Our day started with a huge breakfast at the Radisson Guayaquil. We were not disappointed as we had many excellent breakfasts in various Radisson hotels worldwide. We then took a taxi to a transport depot to get on a minivan to Cuenca which is 3h drive away. We were initially disappointed that our reservations were not honoured and we had to wait another hour for the next van. It was a blessing in disguise as there were not much legroom inside the van and the next van only had 3 passengers including us. In effect, it felt as if we had hired a private van transfer for a really cheap price! The journey took us from the coastal tropical plain at Guayaquil all the way up to Caja National Park at almost 4000m high before decending into Cuenca valley at 2200m. As we started to climb, the cloud and mist started to roll in and for over an hour, the visibility was almost zero! Yet the van was still clicking in at 80-90 kph amoungst the winding mountain road. To add to the drama, drivers in Ecuador had total disregard for single or double solid lines or no passing signs. They would pass wherever and whenever they want, sometimes even at blind turning spots! Sometimes it's better to close your eyes and don't even look! Caja National Park was very scenic but unfortunately, we ran out of time to explore it so it is good that we went through it on our way to Cuenca.
 |
| Breakfast at Radisson Guayaquil |
 |
| Driving to Cuenca in near ZERO visibility! |
Our van driver dropped us off at the depot on the outskirt of town and we had to hail a taxi into the old town where our hotel was located. The taxi driver's face changed color when he heard our destination was the old town. He refused to drive us there but we insisted. Finally, he relented and drove us there in no time. We later found out that due to the installation of new tram service in the old town, traffic had become horrendous and many roads were closed for construction.
Our hotel, Hotel Boutique Los Balcones, is a renovated historic house where famous poet and politicians had stayed before. It is very charming with all the antique decoration. Staff there were super courteous and professional. We were given an excellent room facing the inside courtyard so we were spared from the street noise. The hotel is located only few blocks from the main plaza so it is close to everything. We walked to a public market close by and got many yummy tropical fruits like maracuya (passion fruit), custard apple (chirimoya), giantic avocado, and pitahaya which is similar to dragon fruit but yellow in color and super super sweet! For the rest of the afternoon, we just wandered around town to get our bearings.
 |
| Our hotel (Hotel Boutique Los Balcones) |
 |
| Tropical fruits at the local market |
 |
| Rush hour in Cuenca |
 |
| Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepcion, Cuenca |
 |
| Flower market |
No comments:
Post a Comment