Fri 7/24: Arrived in Cuenca last night, Ecuador’s 3rd-largest city. As one would expect of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it’s pretty – a mix of colonial and other interesting architectural styles. There are even a few art deco buildings, one of my all-time favorite styles. I wonder how Cuenca ended up with all the varied architecture, but Quito and Guayaquil with just a bit of the colonial style? The weather is crazy variable here – sunny and warm one minute, cloudy and chilly the next.
There are a lot of students about, I’m guessing a big university is near. I’ve seen a number of new hospitals as well. There is also a lovely modern art museum set within a pretty old building containing a lovely courtyard. I’m sick of being sick. I want to run around and live the nightlife, instead of blowing my nose every minute and huddling under the covers. I’m thinking about buying a portable DVD player to make the evenings a bit less lonely. I saw one today for $50 and most of the hotel rooms I stay in have a TV I could jack into. I’m not sure whether Peru will be the same, but here in Ecuador you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a shop selling hundreds of pirated DVDs – 3 or more for $1. Cheaper than renting movies in the States!
Sun 7/26: Today I went to three small towns near here to visit their markets and just to have a walk around. The markets were OK, but I have to say that for sheer humanity, nothing so far compares to the ones in Guatemala. First I visited Gualaceo which has a beautiful tranquil river running through it.. people picnicking and flying kites, and an interesting covered wooden bridge. Then I walked a couple of hours (largely uphill!) to Chordeleg, a pre-Incan town now known for it’s artisans selling handcrafted ponchos, ceramics, embroidery, pottery, but most famously for its gold and silver filigree. There are dozens of such shops set around the pleasant central park/square.
Finally, I caught a bus further up into the mountains to the tiny town of Sigsig, most famous as the epicenter for craftspeople making so-called “Panama” hats. The iconic panama hat originates from this area of Ecuador, however it was exported by the Spanish through Panama. Workers on the Panama canal also wore them, further cementing that name in people’s minds. The hats are made from fronds grown near Montecristi and Jipijapa (pronounced “hippy-happa”, what a wonderful name for a town.) The weaving process is numbing, as you can imagine. I don’t know if this is actually true, but lore has it that weavers mostly work at night (under a full moon) so their hands sweat and swell less. The best hats are comprised of thousands of weaves per square inch, and are actually watertight.
Tonight I looked out my window to the sight of fireworks and dozens of beautiful paper lanterns rising slowly into the sky. Must be some commemoration of the city’s founding or something.
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