Fancy-pants new Commerce Square along Market Street. As I ride past every morning, I see people chatting in here, or watching the big-screen television, which sometimes shows soccer games (reminded me of being in Barcelona for the World Cup!)
Thought this was fitting...the flag of Ecuador, as seen along the Parkway.
My lovely sister in front of the fountain in Franklin Square, Center City, Philadelphia. She'll probably hate me for posting this, but she's gorgeous and lots of fun.
Awesome mask made out of found materials that my friends Tanya, Cj, and I checked out at the Institute of Contemporary Art downtown. Free art exhibits? Yes, please!
Funky photo of Commerce Square, along Market Street. Very tempting on a hot summer day.
A magical time at the MNAC/Magic Fountain!
Festical in Gracia. Everyone decorated the streets in a different theme.
Clearly, this one was candy!
And this one was the jungle!
Gorgeous Gaudi...his arches never cease to amazing me in the amazing Parc Guell.
Heck, I wrote a thesis about it after all.
A view of the city from Parc Guell.
Catalans will always speak their minds. This is one response to the decision to
charge an entry fee for Parc Guell, starting in a few months.
Azulejos, or Catalan tilework. These are on the benches of the
famous snake bench in Parc Guell.
The coastal village of Sitges, a short trip away from Barcelona.
Gotta have Gazpacho (chilled tomato soup)
And Paella (traditional rice dish)
Not a nuclear explosion, but the Magic Fountain, with a nice view of Plaza Espanaya.
The mall in the background was originally a bull-fighting ring.
My new bike.
The giant melon. GIANT.
The view of Ecuador from the airplane. Ooh...aah...
Cool sculpture in the Museum of Modern Art in Cuenca. It's a two-headed piece.
A sculpture of silverware...made out of silverware.
The gardens of the Museum of Modern Art. That's a banana tree. Check out those leaves!
One of the rock faces that make up a larger installation. Awesome eyes!
A typical street corner in Cuenca. Note the beautiful building, the stray dog, and the hard-working man.
One of the many churches in Cuenca. They say there are 365 churches around here, one for every day of the year...we'll see about that.
Translation: "I wanted to give you a paraside full of happiness, but you preferred to fill my life with suffering." Well, that's cheery.
Translation: "Take me...to where you dream."
El Parque de las Madres (Park of the Mothers) People work out on the equipment here in the mornings and evenings. Go, Ecuador!
The zoo in Cuenca is ON a mountain...!
An antelope of some sort, I assume.
A bird of prey!
This warthog is pretty cute, eh?
Cool plant I found at the zoo. Not sure what it is though.
Dogs are all over the place in Cuenca; including chilling at the duck pond at the zoo.
Adult content.
The defeated turtle.
Someone lives next to the zoo.
Check out those feathers!
View of Parque Paraiso
Children playing in the park
Giant rocks become public seating in the park
Bridge across the lake in Parque Paraiso
A trail leading to ... where?
A grandfather taking photos of his grandkids. The little boy was yelling "Abuelito!" ("Little Grandfather!")
The bicycle trail along the river.
A children's soccer team practicing in Parque Paraiso.
The lake with paddleboats in Parque Paraiso.
In the distance, you can see the wooden walkway through the woods!
My lovely housemate, Rachel and me with our very special ensalada de fruta.
Aubree and Matt, two of my awesomely out-of-this-world housemates.
It's amazing what people can do with chocolate. It's the cathedral at Parque Calderon!
A chola cuencana made of chocolate.
A sombrero made of chocolate.
A cuy made of chocolate. Um...
Being at this chocolate exhibit reminded me of Hershey's Chocolate World...minus the interactive ride and talking cows.
An array of colorful and aromatic spices I found at the market. Ah...curry...aji...heaven.
Looking up at El Chorro, a waterfall in Giron, Ecuador.
View of the valley from the waterfall.
No swimming allowed!
El Chorro
The base of El Chorro
Looking down at the base of the waterfall
A sweet view of the waterfall from my hidden spot!
El Chorro
Mountain view
I met this woman in a cathedral. Her name was Rosaria. There's so much depth behind those eyes...
One of the many cathedrals in Cuenca
Free Zumba class in the park!
The plaza in Gualaceo
Another view of the plaza
The Church of Santiago de Gualaceo
Not sure why Jesus is wearing a skirt...some sort of celebration?
Ice cream truck!
The market in Gualaceo
My tortilla de choclo and empanada de queso (half-eaten)
Streetlight in Chordeleg, a nice example of their silver work
Another church, this one in Chordeleg
A view of the beach at Nuro
Another beach view
The house in Nuro (posh!)
This is where we spent most of our time, soaking up the sun
The beach had these really interesting rocks that resembled magma
The view from the house's terrace
A view of the beach in Mancora
The sun getting ready to set in Mancora
The taxis on the Peruvian coast
Prince, the beach dog!
The landscape was a bit surreal...almost a moonscape!
Huge rock formations on the beach
The beach house in Nuro
A fisherman's daily catch of vaious octopi
The stables at the hacienda.
A Christmas shrine at the Feria Libre (market.)
Huge mama horse (she was protecting her baby.)
Lots of dancing at the CEDEI party!
A child dressed as a shepherd for a Christmas reenactment.
The singers (my friend's in here!)
Recycled plastic cup snowman.
Dancers at the Pase del Nino parade.
These crazy guys chased each other down the street, screaming at the tops of their lungs. Good times!
The group huddle.
This parade wasn't about being politically correct; it was "anything goes."
Traditional and indigenous costumes were worn by many.
Traditional dances were also performed.
Some of the costumes were very grand!
More interesting costumes.
And lots of children!
The colorful costumes were fabulous.
The dancing was also really cool.
More children. Children, children, children!
There was no end to the costumes.
These kids were probably really hot in their costumes, under the Equatorial sun.
The preparations for the parade can take all year.
Animals also dress up for the parade, carrying food offerings.
I guess sheep are only allowed to carry candy...
The parade involved thousands of people, and went on forever!
These guys are carrying a pig.
This little guy was lucky he didn't have to walk!
My humble abode in Casa Z. Still a work in progress, but I'm very happy here!
My housemates were busy at work planting! Looks beautiful already.
They also planted a nice herb garden...that's a jacuzzi in the background, although it's not functioning at the mo'.
One of our living rooms.
The spacious kitchen; the heart of our home.
This is a large room that can be used as a dining room. And that's a built-in bar.
The second living room, with funky sofas.
This is the view once you walk through our front door.
Ginger, my walking buddy.
A common sight in Cuenca; washing the laundry in the river.
Two "widows" on New Year's Eve.
I wasn't lying about the men dressing as women. He's rocking those high heels better than I could.
One of the giant structures built for New Year's...this is the Cuenca soccer/futbol team.
A giant dummy, probably to be burned later.
Another dummy, or Año Viejo.
The structures the neighborhoods built were quite impressive! Here's the tram!
Celebrating at the Alcazar
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Fancy "High Tea" food!
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The presentation of Eileen's carrot cake
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Bread...
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Beautiful flower; don't know the name
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More dessert
The girls at High Tea
The inside of the Alcazar
All set for High Tea
The gardens
Fabulous students who gave me a birthday cake!
Why teach? Let them eat cake!
Met this girl, Camila, while hanging out on the curb.
We had fun with the camera.
She was very affectionate.
She was also a photographer.
Penelope and Francesca (birthday gift from my housemate, Eileen.)
Valley view from our bus rest-stop!
The beach in Puerto Lopez
One of the dogs that lived at our hostel.
The trail we took on Isla de la Plata (Poor Man's Galapagos)
A blue-footed boobie...this one's a baby (they are born with white feet)
View from Isla de la Plata
I forget the name of this tree, but its seeds have many medicinal uses.
A BLUE-footed boobie
From a cliff-edge on Isla de la Plata
View of the cliff-edge (the specks are boobies)
Pretty nice view!
The opposite direction
I'm not accustomed to such clear water
Stick insect
Snorkeling off the coast of Isla de la Plata
The port at Puerto Lopez
Our abode at La Mandala
We had to walk through a nice garden to get to our room
This plant looked cool; wish my days at the florist taught me more about plant life!
Entrance to the restaurant at La Mandala
The Mandala has a guestbook complete with art materials! This is guestbook #48!
The dogs like to lounge around...the guests don't seem to mind!
One of the owner's artwork
Kind of Henri Rousseau...this is the owner/artist's wife!
View of the coast from the hostel
Entrance to the Mandala
A fruit juice stand on the coast
Heh heh
More artwork at the Mandala
I liked this series (they have a Save the Whales foundation)
The music room
Wish I knew how to play!
One of the dogs found an iguana
A guest placed him with a potted plant
The dining room of the mercado, where you can get a decent-priced typical Ecuadorian almuerzo (aka potatoes and pork.)
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At the opening for Jaime Lara's (pictured) exposition. Because I hang out with established artists now. :)
The new look.
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