Nothing Much

We really didn't do anything exciting yesterday. The weather was iffy. On and off all day. We ate breakfast at San Sebas, which is the restaurant where we ate the first day. Our waitress remembered us and asked us how everything was going. After a good breakfast/lunch Ryan took Finn and Tali out to the square to look at the pigeons. Ryan and Eric are staying at the Otorongo. They are in their 60's and in fantastic shape. Ryan does yoga and she has that very tall, thin, yoga body. I'm envious. Mark has talked to them more than I have and he says that they are very interesting people.

We walked back to the Otorongo to get Erin and Adriana for a walk, but Adriana was ready for a nap so we headed out without them. We were trying to find a neighborhood that Melissa had told us about. Only she wasn't able to be very specific so we just walked down Doce de Abril trying to find it. No luck. All of the artesian stores were closed as well, so not much doing there. The kids were tired so we took a taxi back to the room. We were feeling kinda mellow, so the kids and I just hung around the apartment and relaxed.

We had planned on taking Chelsea and Brian along with the kids out for dinner to thank them for lunch at their place. One thing we didn't count on was the rain. Oh, and Three Kings. AND it being a Friday night. We were supposed to meet them at 6:45 at Tiestos, which is a really nice restaurant in Cuenca. We couldn't get a taxi to save our lives so we started to hoof it. It isn't far at all, but we forgot the map and got turned around. As we were starting to get near we got a call from Chelsea. They had finally found a taxi, but the driver wouldn't go anywhere near El Centro because of the Three Kings parade. Many of the streets were already closed. They invited us to their place, but there was no way we were going to find a taxi either. We decided to flag it and headed to Magnolia. It started to really pour and we were soaked by the time we got there. Good thing we had our trusty new raincoats. Simon welcomed us with open arms and we were soon settled at Magnolia. We found out that Simon designed and made his own jewelry and he brought out his case to show us. His stuff is very high quality and expensive because it is all made by hand. He had a necklace that was made out of all of these tiny little circles. It was amazing, and it must have taken forever to make.

Today is our last day in Cuenca and we are sad. I have really fallen in love with this city in all of its stinky diesel glory. What I originally thought of as dirty I have come to realize is just very old. In reality this is an immaculate city (barring the graffiti). The Cuencanos take great pride in keeping it clean. Once the light-rail system is up it will be even better. I have also realized that the very old looking outer walls of the city hold little gems within them. As I walk down the street and glance into doorways I am amazed at what I see within the walls. Truly beautiful spaces.

I love the way Cuenca is nestled in a bowl amongst the Andes. I will never get tired of the way the vista changes hourly as you look upon the mountains. I like that when you walk down the street you see something different every day, or you discover some new place tucked away. I love that if the need arises I can always find someone to speak English with. We are really going to miss Cuenca and its people. I am not looking forward to the work that these next six months will entail, but I am looking forward to moving to Cuenca permanently and figuring out where we belong here.