On June 7, a Monday, we fly to Cuenca to see what promised to be an original Spanish town from the days of the conquerors. This would be around the middle of the 16th century. Of course we're speaking here about the old town. Today Cuenca is the third largest city in Ecuador with a population of around 400,000.
We arrived late in the afternoon and after settling in our room we enjoyed a not too light lunch at the hotel where we were booked , the Santa Lucia. A waiter there explained that the hotel was once a house for a Spanish businessman who had a large family. About 160 years ago it was turned into a hotel. Though the exterior of the building is rather plain the interior is notably exquisite with its wood work throughout.
That night we walked into the town plaza to watch the festival of the Corpus Christi. There were booths filled with vendors, really townspeople not commercial businesses, selling candies, sweets, breads, drinks. Later we witnessed the religious procession of the Cuencean clerics including the local bishop presenting the holy monstrance to the gathered people of faith. This was followed by the fireworks.
The plaza is typical of the Spanish plaza, the new Cathedral church, a government building, another church, the old cathedral now a museum and a fourth building but I can't recall what it is.
The next day we departed for the highlands of Cuenca and the southern Andes with Wilson, the guide and Giovanni, the driver. First stop St. Bartholomew, a very small hamlet where we enjoyed some herbal tea at a shop in a house. Wilson explained to us how the owner, a woman, barters her cooking oven for whatever she needs. She grew her vegetables and fruits to supply her family.
From there we saw a guitar maker, an outdoor food market, complete with roasted pig and fresh meats and fruits. Then to the orchid farm, a weaver's, lunch, a town that sells silver reasonably, and finally back to the hotel
That evening we met the parents of one of Maura's Xavier University classmates. The father was originally from outside Cuenca and his wife was from the Hague in Holland. They met while studying French in Paris. They invited us to their home where we enjoyed their hospitality and suggestions for the next day's sightseeing. This was a wonderful experience.
At Angel's suggestion we visited the Inca ruins at the Central Bank in Cuenca. These particular ruins were the administrative buildings of the Incas while they occupied Cuenca for the brief period from about 1480 to the 1537 when the Spanish drove them out. The Kanaries, or indigenous people of Cuenca, were not easily conquered by the Incas.
Later that day we flew back to Quito where Maria met us.
On Thursday ,June 10, we went to Tena. More about that later.
We arrived late in the afternoon and after settling in our room we enjoyed a not too light lunch at the hotel where we were booked , the Santa Lucia. A waiter there explained that the hotel was once a house for a Spanish businessman who had a large family. About 160 years ago it was turned into a hotel. Though the exterior of the building is rather plain the interior is notably exquisite with its wood work throughout.
That night we walked into the town plaza to watch the festival of the Corpus Christi. There were booths filled with vendors, really townspeople not commercial businesses, selling candies, sweets, breads, drinks. Later we witnessed the religious procession of the Cuencean clerics including the local bishop presenting the holy monstrance to the gathered people of faith. This was followed by the fireworks.
The plaza is typical of the Spanish plaza, the new Cathedral church, a government building, another church, the old cathedral now a museum and a fourth building but I can't recall what it is.
The next day we departed for the highlands of Cuenca and the southern Andes with Wilson, the guide and Giovanni, the driver. First stop St. Bartholomew, a very small hamlet where we enjoyed some herbal tea at a shop in a house. Wilson explained to us how the owner, a woman, barters her cooking oven for whatever she needs. She grew her vegetables and fruits to supply her family.
From there we saw a guitar maker, an outdoor food market, complete with roasted pig and fresh meats and fruits. Then to the orchid farm, a weaver's, lunch, a town that sells silver reasonably, and finally back to the hotel
That evening we met the parents of one of Maura's Xavier University classmates. The father was originally from outside Cuenca and his wife was from the Hague in Holland. They met while studying French in Paris. They invited us to their home where we enjoyed their hospitality and suggestions for the next day's sightseeing. This was a wonderful experience.
At Angel's suggestion we visited the Inca ruins at the Central Bank in Cuenca. These particular ruins were the administrative buildings of the Incas while they occupied Cuenca for the brief period from about 1480 to the 1537 when the Spanish drove them out. The Kanaries, or indigenous people of Cuenca, were not easily conquered by the Incas.
Later that day we flew back to Quito where Maria met us.
On Thursday ,June 10, we went to Tena. More about that later.
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