Cheap and Cheerful

There is a crafts sale going on right now, through April 12, at Parque de la Madre at Federico Malo and 12 de Abril. It’s sponsored by the Otorongo Artisans Association and it’s very much like any street fair.

I wasn’t planning to buy anything until I spied these rings. I had seen similar ones at CEMUART and I had wanted to get some but the stall that sells them has been closed every time I've stopped by.

I was so happy to see them for sale at one of the stands here and I bought a bunch, for myself and as gifts. I l have a soft spot for vintage cocktail rings and these oversized rings have a similar exuberant feel to them. Looove them!

On a School Day

Today was a beautiful day and I was happy to be feeling OK and out and about. I walked by the park on my way to lunch and heard some marching band music. At first I couldn’t tell where it was coming from because I expected a parade and all I could see was the usual assortment of people walking around. Then I realized that the music was coming from a ragtag band of kids who seemed to be moving in a haphazard forward fashion, not exactly with military precision but playing with great vigor!


I wondered what that anarchy was about and I finally saw what looked like a professor leading them. I thought it was great that they were holding their own private parade in what appeared to be no more of an occasion than a music lesson--that’s the kind of teaching I like. There were too many people around to get a clear shot of them marching, so here they are playing in place.


Then walking a little bit more I noticed a toddler crocodile—little kids holding each others' shirttails on their way from the park back to nursery school. Even the normally very serious policemen were smiling at the sight. And look at that head of hair on the little girl in the green top!

Who’s Afraid of the Ponies?

I’ve been laid low by a surprisingly vile stomach virus for the last few days and it hasn’t been fun, not at all. This is was the first time I had doubts about living here, mostly because being sick was the first occasion I had to actually feel how far away I am from a long-established circle of friends and family. I knew that as a single person, without the built-in companionship and support of coupledom, there would be times like these. However, I hadn’t foreseen how being sick would be a particularly troubling one because I tend to be fairly matter-of-fact about being sick. I wasn’t feeling horrible enough to need help but just knowing, that if I did, I could easily call on someone was a mental comfort I really missed having.


I’m on the mend today and looking at shots I had taken of these ponies (used for taking pictures with kids at Parque Calderon) reminded me of how both retro and peculiarly creepy I find them. They remind me of a particular episode of The Twilight Zone (for those who are not familiar with it, it was an American TV horror show from the 1950s). The plot of that episode centered on store mannequins, which would come to life at night. These ponies look to me like they are waiting to do just that. I think I'm still feeling a little light-headed.

It's All About the Candy

Easter celebrations were going on in earnest on Friday, when I heard the unmistakable sounds of a marching band. By the time I got my camera and stepped out on the terrace most of the parade had passed. It was a sea of people, most carrying umbrellas because of the very bright sun. The kids horsing around on the street are wearing scout uniforms-- who knows what else I missed?


Fortunately, the leader, whom I couldn’t see at this point, decided to stop and give a speech and I was able to take a shot of some of the members of the wind section, who were looking very dapper.


I walked to the central plaza on Sunday, hoping to see more celebrations but I guess the weekend was winding down and all I got to see were the people streaming in and out of the main cathedral.


There was definitely an air of festivity around and I was told that eating candy after mass is a huge part of the Ecuadorean Easter tradition. All kinds of sweets were on sale right outside the steps of the cathedral, including candy apples. The candied grapes on a stick were an interesting innovation on the theme.


The most popular sweet appeared to be this frothy sugary concoction (it’s some sort of airy brittle meringue thing)--just looking at it made my teeth ache. It would take a stronger woman than me to brave something this scary.

Bowling at the Fun Center

A cousin and her family took a brief Easter weekend vacation to visit Cuenca. School starts on Monday so it was the last school vacation treat. The kids wanted to go bowling at the Fun Center (Bowling Club!) at Mall del Rio, so off we went.



Besides bowling lanes the Fun Center has a bunch of video games, which people of all ages seemed to be enjoying.


Here's my young niece bowling for the first time. I’d never bowled before either but I had the highest score! I won’t say what the score was, because it was so pitifully low. It’s possible that the frozen margarita I had while I was playing ($3.50) didn’t help my coordination but it was pretty tasty.

There are only a few lanes so we had to put our name down and come back in an hour but that might have been because this is a big holiday weekend. I've never seen the mall parking so full. The cost to play is $2.99 per person on weekends and $1.99 on weekdays plus 70¢ for shoe rental. It WAS fun, as promised by their name. Such a traditionally American past time--who’d have thought that I’d do it for the first time in Cuenca.