Nomadic Texan

One of the true pleasures of Cuenca, is walking the streets of Old Town. I never get tired of performing this activity and it is a great form of exercise for individuals. Each time I go out I have no plans and just start walking in one direction or another with no agenda. Its amazing […]

    One of the common sights one sees when walking the streets of Cuenca, is the fruit vendors selling their wonderful items from a wheelbarrow. I think the wheelbarrow business would be a good business, as the vendors are set up almost every two or three blocks. Mostly locals purchase these items, but occasionally […]

  One of the more strange things you run into on the streets of Cuenca are toilet paper vendors. They have large baskets and simply walk from store to store or even sell to passers by, if they are in need. Most of the public restrooms are not equipped with toilet paper and I would […]

I have been to Cuenca several times and have always wanted to eat at Don Colon’s restaurant. For one reason or another I have never had the pleasure of dining at this establishment. So when I saw that Don Colon was relocating right off the Parque Calderon I was ecstatic. Construction went on all weekend and they opened Monday.     I couldn’t […]

    One never finds a shortage of desserts in Cuenca and it amazes me that more of the Ecuadorians are not obese, like we find in the US. I guess its a result of all the walking. Every day when I go out and roam the streets of Old Town, I run into (sometimes […]

    There is a handmade craft mercado at the corner of Mariscal Lamar y Benigno Malo, that has various jewelry and one can wonder and view the items for a long time. I happened to go there on Monday night (Labor Day in the US) and looked until it became the same.     […]

Streetwalking in Cuenca is Always Exciting   I ran into this young man helping a store advertise on Saturday. I am continually amazed at how easy the Ecuadorians handle themselves on stilts. His partner was a “Mime” and was on my side of the street. As I approached, he offered a flyer with all the […]

    Although the majority of the Indigenous people who still dress traditionally are women, you run across the occasional male who still dresses according to his culture and geographical area. As I was walking Cuenca this past weekend I spied this gentleman and had to capture his photo. You will notice that he wears […]

    As I strolled along the market place, on the side of the New Cathedral I was enthralled by a beautiful melody coming from a booth down the way. It was very sweet and melodic. As I drew nearer I saw that it was a harp.     This gentleman sets up all over […]

    This lady sits on the corner by my condo I am renting and attempts to sell lottery tickets to the people walking by. I haven’t ever really seen her sell any large quantities and can only really remember seeing a purchase one time. It is sad, but the majority of the Indigenous people […]

  I stopped by the other day to visit friends that run the California Kitchen here in Cuenca. Carol and George Evans are great people and opened this thriving restaurant to help the family out. This time I met daughter Susie and inquired how things were and if they had any serious offers. The family […]

I stepped out of the taxi and immediately knew I had been duped. I showed him the translation, exactly as written in Susan’s email and he dropped me about 12 blocks away. Great. A few minutes later and questions to locals helped me figure out which way I needed to walk. After about 5 minutes, […]

    If you find yourself in Cuenca Ecuador and are ravished for a pizza, I recommend trying La Fornace on President Borrero off Sucre. It is fantastic. Kim instructed me before I left to make sure I did not eat my pizza with my hands, as it is bad manners in Ecuador. One must […]

    As we drove through the countryside and headed home we stopped an a small town about 45 miles outside of Cuenca. I really can’t remember the name of the town, but I was blown away when I walked into the gas station/convenience store. The store was new and had a fast food center […]

    I visited the Casa Ostrica Cacao Plantation this past Wednesday in Santa Rosa Ecuador.and learned all about chocolate and the process by which the chocolate is extracted from the beans. After grinding the beans I was extremely hot and perspiring. They served me a cup of hot chocolate and I immediately cooled off. […]

Heading out of Cuenca early last Wednesday morning, we passed the Feria Libre Market. This is the biggest market in the city and one can wonder for hours, bartering, looking and touching everything from quinoa, rice, fish, pork, to fruits and vegetables. It is a magical place. I could not believe the amount of activity […]

    After the tour of the Banana Plantation we drove thirty minutes to Santa Rosa, Ecuador in the El Oro province. This is where Casa Ostrica is located and where the Cacao Plantation is. I was so thrilled to get involved with Cacao and see what the real story is, as so many people […]

We left Cuenca early Wednesday morning not knowing what to expect or how the day would turn out. We (Mio Tours and I) were exploring a new tour opportunity and I was very anxious to investigate what lay ahead. The only drawback was it was a 3 to 3 1/2 hour trip and if the […]

    The road between Cuenca and Santa Rosa, where we were heading to visit the Cacao Plantation, held many diverse geographical sights and landscapes. After you leave the general Cuenca area you hit a very dry and arid portion of the lower Andes. One of the most dramatic sight was the Hydro-Electric  Minas-San Francisco […]

  One still experiences the Indigenous groups from the Andes while touring Cuenca. Both men and women wear this dress and each area is identified by different colors and hat styles.   It is an explosion of variations that is unique to each of their cultures. I am fascinated by each group’s scheme and can […]