Domingo, 4/12/2016: Presidential candidates not connecting with voters, Festival of Lights, Witches of San Roque, Vietnam relations

Hola, Todos –

Pagina cultural –

Upcoming agenda events – (Agenda items are from sábado y domingo.)

Book launch – Poet Esperanza Molina Abril presented “A Soñar” (To Dream), poetry for children, and “Esperanza,” (Hope), a collection of varied poetry on viernes.

Performance – “Maskerade” will celebrate its 20th anniversary with a theater arts performance and a parade of its collection this coming martes at 19:30 in the Seminario San Luis.

Festival de Luces 2016 (Festival of Lights 2016) – The festival is in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary this miércoles at 18:00 in Santo Domingo.

Música – “Cantos y historias de nuestra tierra” (Songs and stories of our land) will be on 8/12 at 20:00 in the theater of the CCE.  A CD will also be presented.

Exposiciones – The Bienal will continue until 5/2/2017.  One of the winning works is in the Parque Arqueológico Pumapungo.

Arte Cubano – “Diáspora Tropical” is a collective show of painting and sculpture in the new gallery, Casa Todos Santos (Calle Larga y Vargas Machuca).

Articles about –

Ópera – “Pasión a Dolores” will premier on 14 & 15/12 in the “capilla” (chapel – your word for the day) of the Museo de Medicina.  The 35 people who worked on this project – technicians, musicians, cast and chorus – were not paid, but will split the box office proceeds.  (Risky, unless you were willing to work for just about free anyway.)  Tickets at “Más Música” (Borrero y Pres. Córdova) and on the nights of the performances. Cost: $5.00.

Art – “Espacio Escénico Callejero” (Street Theater Space) is a program to use public spaces for theater.  Various actors and groups performed in Glorieta at Parque Calderón.   The project is being supported by independent artists (and maybe the Dirección Municipal de Cultura, but it’s a very convoluted sentence.)

“Lengua morlaca” (Local (Cuenca) Language) – This book by Oswaldo Encalada Vásquez, is for “extranjeros” (foreigners), as part of the “Cuencanízate, sé parte de nuestra cultura” (Cuencanize, be part of our culture – and sé is the command form of the verb to be) and will be presented on miércoles, 7/12 at 18:30 in the Corte de Justicia (Sucre y Luis Cordero).  The 220 page book is a collection of words and phrases used and sung locally.  (Cuencanos cantan – Cuencans sing when they talk.)  (If it’s like a short version I picked up last year, too many of you won’t benefit from it.  My booklet is a small dictionary with everything defined in Spanish.  So maybe the extranjeros they’re targeting are other Latin Americans.  But don’t worry about using morlaca until you’ve got a handle on Spanish first.)

Novenas – “Vive la Navidad, novena con la gente” (Vive la Navidad, novena with the people) has been organized for lunes, miércoles and viernes during diciembre. Choruses from Centros de Desarrollo Infantil (Child Development Centers) will perform at 19:00 except on 7/12 when the time will be at 17:30.   The schedule is:
lunes, 5/12 – Chorus of the Childrens’ Orchestra and from the Sol de Talentos and El Arenal Child Development Centers (CDI in Spanish).
miércoles, 7/12 – Choruses from the Totoracocha & 12 de Abril CDI’s.
viernes – 9/12 – Coro (Chorus) Santa Catalina.
12/12 – El Cebollar & 9 de Octubre CDI Choruses
14/12 – “Amigos del Ambiente” y Miraflores
16/12 – Coro del Adulto Mayor (Senior Citizens’ Chorus)
19/12 – El Cóndor, San Blas & 27 de Febrero CDI Choruses
21/12 – Chorus of the Museum of Modern Art and the Guardia Ciudadana Orchestra.

Otras cosas – 

Titular – La discapacidad da fortalezas y valor (Disability gives strengths and value)  There was a parade for the Día Internacional de las Personas con Discapacidad yesterday from the Puente Roto to Parque De La Madre.  (Any reader willing to admit that they couldn’t translate at least the capitalized words?)

Volcán Cayambe – Technicians from the Instituto Geofísico de Ecuador (Geophysical Institute of Ecuador) detected an increase in seismic activity that could trigger a small eruption in the next few months.  It’s also possible the activity will return to its base level in which case an eruption would be very remote.  (Mother Nature is going to do what she’s going to do.)

Elections – The presidential candidates’ messages aren’t connecting with voters according to a poll that used neuromarketing techniques, making a run off vote likely. Cynthia Viteri (PSC) has a high level of connection due to her “estructura físca” (physical structure – she’s pretty) and her gender, but her confrontational style causes a disconnect with voters.  Lenin Moreno (AP), who is disabled, connects when he talks about his experience and social actions in the government, but loses his connection when he talks about what he can do.  Voters ask, “Then why didn’t you do it when you were in office?” (as VP) Guillermo Lasso (CREO-SUMA) loses his connection when he talks about how he’ll fix the economic crisis due to his complicated language.  (Sounds like there’s another level of Spanish even native speakers don’t understand.)  Paco Moncayo (ANC) has not found an issue to make a connection with the voters.  National polls show Moreno with 30% support, Lasso with 18-20%, and Viteri and Moncayo both at 14%. For more on presidential polls, click here.

Vietnam – Ecuador and Vietnam are expanding relations with political talks and eventually opening embassies in Quito and Hanoi.  Trade and investments are on the table as is Ecuador joining Asean (Asociación de Naciones del Sudeste Asiático – Association of Southeast Asian Nations) as a “Socio de Cooperatión.” (I guess since Ecuador isn’t a southeast Asian nation, it couldn’t be a regular member.)

Feria artesanal – The Asociación 8 de Marzo is having an artisan fair on Calle del Artista (calle Sucre) until this martes.  One vendor is selling clothes for the Niño Jesús.  She embroiders on velvet or imported satin with beads, sequins and stones. The dresses sell from $2 to $300 depending on the complexity, size and fabric.

Actualidades – There are articles about –

Calle de Santa Ana – The street (lane?) between the new Cathedral and the San Luis Seminary is being restored.

Andrea Cantos Álava – The singer and her husband left Venezuela, went to Colombia for an adventure and are now in Cuenca where she is a street performer.

Miguel Atre – By profession a Commercial Engineer, he is also a cartoonist and painter, and makes monigotes and masks from sponge, flexible foam or clay.

Myths, beliefs and legends – These include the witches of San Roque.

Sports training – Physical preparation is one of the most important components.

Discuentos y compras –

Movistar – unlimited talk plans from $25/mo. plus IVA with all providers – valid until 15/1 – bonus of triple megas for 3 months – lots of phones.

And that´s all for today so Hasta Mañana –

Jeanne