Expat Life

We recently returned from a three-week journey in Florida, U.S., traveling almost two-thousand miles around the state, visiting big and small cities, little towns and, of course, beaches. And everywhere was plastic, from plastic bags at every grocery store to plastic-wrapped sandwiches and double-wrapped salads (plastic bowls surrounded by plastic wrap,” to individually-plastic-wrapped plastic utensils...
Text and photos by Doug Hansen You don’t have to be a hard-core bird watcher in order to be mesmerized by the dazzling display of hummingbirds, and various other tropical birds, that swarm to the feeders at one of Ecuador’s special nature preserves, Buenaventura. For me, the occasional brightly colored toucans and turquoise green honeycreepers...
I ended my last column with a quote from Jonathan Livingston Seagull about becoming a finder. What exactly does this mean? It is worth our exploration, as our personal awakening is the most important accomplishment possible as humans. Eckhart Tolle was very clear about this, and it is also the whole point of the teaching...
Editor’s note: One of our favorite things about living in Cuenca is not having to worry about ticks and mosquitos. A few flies, yes, especially when it’s warmer. Enjoy this column from the Washington Post that suggests some nontoxic methods to protect yourself against mosquitoes and ticks. And yes, you can spell mosquitoes with an...
Edie and I were laughing about our constant need to know what’s over the next hill when El Fantasma was almost swallowed by a truck-defying pothole. As we lurched through to the other side, hot coffee was sloshing about the cab and onto my bare legs. I wasn’t exercising on my explicative budget that early...
Editor’s note: I’ve had the honor of being appointed the Country Representative from Ecuador of the International Association of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics (IAAND) of the U.S. I have been networking with nutritionists here in Cuenca, learning more about career education and credentialing requirements, as well as practice opportunities. I look forward to...
Personal transformation is difficult. The way of transformation involves legitimate suffering, and it is the design and purpose of the egoic mind to avoid suffering. The ego brandishes two tools, denial and projection, in order to avoid suffering. In doing so it creates a rigid structure and great unhappiness. Many years ago, early in my...
By Susan Burke March The stevia plant is a perennial that does best in sunny, warm climates with plenty of rain. In the battle of commercial sweeteners, consumers who want to enjoy the taste of sweet without calories and without artificial ingredients have increasingly turned to packaged stevia powders and extracts. Here are some facts...
By Christopher Lux Ecuador is small country with a diverse geography. That geography produces diverse cuisine that corresponds to the regions’ abundant edible resources. While the coast and mountains have their own unique dishes, many  foods are shared by the entire country. One popular meal is the seco. Secos are usually stewed chicken, beef, or...
By Catherine Saint Louis Efforts to improve what children eat should begin before they even learn to walk, a series of nutritional studies published on Tuesday has found. Taken together, the data indicate that infant feeding patterns persist far longer than has been appreciated. “Our early taste preferences, particularly for fruits and vegetables, and on the flip side...
The Journal of Wild Mushrooming is a fascinating resource for all things mushrooms. They say there are 10,000 described species in North American alone, but that may represent only a third to a fifth of what’s really out there! In percentages, 50 percent are inedible, 25 percent edible but tasteless, 20 percent will make you...
Hailing from Louisiana, I’ve weathered many summers with 90-plus straight days of temperatures above 100 and humidity to match. A quick trip outside my home would have sweat droplets as big as buckshot scattered across my forehead and rivulets of the same running down my cheeks. I grew up living on a bayou in Louisiana....

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The Cuenca Dispatch

Week of March 24

“They are pressuring me to resign so they can remove me from office,” denounced Verónica Abad, Vice President of the Republic.

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Ecuador Navigates Economic Challenges with IMF Agreement Looming.

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“Since when does thinking differently mean being a traitor?” Pierina Correa questions in reference to the Tourism Law.

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