Saturday January 5, 2013

Saturday January 5/13  update #333

I was having trouble sleeping so I got up at 4am and started to search for something that had been bothering me.  Paul Wolf said he had found that the river going by our places was the Yanuncay, and not the Tomebamba as I had thought, and he was right.  When the two rivers merge at Parque Paraiso just west of us I was sure that the merged river was the Tomebamba, but it is rightfully the Yanuncay.   Few maps show it at all so it took a lot of searching to figure this out.

I worked on photos until 8am then tried to catch a few winks until 11am when I got back into more photo processing.

We left early for Joe’s because we wanted to arrange a bus for me to get to the airport in Guayaquil and all those firms are near Feria Libre.  I need to catch a plane 11:10pm on the 17th, so that means I have to catch the bus at 5pm for a 3 hour drive and then a 3 hour wait at the airport.   The cost is a whole $12.   I am taking the red-eye to NYC to arrive at 5:55am.

We also checked for the cost of a van when I return at 10:35pm on Feb 3.  That is a different story because it would be a private trip costing $80, which really isn’t bad, but I would rather spend $100 and get an English-speaking driver I know to pick me up properly and drive me right to my door.  There are a few of those we know who would do this.

Joe’s Secret Garden was having its famous Southern Fried Chicken tonight so it was a full house as always.  There had been rumours of some people being upset at having their photos taken every Saturday however none of those were in evidence tonight as everyone was very jovial and cooperative.   I was careful to always ask permission tonight and the people were just wonderful.

Pretty soon I’ll have to start packing for that trip to Canada as the time sure flies by quickly.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Friday January 4, 2013

Friday January 4/13  update #332

Bella cancelled bridge today due to her cold but went downtown to meet Bettye to retrieve her whiteboard for use when she starts the new round of bridge classes later.    She also worked on year-end stuff for taxes, etc. 

I met Paul Wolf at 9am and we caught the #3 west to the end of the line in the Cajas for a little photography escapade.  The day was gray and drizzly a lot of the time but we managed to find some neat people and places to photograph.  I can learn so much from Paul who is a consummate professional.   Watching what he lines up for, and how he composes his shots, and how he decides when it is right to shoot, I learn something almost every shot.   We have different likes for what we want to shoot which is good in a fashion as we are rarely in each other’s way.  We walked about 2 kms further up the Cajas on a pretty steep grade, I don’t remember any downhill sections….. then we came back to the bus terminal and caught the same #3 downtown so we could get a deserved lunch.

The rivers are really high at the moment, almost as high as I have ever seen them near here but we are not in an area in danger of flooding.

Enjoy the pics today which have been enhanced in various ways for your viewing pleasure.   I have cut down the 92 shots to only 32.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Thursday January 3, 2013

Thursday January 3/13  update #331

Bella had arranged for a cat-sitter named Tamera to come and visit our place and get instructions because time will go by very rapidly and we have a few trips planned.  She mentioned to Tamera that I am a photographer and Tamera said she just bought a new camera, a Canon T3i of all things, and my jaw dropped! 

I spent the day on photos again and got on quite a roll, so you will see a few more photos from the Pase Del Nino again.   I hope you don’t tire of these beautiful children because there are a lot more to follow.

Bella has got quite a nasty cold so she had to cancel bridge tomorrow.

Tomorrow I have a little excursion planned…  Stay tuned.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Wednesday January 2, 2013

Wednesday January 2/13  update #330

Our repaired stove arrived at noon today and actually heats up to almost 450F now, happy days are here again!!  It was also under warranty so it didn’t cost us anything.  He said it was a problem with a thermocouple and insulation.   Bella is happy so that makes me happy.

Bella is having a lazy but busy day in spite of not feeling up to par.   She was making beautiful crochet teddy bear examples as she is apparently going to teach a class on making them.   She was so proud of herself yesterday, finding that rosary beads would make great eyes for the bears!!  Then she is taking down Xmas decorations with my help and followed that up with building up bridge boards to teach another accelerated round of classes.  No grass grows under her feet for sure.

I was still feeling a little queasy and dizzy today but worked a lot on photographs and uploads again.  I have a long way to go to even make a dent in the over 800 photos from Xmas Eve but I am determined to make them extra special.  Much of this involves cleaning a lot of backgrounds away and fine tuning the shot itself.  I am not timing myself or anything but most take more than an hour of work.   You will see a few more examples today.

Then I decided to head over to the old neighbourhood and get my haircut for a whole $2.  She does a very decent job, doing much more work than we get in Canada for a clip for $15.    The fresh air did a lot of good for my biliousness.

I think a movie is in order for tonight….

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Tuesday January 1, 2013

Tuesday January 1/13  update #329

We went to Reshma and Rick’s gorgeous penthouse condo for a potluck party New Year’s Day.   I only saw the main floor but fell in love with their views, the layout and the woodwork.   They have an immense view from Turi right over to the Cajas.

Bella actually met a person at Parque Calderon at 9am to pick up a huge carrot cake birthday cake for me and then brought over to Reshma right away.   That evening everyone was raving about the cake, asking me for the recipe, or thanking me for having a birthday today.

There were many friends there and the great food and conversation helped lessen my ongoing hangover.  I am now happy to be back home and about 10 minutes away from crashing for the night.

THANK YOU to everyone for the Happy Birthday wishes.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Monday December 31, 2012

Monday December 31/12  update #328

We waited all day but the stove was not returned as promised.  Now we won’t see it until at least Wednesday for sure.  This is not a problem because we are eating out these next two days anyway.

This year we decided to try Joe’s for New Year’s.   The offering this evening was 20 Tapas dishes served like hors d’oeuvres throughout the night.  Some were tasty, like the champagne jello and the crème brule, but overall this was not my kind of meal, being a meat and potatoes kind of guy.   I was still hungry after.

At 7pm (New Year’s at GMT in London) we toasted the year in and shortly thereafter they burned the effigies in the street with all the ills from 2012.

They sang Happy Birthday for a gal whose birthday was Dec 31, then they sang it for me as well as a Jan 1 baby.

Finding a cab was tricky for the trip home but we shared a taxi home with Regina who lives a little beyond us.  We had to get out near the Monay mall because the road down was blocked off for a street party which was jammed with about 500 people.  We went home and I changed clothes to go back to watch the celebration which included comedy sketches with many guys in drag (a New Year’s tradition here) and then a darn good band called the Rumba Kings (their spelling).   At midnight the sky exploded with fireworks all over the city, another big tradition here.  Next year we will attempt to photograph this spectacle from a nice vantage point.

I wandered the area and noted they had one booth selling food so I had salchipapas, which are French fries with a half of a deep-fried hot dog, for 50c.   They had another small trailer selling liquor and pop which was also doing a brisk business.

I was watching the band from the side when the fellow next to me offered me a shot of Zhumir, a kind or rum liqueur, with an equal shot of lemonade.  That was so nice of them that I went over to the liquor booth and bought that same combination and brought it back to them as a gift.   It cost a whole $4.25!!  anyway we drank up, danced as a group and bought some more.  I don’t know what time I got home exactly, I think it was sometime around 3 or 4 and I was very wobbly, but a good time was had by all.    I haven’t had a hangover in a few years and I am glad it is a relatively mild one.

THANK YOU to everyone for the Happy Birthday wishes.

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/

Sunday December 30, 2012

Sunday December 30/12  update #327

Bella went to Coral for groceries while I waded through more websites ,etc, about cameras.  I never thought it would be such a hassle to just get quotes for a specific package of goods.   The #1 place in New York has sent me 5 incorrect quotes and don’t seem too interested in making a sale…  Future Shop have quoted me about 50% higher than anyone else so far because they have no specials in effect.  Surprisingly I have found some used ones advertised on Kijiji for very good prices….

Next I started working on a few more of my photos from Xmas Eve.  Since Paul Wolf was here to help me, I have learned to be much more critical of my work and processing is much more involved.   I do love the results though so I will show you what I have done over the last 2 days.   At this rate, I’ll need almost 3 years to complete the beautiful works I have in the pipe.

With no stove to cook on we tried a roast chicken place across from Monay Mall.  Ecuadorian roast chicken is indeed tough to beat, but the peripherals are really tasteless and bland at most places, and this was no exception.

Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve and that blog will be exceedingly late so we will take this opportunity to again wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous NewYear!!!

That was today’s excitement.   Hugs to all.   Please see all photos at http://souvenircuenca.blogspot.com/