Apr 27, 2013 - Farewell Parties for Carmen, Ed, and Bruce

The visit to Cuenca by my friends from St. Petersburg, Carmen and Ed Greenwell, is just about over. Bruce Stone will also be leaving to return to Hudson FL on Monday. Louis Mangel had a housewarming and going-away party for all today. Louis has moved in to La Casona a beautiful building in the historic district of Cuenca called Casona Grande. This four-story mansion has been owned for about 100 years by the Calderon family. Its period furnishings were a lovely backdrop to an afternoon cocktail gathering. The next day, Sunday the 28th, we...

Apr 25, 2013 - A Day in the Country with Ernest Hemingway

David Blampied once again mesmerized us with his transformation into Ernest Hemingway for his one-man show. This time we enjoyed lunch in the country at Bambu Restaurant in Yunguilla Valley. Afterwards we visited with Don Marsh at his hacienda in La Union. We were less than 2 hours from Cuenca in a much warmer climate in the Valley. I spent a very pleasant day in the country with friends.

Apr 16, 2013 - John Quinones of ABC TV Is In Town

ABC Nightly News was in town to film a segment on life for expats in Cuenca. I had the pleasure of having a drink with John Quinones who not only has his own show called, "What Would You Do?" but also is part of the ABC Nightly News with Diane Sawyer. I hope to catch the show on his Cuenca visit when it airs in about a month. We met at Di Bacco Italian Restaurant on Tuesday night for our usual gringo happy hour but this week was much more interesting than usual. www.dibaccorestaurantcuenca.com

Apr 8, 2013 - Barbara Hood and Richard Zapata Arrive

I met Barbara Hood from Louisville in Cuenca last year when she was here on vacation. This year she has returned with her husband Dick Zapata and her nephew Rob Hood from Arkansas. Rob brought along his daughters Sarabeth and Caroline. The family will rent my downstairs apartment for the next 3 months while they get to know Ecuador.

Apr 3, 2013 - My 66th Birthday Celebrations

April 3rd is a big celebraton for me every year and this year the date was no exception. I turned 66 with many fiestas to mark the occasion. First, we had a cake with candles for me at happy hour at DiBacco Italian Restaurant on Tuesday night. The next day was a luncheon of steak Uruguay-style with five of my friends at El Churrua. Finally, Charlie Schultz hosted a big party for my 66th year on his roof-top deck in the historic centro.

Mar 26, 2013 - Eric Langenderfer Arrives

Eric Langenderfer and Lisa Cornelius came to visit from Denver. They stayed a week but unfortunately spent most of their time shopping for kitchen appliances and window treatments for the condo Eric owns here in Cuenca. While he was here, he found tenants who signed a one-year lease on the condo. Maybe on the next visit he will be able to show Lisa a few more of the sights around Ecuador.

Mar 1, 2013 - Bruce Stone Month

Bruce Stone is an old friend of mine from Gulfport FL. He phoned to say he'd like to come for a visit to explore Ecuador and to have some dental work done while here. Cuenca is becoming a center of medical tourism. Bruce will spend the month getting a couple of crowns and some fillings completed. While he's here we plan to send him off to Montanita, a beach town full of surfers, and to Peru to explore the beach at Mancora which is near the border with Ecuador. I also plan to do some local sightseeing with him and show him my adopted country.

Mar 1, 2013 - Cuenca - the end

Right now I am in Quito with my friend Pierrette whom I met at the new Quito airport last night. We're being picked up by a private van in half an hour to go to the countryside near the Cotopaxi volcano where we're hoping to spend a couple of relaxing days. I'll add some photos to this entry when we get back on Sunday. Below is a summary of my last few days in Cuenca and my feelings about the city. Sunday was an unusually sunny day. I woke up to sun in my window, and by sunset it was still sunny. An entire sunny day, possibly my first, not...

Feb 16, 2013 - Cuenca - Carnaval and my birthday

Hola amigos! Well, week 2 in the apartment is now over. I don't take many pictures anymore. From Sunday to Tuesday (Feb 10-12) Ecuador was celebrating Carnaval, which meant everybody was off work and taking some vacation, travelling to towns with Carnaval celebrations. Trying to avoid crowds (and crowded public transport) I just stayed put in Cuenca. Those three days were a bit odd since shops and most restaurants were closed. It was like having three Sundays in a row! Streets were mostly empty and the whole place was very sedate... except...

Feb 9, 2013 - Cuenca - first week in apartment

Well, I have now been in my apartment for an entire week. This entry will be mostly about my apartment and what's it's like "living" in Cuenca, since I have essentially stopped travelling. I have a corner apartment on the penthouse level of a large building (see photos). The buliding is occupied by a mixtures of apartments, offices, and even a hostel. I'm on the 6th floor, but it's really the 7th because there is a "ground floor" below the first floor (like in Europe). The views from up here are amazing. I have windows in each room...

Feb 8, 2013 - Work of Art in Progress

Besides consulting on decoration and paint colors for 3 rooms in my house, Gillian Holmes did an amazing job of creating a large wall hanging for my dining room. Ably assisted by yours truly, we took time this afternoon to create a work of art with acrylics and spray paint before it was time to go to happy hour. It must be noted that Gillian is responsible for the art work. I just handed her the paints, cleaned the brushes, and observed.

Jan 31, 2013 - Gail Blaber Has A Birthday

Our friend Gail Blaber from Australia is living in Cuenca and teaching English as a second language at CEDEI. I met Gail when I befriended her at an ATM on a Sunday afternoon. She needed help making a withdrawal and of course I have plenty of experience at doing that. I invited her to join me for the afternoon at Inca Bar and in walked the rugby team that Inca sponsors. The next thing I knew, Gail had met Juan Abad and the rest is history. They are, six months later, engaged to be married. Juan invited Linda Chase and me along to celebrate...