Cuenca Updates: Friday April 27, 2012

Friday Apr 27/12 update

I was awake at 3am and just got up at 4 and got busy cleaning up loose ends.

Bella was off to the dentist for a cleaning then to play bridge today at Bettye’s so I stole Chris and we were off to the spa town of Banos, a western suburb of Cuenca, to check out the sights and the hot springs.

Bella’s dentist appointment did not go as planned. Apparently they sent all their teeth cleaning equipment to the coastal area because of the flooding there (don’t ask us why, it must make sense to someone..), so she got a free examination instead, and a new appointment for next Wednesday.

Chris and I met at Feria Libre and hopped the #27, which I had never ridden before, and we got to admire yet another part of southwest Cuenca that we had never seen and came into Banos from the side at the top of the mountain and got off at their lovely blue church. This church has 7 round domes and is quite pretty. The last time Bella and I were there it was occupied for a funeral so we did not get a chance to look inside. Today the outer doors were open and I managed to get a nice shot of the great interior through a space at the edge of the inner doors. This church is very impressive!

Chris and I then began a very long walk down the hill looking for the spas. A town office suggested the Piedra De Agua was the best one and we found it almost right away. They had the neatest pathway with all sorts of tools embedded in with the rocks, from rakes to power drills. Once we arrived at the upper gate we were then told to go to the restaurant for admission and instructions. We had a quick look around first and Chris commented on the brown colour of the water in the main pool. His remark was overheard by one of the staff so the manager came over to explain that they change the water 3 times a week and they were just in the process of changing the water for the weekend traffic. There was only one Ecuadorian couple and 3 Quebecers in the whole place. Bella had told me she had read that the price was around $5 so we were a trifle shocked to see they wanted $10 to sit in the dirty pool or $30 to include the Spa (steam rooms, mud packs, 2 more pools) and $40 more if you wanted a full massage, etc. It was a nice place but neither of us wanted to pay that kind of money to sit in a dirty pool.

So we continued our descent and found a local food place for lunch. Chris bought lunch and it was quite good, especially with a light Club beer by its side. 2 tables away there was a couple with a young boy in a high chair who was backlit by the bright sun outside so I got some cute silhouettes.

Then we went to the next spa, the Hosteria Duran, which was a really beautiful spot. The 2 pools we saw looked like ordinary chlorinated swimming pools, pale green and blue so maybe their spas were hidden in another building. Their prices were 20% less. This place looked like a little resort with 2 water slides. There were also a lot of hummingbirds cruising the flowers in this area, and that is always a treat.

Then we veered east to try to locate a home we had seen on the Internet for sale, “a touch of the southwest” I think it was, 3 stories, big kitchen, huge yard backing onto a mountainside, with a separate bodega building, for $92,000. I still wanted to check it out, even though we would never buy it, but we never found it.

We did find one of the lawnmowers tethered in a yard and in need of a change of scenery because she had already eaten her circle of food.

I don’t know why I love palm trees so much, maybe it is because they mean retirement and relaxation to those of us from the northern climes. Near their College at the bottom of the mountain they have this avenue lined with palms that is like a magnet to me. Where is my hammock when I need it?

We jumped on the #11 for the return trip and I was shocked that the entrance to Banos was only about 4 blocks from the west end SuperStock and Coral stores. Heck, it was walking distance to our destination of Feria Libre. I knew the trip was short last time on the #11 going out but hadn’t noticed the proximity.

We still had time to kill until 5 pm so we wandered around Feria Libre, then MegaHierro across the street where we picked up a few items. Then Chris wanted to surprise Bettye with a few kitchen items so we walked up to the Sukasa store. We located a $17 oven thermometer that Bella had been hunting for, for months, so we got to surprise her too.

We still had another hour to kill so we stopped in at the BQ Sports Bar on Ordonez Lasso and it was like stepping back home. Other than the Ecuadorian staff you could easily have been in Miami or Calgary. They even had 2 Labatts beer neon signs.

We arrived at Chris’ apartment as close to 5pm as we could so we wouldn’t interrupt the girls’ all-day bridge game. Chris even got to play a couple of hands.

Then Bettye and Chris were taking us out for supper and the girls had made reservations at the California Kitchen for their Filet Mignon special. Oh boy, was that ever a great and welcome meal after the miles of walking, and the dessert and entertainment topped it off nicely.

I didn’t even get through half of my pictures and I collapsed in bed at 9:30. The trouble with that is I woke up at midnight and finally got up at 1am to complete the photos and this blog.

Enjoy the pics. That was today’s excitement. Hugs to all.