Cuenca

The mission clinic was closed during the week between Christmas and New Year's, so we took the opportunity to venture out and see the city of Cuenca.  Cuenca is about 7 hours from Guadalupe by bus (we broke up the trip into a couple of days), and is famous for its Spanish Colonial architecture. Like Quito, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site because of all the historic buildings and ruins.  The altitude is about 8,400 feet -- so it is high, and much drier and cooler than Guadalupe.  It really is a beautiful city.

Traditional Spanish colonial architecture 

 The light blue domes of the "New Cathedral" (built in 1800s) that are visible throughout much of the city

The raw brick facade of the New Cathedral.  The bell towers are short because of the design flaw that would have made it impossible for the building to support heavier towers 

Inside the cathedral -- beautiful arches, proportions and light 

Christmas lights over the river 

Flower market  

I love the way this old house is painted

There was a double decker tour bus, and the kids were super excited to get on -- we were not expecting their first double decker bus ride in Ecuador!

View of the city from a lookout point up in the hills

Some old Incan ruins in the center of town

They think this site was used to house Incan soldiers

On New Year's Eve, there is a tradition in all of Ecuador that people make some kind of a doll out of cardboard and paper.  Often the doll is holding a funny sign that talks about what has happened that year.  At midnight everyone burns their dolls in the street, as a way of letting go of the old year and welcoming better luck in the next.  The ladies at the hotel/apartments where we stayed made this doll that was supposed to be a likeness of their boss, Javier.  We burned him at 8pm!

Happy New Year to everyone!