American-style restaurant goes to the dogs; Public bike program needs a reboot; Forge a vaxx card, go to jail; Family produces natural products in Gualaceo

Lunes, 17/1/2022

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –

From the Ellos y Ellas Sunday supplement –
Hangry Hippo <I’m not sure if I should put this here or in the advertising section, but it’s an article so it’s here.> – A new restaurant/bar that welcomes both people and perros (dogs) has opened in Cuenca. It is located at Av. De las Américas y José Vinueza. Sales from their menu for dogs go to ARCA and the Fundación “Adopta No Compres.” The owner, Remi Alvarado, was born in the US where he has two restaurants with the same name, but spent part of his childhood in Cuenca. His wife is a graphic designer, and the rest of their family is a German shepherd and a pit bull. <I bet no one will be robbing that restaurant if his family goes to work with him.> Hours are lunes a miércoles from 11-22:00; jueves from 11-23:00; and viernes y sábados from 11-13:00 <or 23:00?>. The Hangry Hippo is an American style restaurant/bar with giant gourmet hamburgers and typical US dishes. <Giant food would truly make it American style.> Two signature dishes are the Hangry Hippo Hamburguesa and the Borracho Hamburguesa.

Titular –

Cuenca vuelve a “rojo”; clases serán virutales (Cuenca returns to “red”; classes will be virutal) – See Monday’s article in CHL for story.

Cuenca –

To attract more riders, Cuenca’s public bicycle rental program needs to expand.

A “bici” pública le hace falta un nuevo impulso (Public “bici” needs a new impetus) – According to the Comisión de Movilidad del Consejo Cantonal, the use of bicycles has quadrupled in Cuenca during the health emergency due to the restrictions on public buses and private cars. However, this has not been the case with the public bicycles. The program started el 5/4/2019 and was suspended in marzo of 2020 because of the pandemic even as the bike rentals were increasing. The program reopened in abril of 2020 with the number of rides varying, but never reaching the high of 5,508 rides in febrero, 2020. In 2021, there were 1,000 rides in typical months, and the Dirección de Movilidad is seeking to increase ridership.

One of the problems is that the 20 stations are concentrated in the Central Historico with the farthest at the U. of Azuay and the Terminal Terrestre. For example, there are no stations on Ordóñez Lasso which has a ciclovía of more than 4 km. Councilman Diego Morales said there should be stations in rural zones. A study anticipated that by 2023 there should be 30 new stations in the canton. <As far out as Molleturo – could you get around that slide on a bike? Fine for the 69 km. trip to Molleturo, not so good for the uphill trip back.> For now, the Dirección de Movilidad has signed an agreement with the U. of Cuenca to promote sustainable transportation and to design and install ciclovías which connect the campuses of the university. There is also an analysis for placing stations along the network of ciclovías the city is building.

Sucesos –

Agradece a quienes lo ayudaron tras sufrie un asalto en el Centro (Thanks to those who helped him after he was assaulted in Centro) – The 88 year old man who was attacked on Luis Cordero and Gran Colombia expressed his thanks to the passersby and store owners who came to his aid after a mugging attempt el pasado miércoles. He has a 75% visual disability and uses a cane. He was followed after he bought a case from a cell phone store and when he went back to the street, the mugger stuck his hand in the victim’s pocket. The 88 year old caught the hand and called for help. People came to his aid, the mugger was delivered to the Policía Nacional and remanded into preventive prison. <That’s what you get for mugging not only an old, but a mostly blind man.>

From El Mercurio del sábado, 15/1/2022-

Prisión de 5 a 7 años por falsificar carnet (5 to 7 years imprisonment for forging a card) – The Prosecutor’s Office announced that falsifying a vaccination card in order to enter businesses, public transport and other services is a crime which can be punished with 5 to 7 years in prison. The office also said that if you know of someone who is using false vaccination cards or false Covid test results, or someone who has falsified these documents, you should report it to the nearest Prosecutor’s Office. The crime is described in article 328 of the Penal Code which sanctions anyone falsifying, destroying, or modifying the effect or sense of public and private documents. <No joke if you get caught and sent to prison. Which gang do you plan to join? If you’re a gringo you might get lucky and get deported instead.>

Region –

Emprenden con recursos naturales (Undertaking with natural resources) – The López Banegas family is part of a group of entrepreneurs who are using natural resources around Gualaceo to make various products for local consumption, and is planning to increase their distribution area. The family runs “Casa Malena” which makes perfumes and other products. These include Yaguar Inti (Sangre del Sol – Blood of the Sun), a liquor made from mishqui (penco – agave); Maracuyazo, a combination of the liquor with maracuyá; miel de mishqui (penco honey); and a special alcohol from the miel de mishqui which is good for treating bone and joint problems. <Enough Yaguar Inti would probably treat a lot of problems, at least until the next morning.> The family also produces essential oils from eucalyptus, lavender, rosemary, orange, lemon, bergamot, camomile, and lemongrass; and antiseptic alcohol with lavender, eucalyptus and rose. They buy the agave and other ingredients from small growers in Gualaceo.

And that’s all for today so hasta ? –

Jeanne