Cuenca airport opens pet area; Banco del Pacífico has strongest balance sheet; Symphony schedule for May; Shuar film “Nunkui” competes at a film festival

Bored? –
(De El Mercurio del lunes, 27/4) Película shuar “Nunkui” compite en festival de cine (Shuar film “Nunkui” competes at a film festival) – The Ecuadorian film, “Nunkui,” directed by Verenice Benítez, was selected for the Festival Internacional de Cine de Guadalajara, where it is competing for awards such as best Iberoamerican Film for fiction, direction, screenplay, and cinematography. Filmed in the Shuar community of Kuamar in Morona Santiago, the production used residents and an international team. The film was inspired by the myth of the feminine spirit of the earth and fertility, and tells the story of a young Shuar woman who discovers her link to nature and ancestral memory in the midst of tensions such as mining pressure in the cordillera del Cóndor. The film is in Spanish and Chicham Shuar and premiered on el 21/4 in Guadalajara.

Cuenca’s Mariscal La Mar airport opened anexclusive space for pets to rest and relieve themselves called “Pet Relief.” (El Mercurio)

(De El Mercurio del martes, 28/4) Agenda sinfónica para mayo (Symphony schedule for May) – The concert “Juan Luis Guerra Sinfónico” will start the programming promoted by the Dirección de Cultura of the U. of Cuenca and the Fundación Municipal Turismo for Cuenca. The performances will be on los 6, 7, & 8/5 in the Teatro Carlos Cueva Tamariz. This spectacle will have over 130 artists on stage including the U. of Cuenca Symphony Orchestra and Chorus with soloists selected by audition. The concert will fuse popular Latin-American music with the symphonic-choral format. Subsequent concerts will be “Jóvenes Soloistas” (young soloists) on el 15/5, “Pedro y el Lobo” (Peter and the Wolf <a childhood favorite>) on el 1/6, and “Música de Películas” (Movie Music) on los 19 & 20/6. Julio will feature “El Amor Brujo” (Love, the Sorcerer) on los 16 & 17/7. In octubre, “Desplegar” will be performed on el 1/10, and the opera La Bohéme on los 22, 23, & 24/10. Noviembre will see the “Tributo Sinfónico Coral a Fito Páez” on los 26, 27, & 28/11. The season will close with Handel’s El Mesías (The Messiah) on los 18 & 19/12.

(De El Mercurio del martes, 28/4) El tejido de la toquilla tiene una ruta propia (Straw weaving has its own route) – Straw weaving is positioned as a new tourism alternative in Ecuador which invites tourists to see the processs in the communities. The Ministerio de Producción presented a Catálogo de Experiencias Turísticas de Tejido de Paja Toquilla. The route includes Manabí, Santa Elena, Azuay, Cañar, and the Galápagos where you can learn about every stage of production from the cultivation of the fiber to the making of hats and other pieces. In Azuay, cantons such as Gualaceo, Chordeleg, or Sígsig are highlighted, where you can find structured experiences that integrate ancestral knowledge with tourism. One of the objectives is to promote buying directly from the weavers.

(De El Mercurio del martes, 28/4) “Sembrando Territorios” encuentro con ruralidad (“Sowing Territories”: An encounter with rural life) – “Sembrando Territorio” has community, cultural, environmental and productive activities scheduled through octubre. Rural women who form the Red de Mujeres (Women’s Network) presented the schedule of activities which is oriented to make visible, strengthen, and articulate community initiatives in productive, environmental, social, cultural, and tourism areas. Following are the activities:
22/5 – Nulti – a community and cultural meeting focused on sharing knowledge, strengthening organizational processes, and reaffirming local identity.
15/6 – Baños – commemorating the Día del Ambiente (Environment Day) with activities centered on caring for the environment.
20/7 – location to be determined – “Voces rurales frente a la crisis climática: territorio, cultura y sostenibilidad” (Rural Voices in the Face of the Climate Crisis: Territory, Culture, and Sustainability).
15/8 – location to be determined – “Sembrando voces: juventudes rurales en acción” (Sowing Voices: Rural Youth in Action).
14/9 – El Valle – “Sembrando y emprendiendo en Red” (Planting and Entrepreneurship in Network).
12/10 – Sayausí – “Muyu Raymi: intercambio de semillas y saberes” (Muyu Raymi: Seed and Knowledge Exchange).
15/10 – “Mujeres rurales que alimentan el mundo: feria, diálogo y actión por la sostenibilidad” (Rural Women Feeding the World: Fair, Dialogue, and Action for Sustainability) as part of the Día Internacional de las Mujeres Rurales.
Each event seeks to strengthen community ties, promote citizen participation, and raise awareness of the cultural, social, and productive richness of rural parishes. <The seed exchange sounds interesting. My collards should have grown and bolted by then with lots of seeds.>

Curious? –
(De El Mercurio del miércoles, 29/4) El Banco del Pacífico registra sólidos indicadores financieros (Banco del Pacífico reports strong financial results) – <This is for all of you who picked Banco del Pacifico as your bank, and now want to congratulate yourself for your financial acumen and wisdom.> Banco del Pacífico started 2026 with a performance that placed it as the entity with the highest levels of profitability in the Sistema Bancario de Ecuador according to data from the Superintendencia de Bancos. It had an ROE (return on equity) of 21.51%, and a ROA (return on assets) of 2.36%, the highest levels in its segment. The bank reported a strengthening of its capital position with an increase to $1.118 billion in marzo del 2026, up from $907 million in the previous year. The bank issued $1.061 billion in credit during the first quarter, of which 93% was for productive credit. This was an 85% increase relative to the same period in 2025. This consolidated a strategic focus on financing small and medium businesses with the objective of energizing the economy and sustaining the growth of the productive sector. <I guess the bank figured that consumer debt was no vale la pena.>

(De El Mercurio del miércoles, 29/4) – Espacio para mascotas abre el aeropuerto (Airport opens pet area) – The “Mariscal La Mar” airport opened a comfortable and exclusive space for pets to rest and relieve themselves called “Pet Relief.” The 3 meter by 3 meter area is outside under a cover, next to the arrival door for passengers. There is synthetic grass, a drain, a hose with soap to wash your dog, a drinking fountain, a paper dispenser, bags and other supplies for caring for your pet. There are also 3 hooks where you can fasten leashes while your dog is relieving itself. Nearby is a poster with information about pets for adoption. <So when you’re welcoming family to Cuenca, you can bring the member of the family that they are going to greet first. Who cares about seeing grandma – the first hug goes to Slobber.> José Luis Aguilar, executive director of Corpac (Corporación Aeroportuaría de Cuenca) said that this space is a necessity for modern airports. Quito has 3 Pet Relief areas.