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| Ruins of Ingapirca |
At the beginning of this month, I had the opportunity to travel to the quaint town of Cuenca. I had heard of this city's beauty and colonial architecture since I first traveled to Ecuador. The city is known as a popular retirement place for Americans and in general for American tourists. It wasn't uncommon to walk through downtown and hear English here and there as well as see some Blondes out of place.
One of the first things I noticed about Cuenca was its tranquility. The people, as opposed to my colorful city of Guayaquil, were placid. When I first arrived, I took an hour and half walking tour through the downtown, past the flowers plaza, into the market, and down onto Calle Larga until we finished at the Incan ruins of Pumapungo. During the tour, we also stopped at the Museo del Sombrero. The museum is also a shop where you can see how workers actually make the straw hats known as Panama hats. Before I left, I was able to buy myself a hat made that very day.
The second day, I went to the Runis of Ingapirca, about a two hour bus ride from Cuenca. The ruins there showed the mixture of indigenous groups that inhabited this area. Before the Incans arrival, the Canaris lived in this area and built their homes near Canar. As I was on the tour, the tour guide pointed out to us the Canaris built their structures with rocks from the river and thus the shape formations were rounder and in circular patterns. The Incans, on the other hand, build their homes with rocks from the mountain and could be seen in their square shapes. One of the best encounters I had on this trip was meeting a couple from Puebla, Mexico. They were extremely kind and we got along really well that we continued the tour to see a rock shaped in the face of an Inca.
The third day, I was able to visit the National Park of Cajas. This beautiful park has over 28,000 hectares of land and 200 glacial lakes. On the hike, which was four hours long, I was able to see some of the most wonderful views Ecuador has to offer.
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| Cuenca town center flooded with colorful flags |
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| Near the market, behind is the New Cathedral |
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| Street Art in Cuenca |
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| National Park of Cajas |
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| Beautiful view from Route 1 |
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