Eating our way through Ecuador

I´m writing from Cuenca, the most beautiful city we´ve been in so far, and the one where we´ve found the most interesting cultural things to do. Cuenca is the third largest city in Ecuador (around 300,000 people), and it is by far the nicest of the big cities we´ve seen. The architecture is colonial. The churches and other buildings are magnificent, the parks are beautiful and well kept up, the museums have been fantastic, and we are staying in a hostal with a really pretty courtyard (the flowers and gardening in this country are just spectacular!).

We arrived on Friday night after a long and uncomfortable bus ride (although the bus HAD a bathroom, which most don´t, the bus conductor guy refused to open it until he personally had to use it!!!) We spent the first night at an unimpressive hostal (the pillows felt like they had been stuffed with ping pong balls), the second at a slightly more impressive one (a unique feature of the room was an ashtry right under a large ¨no smoking¨ sign), and the third night we hit the jackpot with a wonderful place with an indoor/outdoor feel and terrific breakfast.

We spent our first day mostly just walking around Cuenca and getting the lay of the land. We went into the biggest of their cathedral-like churches and spent a short while listening to the loud echoes of the people reciting what I think was mass. The church was ENORMOUS and had lots of really impressive artwork and detail. In all of the Andean cities we´ve been in so far, the churches have been amazing. We stopped at the flower market and in a bunch of the parks, and then we walked along the river, which is just south of the historical district. We tried to go to a few museums, but since it was saturday everything closed early. Saturday night we had our first amazing meal in Ecuador--homemade ravioli at a really pretty Italian restaurant owned by ex-pat Italians (lots and lots of ex-pats in ecuador). We also had wonderful coffee at an Austrian cafe recommended by Emmy (whose recommendations have made the cuenca leg of our trip fabulous!!)

On Sunday we decided to follow our guidebook´s advice and do a circuit of some big markets in the area surrounding Cuenca. It was fascinating peoplewatching (most of the people in this particular market were indigenous ecuadorians, who wear really regal looking outfits/almost uniforms), but the market itself was fairly similar to other markets we´ve seen around here. The most exciting part was that we ate an unknown fruit, which consisted of an enormous (think about a foot long) beanpod like thing that you open up and then you eat this fuzzy stuff surrounding rock-like seeds. It was. . . .interesting. Don´t think we´ll be buying any more of those fruits.

Sunday night we went out for ice cream at the best ice cream restaurant I´ve ever been to. You sit down and waiters dressed almost in tuxedos bring you menus. You then get your ice cream served in those great glass ice cream bowls with the little wafer sticking out the top. It was so much fun, and it made me sad that we don´t have those in the U.S. (or do we? anyone ever been?)

Today we went to two spectacular museums, a modern art museum and a Museum of Indigenous Cultures (basically a history/archeology museum). The modern art museum had beautiful courtyards and a wonderful exhibit of photography of indigenous Ecuadorians. On the way from one museum to the other, we passed the oldest looking barber shop ever.

The archeology museum had the work of 20 different ecuadorian cultures, starting with cultures from at least 5000 B.C.E. My favorite was a series of sculptures of people going through different life phases, including romance, giving birth, breastfeeding and taking care of children.

After all that we were spent, but we had a number of errands to run to get ready for tomorrow, our first trek into nature. We will be spending three days hiking and camping in Cajas National Park, and we had to buy food and obtain a map. Getting a map turned out not to be the easiest task, as they prefer you to get them from the ranger station, where you pay a fee. We are planning on paying the fee on our way out of the park, but going first would involve an extra hour of walking. . . luckily we managed to get one (although not two, that was apparently just over the top). I also managed to obtain a spanish grammar book, which i´ve been wanting. The fact that it was published in 1955 hopefully will not have much affect on my ability to learn from it. . .

Right now we are beat tired and have to go rest for our big trek tomororw, but we uploaded a bunch more pictures, with comments, so click the ¨pictures¨ above and take a look at all the rest.

So, onto Cajas!! We will take lots of pictures and update when we return.

P.S. We have decided to start a free response section on each blog. Today´s is a contest. The winner gets a postcard. In the comments section below, describe your funniest travel story. Even if you don´t think you´ll win, we want to hear it anyway! Then check back to read everyone else´s too! Have fun!

-R