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Editor’s note: Michelle’s Foods of The Americas series on squash continues with Part III, a history of mythology associated with squash, and how pumpkin, originating in the Americas, is today internationally loved and adorned. To read Part I, click here, and to read...
By Tom Larsen After three years in Cuenca, Irmgard (Irma) Lafrentz recently returned to her home, friends and family in California’s Silicon Valley. Irma left behind quite a legacy of giving in her short time here, but the final chapter has not yet been written. Irma...
I’ve been touring the countryside photographing villages in the agricultural region that supplies our mercados. It is a wonderful adventure that reminds me that time need not be so accelerated, and that, at least here, moving at a speed dictated by farm animals is all...
By Maureen & Bruce Stewart & Sylvan Hardy In business for only four months, Calvo & Co. on Calle Los Alamos, just west of Av. Las Americas, is setting a new standard for sandwiches in Cuenca and more than a few of its newly won fans claim its signature...
In November of 2018, an outbreak of measles in in the Orthodox Jewish community in the Williamsburg and Borough Park neighborhoods in Brooklyn, New York foretold the beginning of an epidemic. Throughout the remainder of the year health ministers of countries including...
A friend of mine occasionally invites me over to her house for dinner and the ritual is always the same. Shortly after I arrive I am confronted with, “Well, I really want to make a pork roulade with ‘pomme frites’ and roasted vegetables, but I don’t know where to...
One of the reasons many of us fail at weight loss is that we try to use a short-term approach to solve a long-term problem. We secretly believe we can begin a diet, lose weight and then resume all our old bad habits. Weight management is a lifestyle challenge that can...
Hawaii has ‘em and so do California and Florida … but, Ecuador? You bet your bottom dollar! And before I’m headed off at the pass by those seeking to point out equality of the sexes … yes! There are not only Dudes but Surfer Dudettes to boot. It seems not only men and...
On my last morning in Paris, I was slowly infused with sadness while walking across the Champs de Mars toward the Eiffel Tower. At first, I blamed my rum mood on early nostalgia for the end of another journey. Having traveled six of the last twelve months, maybe I was...
By Tom Larsen The fascinating life of Aquiles Jimbo Córdova began in the small town of San Juan de Pózul in Loja Province, twenty kilometers from the border with Perú. Señor Jimbo was interested in writing and literature from a very young age. His parents were...
Tell me about your visit to Vilcabamba What did you notice? The caterpillars; the low-flying sparrow; the sweet-hungry ants; the uproar of mice in the underbrush; the tin music of the cricket’s body; What did you hear? The thrush greeting the morning; a breeze...
Text and photos by John Keeble A volunteer medical center for refugees has opened next to the San Francisco Plaza to help people without the money or knowledge to meet their health needs. Grace, an acronym for Give Refugees A Chance, is treating and advising a growing...
By Paul Amos The Ironman 70.3 Ecuador began in Manta in 2015 and every year since has drawn over 1,200 athletes from all over the world. Despite the 7.8 magnitude earthquake near Manta in April, 2016, the race went on as scheduled. The Ironman Foundation, which...
The Ancient Egyptians are said to have first developed toothpaste made from ashes, eggshells, pumice and water. The Greeks and Romans added crushed bones and oyster shells. And as reported in Huffpost.com, “the very essence of early tooth care was “abrasion,” and it...
By Sylvester Grahame I had lunch with a friend last week at Bento Japanese Lunchbox on Mariscal Sucre. When Michael noticed that Matthew Hart was the chef she remarked, “I wish I could play guitar and cook as well as he can.” I assured her she just might be able to if...
By Deborah DuBoff There are moments that we have as expats in Ecuador when we profoundly realize the abundance that we came from and we are inspired to donate time or money or share the skills and knowledge that we came here with. Johanna and Chris Nervick came to...
It has taken awhile to get back in the saddle and write the next segment of my Conscious Living series. But I have thought quite a bit about this segment, wanting to address more in depth the elements of Conscious Dying. I have mentioned earlier that a key part of...
According to Quora Digest, the southern hemisphere houses 12.2% of the world’s population. I was aware of this prior to moving to Ecuador; it was one of several determining factors that propelled my decision to move here. When I arrived, I quickly learned that the...
By Bob Itami Chimborazo Volcano (‘Taita’ or father by the indigenous people of the area) is the highest mountain in Ecuador at 6268 meters (20,564 feet) and the summit is the furthest point from the center of the earth. Chimborazo is within the Reserva de Producción...
By Ted Kyle Brush your teeth, wash your hands, take a shower. These are all good, healthy ways to clean up. Dietary cleansing and detox rituals? Not so much. So it’s surprising to see the Washington Post making itself a platform to promote a pseudoscience sugar detox...
