City plans to relocate informal vendors; Banks warn against using ink-stained currency; Cuenca holidays agenda submissions; Ingapirca restoration complete

Periodico – jueces, 7/9/2023

Hola, Todos –

Since I started sending out posts only 3 times a week (M, W, & F) and picking up news from the off days, I’ve found myself translating on those off days anyway to get a head start for the official posts. So I may as well send out the articles from the off days on the off days (Tu, Th, Sa., & Sun.). This will depend on my energy level and the number of articles in the off day El Mercurio. So let’s see how translating 5-7 days a week goes before I burn out.

Actividades –

Informal vendors crowd the streets and sidewalks near the 9th de Octubre market in Cuenca.

Agenda de actividades (Activities calendar) – The Dirección de Cultura is preparing a schedule of activities for the Independence of Cuenca and the Christmas and New Year holidays that will include events between el 20/10/2023 y 6/1/2024. If you have an artistic or cultural event you want to include in the agenda, submit it on the form at https://bit.ly/ACultural2023.

Estreno de obra de danza (Premiere of a dance performance) – ECOS, a contemporary dance piece by the Compañía de Danza of the U. of Cuenca, will be performed jueves in the Teatro Carlos Cueva Tamariz a las 20:00. The piece will reflect on on freedom and the ability to confront collective canons. Free.

Titular –

Ganarle al campeón, reto tricolor (Beating the champion, tricolor’s challenge) – Ecuador is hoping to beat the current World Champion, Argentina in tonight’s game in Buenos Aires. This is the opening day of the South American qualifiers for the Mundial Canadá, US, México 2026. <I think the problem will not be finding a station that carries the game at 19:00, but finding a station that doesn’t.> And this is as much sports as I’m going to translate.> UPDATE: Ecuador lost a hard-fought match 1-0 when superstar Lionel Messi scored on a free kick in the second period. The Tri-Color faces Uruguay Tuesday afternoon in Quito.

Cuenca –

Campañas de esterilización en Machángara (Sterilization campaigns in Machángara) – The Comisión de Gestión Ambiental (CGA) through the new Hospital Municipal de la Mascota is promoting sterilizations in the hospital as well as in rural zones of Cuenca. This week they will be in Machángara on los 9 & 10/9 in the “Los Capulíes” subdivision from 8:30 – 15:30 with the support of the Fundación ARCA, the U. of Cuenca and other animal welfare groups. For more info, call 4134900, ext. 1650. <And bring your best Spanish to the game. If you have no Spanish, bring your Spanish teacher. If you have neither of the above, well, you know how I feel about that.> The hospital also has consultations and sterilizations and is currently offering 600 appointments. It offers 40 consultations per day. These services will be free until the end of the month.

Repavimentación de vías urbanas (Repaving of urban roads) – Roads in the Totoracocha parish are being repaved so it’s recommended that the driving public take alternate routes to avoid traffic jams. Streets being worked on are inside the area inscribed by Los Andes, González Suárez, Paseo de los Cañaris, y Hurtado de Mendoza.

Los vendedores informales tendrán un espacio fijo (Informal vendors will have a fixed space) – Informal sales have taken over various streets in Cuenca generating disorder and insecurity. According to the Dirección Municipal de Mercados, there are 8,300 informal vendors in the streets, principally around the Feria Libre and Plaza Cívica Nueve de Octubre where the estimate is about 1200 vendors. The current city administration is planning to create a market center on 3 lots on calle Antonio Valdivieso between Mariano Cueva y Vargas Machuca at a cost of $1 million. The process will take 7-8 months and the properties could accomodate 400 & 600 merchants.

Mauricio Zambrano, president of the 240 member ‘Asociación de Comerciantes Ambulantes 9 de Enero’ said they would like to leave the streets for a dignified space since they have disabled and elderly members. He asks that priority for spaces be given to the vendors in organized groups. He said his association asks for members to use uniforms, carry their license, have a garbage can, and treat their clients well. <Do street vendors normally berate their clients?>

Empresarial –

Asobanca alerta sobre los billetes entintados (Asobanca warns against inked banknotes) – The Asociación de Bancos Privados del Ecuador (Asobanca) is warning citizens and businesses not to accept or change stained or inked bills since they are being treated as stolen money. Institutions of the banking system will not take these bills because they are not valid. The Sistema Inteligente Neutralizador de Billetes was implemented by the Banco Central del Euador (BCE) in diciembre, 2021 for the 4,800 ATMs in Ecuador. The mechanism that stains the bills is activated when ATMs or armored trucks are attacked. You can identify these bills because of the violet, green, blue or black ink stains that extend from the edges to the center of the bills. The ink is not toxic, but it is permanent and can’t be removed by any substance or process. <I wouldn’t walk around with ink stains all over your hands even if you got them legitimately. Especially if an ATM was recently robbed.>

Región –

La nueva cara de Ingapirca (The new face of Ingapirca) – Conservation work at the Complejo Arqueológico Ingapirca in Cañar has been completed. It was done with $198,000 from the “Fondo del Embajador para la Preservación del Patrimonio Cultural” from the US Embassy and the Instituto Nacional de Patrimonio Cultural (INPC). The work, which took 2 years and was done in 4 phases, was mainly on the ellipse and canyon of the complex.

Mano de obra comunitaria (Community labor) – About 25 residents of the Ingapirca parish helped the professional teams in all phases of the conservation work on the complex. The collaborators ranged in age from 22 to 60 years, and took advantage of the opportunity to get experience in this type of work.

And that’s all for today so hasta ? –

Jeanne