed.

We had a brief stop in Loja and I snagged a couple of photos with my old iPhone. It looks to be a bit more modern than Cuenca, maybe a bit newer. VERY big, or at least it appeared that way at night.

But we finally made it to Madre Tierra at NINE pm after leaving our place at 1:30 so needless to say we were hungry. We were welcomed with open arms and quickly seated to enjoy our first dinner, the nightly special of soup, beef stroganoff with carrots and mash potatoes. It was delicious and I couldn't even eat it all! Sissy, the adorable little pup, quickly took care of my leftover beef. We also tried a local draft craft beer, nice and dark but smooth. Needless to say, that wasn't our last mug of that beer! Here are some phone pics I took...again, poorly lit from my old iPhone.

After dinner we walked up the steps with the co-owner, Peter. to our room, Casa #5, where the now VP of Ecuador once stayed. What a gorgeous room! Quaint and comfortable with a wonderful balcony overlooking the city. All the modern conveniences in a quiet, relaxing setting.

The next morning we walked back down those steps, wondering at the views and plants. We had breakfast around 8:30 and met some of the other guests.

We took a walk around the property while I snapped shots of the gorgeous flowers and other buildings.

Back for lunch...more homemade bread and more food than I could eat! Time for some relaxing on our balcony, enjoying the view.

While I watched the butterflies and hummingbirds flit around the huge poinsettia tree outside our front door, Stu decided to try the little citrus fruit on the tree beside our balcony. It looked and smelled like a tangerine, only smaller, but was pretty bitter. Not sure if it was really ripe or not.

We both slept well and woke up ready for our first ever full body massages. Wow!!! What a treat...the spa is breathtakingly gorgeous and very relaxing. Our massage therapist was a jewel and she understood that I needed her to be careful around my sprained ankle and still very bruised knee and shin. Oh, while Stu was having his massage, I did a little writing and was surprised to have a visit from Jiminy Cricket! (Okay, so it was really a little grasshopper but I don't know any cute grasshopper names....)

We rested the afternoon away and finally came down for our steak dinner. Stu picked the wine which we both enjoyed. He had wanted an Ecuadorian wine but settle for one from Chile. Needless to say, cuts of meat here are very different from the US and the beef is all grass fed and usually not aged. Wrapped in bacon, our filets weren't as tender as in the US but were still very good. Sissy was close by, just in case we dropped something. ;)

Because of the issues with the van service, Peter offered alternate transportation that allowed us to stay a little later before checking out. We had breakfast early, then an early lunch while we enjoyed chatting with the friends we had made. We took a taxi to Loja and then a different van service drove us back to Cuenca. We were fortunate to have no fog this time around and we made good time. Home, safe and sound before five pm.

My favorite photo of our stay.....up in the clouds!

So our general impressions? First, we can't say enough GOOD about Madre Tierra and the folks there. The owners, Peter, Gail and Suzanne are all wonderful, going out of their way to make sure you are comfortable and have everything you need.

The cooks and wait staff made sure we were satisfied and FULL, all our meals were delicious and if I had to find one thing to complain about, it would be that there was too much. But that said, they would store and reheat leftovers if asked. Honest!

The grounds are gorgeous and there were gardeners hard at work daily, trying to stay ahead of the growth. The greenhouse with the orchid garden was a little neglected but still beautiful. I took so many photos of flowers, plants, bushes and the buildings - you can see them all in our SmugMug album. (click any photo above to enlarge).

Our room was very comfortable and the balcony was used extensively. I even plugged in my laptop for a bit and worked from there. The shower was HOT and very enjoyable. I only wish my shower here in Cuenca would adjust the temperature that easily. LOL!

We never left the grounds, wanting to completely relax (which we did) for our short visit. Vilcabamba is a small, sleepy town but there are also great places to walk and hike, take horseback rides and more. Next visit we will stay longer and explore more.

Weather? Yes, it was a bit warmer than Cuenca and definitely more humid. It rained both afternoons but only for a short period (be careful on the tile steps when they are wet). It never warmed enough to try the gorgeous waterfall pool nor for shorts (for us although others wore them). It was much more casual dress than we anticipated which will help our next visit.

So yes, we WILL go back but our next mini-vacation will probably be to the coast where we will stay at a friend's B&B just outside Montanita. Time to visit the coast, once the high season is over.