River Walk

Dear Family and Friends,

It has been quite cool here in Cuenca for the past couple of weeks.  The skies have been mostly overcast and we have had a lot of rain.

Today, Chuck and I, took a walk on the Tomebamba river before breakfast.

The river is high because of all the rain in the Cajas (mountains west of Cuenca).

Here is a the view looking up river from our bridge.

We crossed the bridge and walked up the other side of the river and returned on our side of the river.  As you can see, it river is lined with Eucalyptus trees.

A nice stone bench for a crowd.  Chuck decided to try it out.

Two new condos.  They appear to be about 75 percent complete.  The owners will have nice unobstructed views of the river.

The condos aren't the only new construction.  This sign says that a habitat for amphibians is being built here.

We saw this dove searching for breakfast.

I took this picture from the other bridge.  It is down river view.

This portion of the walk was serine.  I love the twisty trunked tree on the left.

This tree had been in distress at one time.  Bobwire had been tied around the trunk in several places.  The tree survived and although some of the bark is missing is quite beautiful.

Some tree trunks are host to other plants.

Here is some wild flowers growing in the field across the street from the restaurant where we had breakfast.

We had our well earned breakfast at our new neighborhood restaurant, The Vegetable Bar.  It is located right across from the river.  You can eat inside or on their huge terrace.

We love that it is only a block from our place.

We are hoping to see more sunshine soon, but even without it, it is a beautiful world here in Ecuador.

Love,
Nancy

Sunday in the Park

Dear Family and Friends,

Chuck and I are getting settled back in Cuenca after such a long trip.  At this altitude, it takes me awhile to get up to speed.  We are also getting settled into our new condo.

Sunday we went to the central park (Parque Calderon) in Cuenca because the weather was beautiful and we needed to get some exercise.

I am sharing some pictures I took while we were there.

This is just one section of the park, but you can see the weather was perfect.

I saw this precious little boy petting the stuffed horse.  The stuffed horses are in the park on the weekends.  Photographers use them for making pictures.

Here is a man relaxing as he is making jewelry.

I am pretty sure these ladies are from Canar.  Sundays are a lot of fun because many people come to town.

Our cathedral was as beautiful as ever.  The weather was perfect for taking pictures.

I don't know if you can see it without clicking on the picture to enlarge it, but between the two towers on the cathedral is a statue of a woman and child.

Here is a close up.  The statue is Santa Anna (Mary's mother) and possibly the child may be the virgin Mary.

Like every other Sunday, the people coming out of services from the cathedral are tempted with many sweets.  This meringue confection is very popular here, it is dipped up and served in cones...like ice cream.

A fun way to enjoy the beautiful weather.

Love,
Nancy