Posts:
By Rob Gray In Part 1 of The secret to wellness and weight control, I explored the concept that the human body evolved to eat the foods that grew around them and came to recognize these "Whole Foods" as human foods and assimilate and effectively use them to provide...
It may not seem like it to a younger extrovert but for this older introvert there is a very special flow to life in Cuenca. I am coming out from two or three month long doldrums, due mostly to some health issues, and feeling alive and on top of the world once again....
By Deke Castleman On my very first night in Ecuador in 2010, in Quito at the Casa Sol, a sign in the bathroom initiated me into toilet tissue Ecuador-style. The sign put us on notice that local plumbing has a hard time with paper, so instead of flushing the TP, Casa...
In Celebration of the Story I was pleased to read that the Cuenca Department of Culture has a reading program in 22 libraries in the city's 21 parishes, as reported yesterday in Jeanne's Periodico. I hope this means that books will be in the hands and hearts of young...
By Edd and Cynthia Staton Many expats and tourists are surprised to learn that minutes outside the city of Cuenca in the hillside community of Baños, a first-class spa facility called Piedra de Agua offers visitors a day of relaxation and pampering. You know this is...
In 2015, U.S. expat Cara Venn, who had spent five years in India before moving to Cuenca, organized the first Cuenca Art Walk. The event was a free self-guided tour of selected El Centro galleries and businesses where art lovers were able to view the work of artists....
My first apartment in Cuenca was across the street from the old Patrimonial Cementerio, four blocks east of El Centro. Everyone made the same joke: “At least you have quiet neighbors!” However, I found out that the cemetery was one of the busiest places in town. The...
By Rob Hertzenberg Two weeks ago, I had a truly enjoyable experience. The following is an excerpt of an e-mail I shared with my family in the States and I thought it was worth sharing here. I had my usual vegetable and trout delivery on Monday and since my friends...
By Rob Gray As in Part 1 of this series, this story took place many years ago, but I have no trouble remembering the afternoon I received a call from the school nurse from my daughter's grade school. "Mr. Gray, your daughter is running a fever with a temperature over...
By Liam Higgins If you’re walking down Calle Hermano Miguel, just after it begins at Calle Larga, and you happen to be on the west side of the street, you’ll run into Marea Pizzeria and Bar. Literally. The restaurant blocks the sidewalk, extending right up to the...
To know the road ahead, ask those coming back. — Chinese proverb A healthy balance in reporting expats' real-life accounts is beneficial for readers to gauge the character of a place, with readers being the final judge of the writer's intelligence and honesty....
A Familiar Stranger He simply appears, every few days, in Vilcabamba. He visits us from the Malacatos / Taxichi area, always walking the 10 kilometers, always barefoot, in rolled up pants that are seldom belted. One hand holds a stripped tree branch or two, the other...
By Rob Gray In Part 1 of The secret to wellness and weight control, I presented the concept that the human body evolved to eat the foods that grew around them and came to recognize these "whole foods" as human foods and assimilate and effectively use them. I also...
By Larry Edenfield A friend from California Skyped me Wednesday night after he heard about the 6.7 and 6.9 earthquake aftershocks. “Folks down there must be pretty used to these things by now,” he said, adding that he had lived through the 1994 Northridge earthquake...
I love it when serendipitous events occur, even when they are not pleasant. It reminds me that I can’t control what happens, but I can control my response. When the events are pleasant, however, it just adds to the enjoyment of life. Recently, an Israeli friend,...
April 16th dawned with a severe case of gout in the last joint in each of my right ring and left index fingers. Very swollen, very red, very sensitive, and very painful and it did not calm down in the usual few days. Gout pain affects my whole body and just slows...
By Liam Higgins You almost never hear someone ask, "Hey, what does it cost to live in the USA?" People understand that there are variables. Are you talking about living in lower Manhattan or Arkansas? In a penthouse or house trailer? In a suburban neighborhood in...
Sardines on a bus Last week I bordered the bus from Loja to Vilcabamba during peak hours. It was crowded with weary commuters and students munching chattara. The aisle was free but the seats were jammed. I had a fifty minute ride ahead of me and was nursing a knee...
By Rob Gray OK, OK, I admit it. I'm a snob, a food snob, more specifically, a food ingredient snob. I'm not sure how it happened, but I blame my mother. You see, she grew up on a farm in an age before the use of chemicals, container transportation and warehouses, and...
By Rob Gray The secret to wellness and weight control can be said in just two words that you already know. It is what and how humans have eaten for their entire history save for the last 100 years or so. Like all other animals, the human body evolved to eat the foods...
Week of August 23
Ecuador’s economy grew 2% during the first half of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, according to new Banco Central del Ecuador data.
Cuenca gets a prime view of next week’s deep partial lunar eclipse.
Ecuador’s economy grows 2% in the first half of 2026.
