Lunes, 8/2/2016: Biggest mote pata in the world, Work on the autopista, Carnaval activities for Tuesday

Hola, Todos –

Pagina cultural –

The 13th Bienal de Cuenca – no more submissions are being accepted and 149 proposals have been received from national artists. 30 will be selected for visits in March. (I guess to make sure you didn’t send in your nephew’s welding project for shop class.)

During this “feriado” (holiday – your word for the day) – municipal museums will be open from 10-15:00 with a variety of exhibits.

Tallers de artes (art workshops) – in theater, painting, drawing and music will be at the Centro Cultural Sono (Borrero 6-83 y Pres. Córdova) starting 15/2. There will be 2 groups – either MWF or TuThF. Each class is 2 hours. Go to el Sono or call 2850859 for more info.

Presentación de danza – “En un cuarto del corazón” (In one room of the heart) is a dance work by Camila Peña which will be on 27/2 at 19:00 in the Teatro Sucre. Cost: $3.00. (Would you spend more on the taxi getting there and home again?)

Articles about –

Juliana Vega who is participating in “Cuando las otras somos todas. Violencias contra las mujeres, luchas y resilencias” (When the others we are all. Violence against women, struggles and resiliences. Or, When the others are all us?.) with 4 paintings. The show opens in Quito this Wed.
The Teatro Pumapungo got new stage lighting and other improvements. It will renovate the sanitary system in the theater which is 15 years old. (I just hope that whoever designs it is a woman – hopefully, she’d put in enough toilets. All of you ladies know what I’m talking about, right?)
Eduardo Segovia, along with two other Ecuadorian artists, will open a new museum in Germany in Oct. He will bring 20 paintings, which is a new medium for him, and 20 ceramic pieces.

Otras cosas –

Titular – En Carnaval, paladar es el más consentido (In Carnaval, the palate is what is most spoiled/indulged) – The biggest mote pata in the world was made in Ricuarte. (The container looks about the size of the small kid’s pool in the Hosteria Duran in Baños and the stirrers the size of whaling boat oars. I hope it tasted better than it looks – a sludgy yellowish brown liquid with chunks of stuff floating around in it that didn’t look like mote, or pork chunks or sausage.)

Zika – Ecuador and Perú signed an agreement to fight the virus. Ecuador has 39 cases, and Perú 1 – a Venezuelan youth who traveled to Lima.

Work on the autopista – is going slowly. MTOP is hoping to receive money this month and speed up the 42 km woad widening project on the vía Cuenca-Azogues-Biblían.

SOLCA – has added a portable linear accelerator for a new cancer treatment. A patient with breast cancer received the first treatment given in Ecuador. The $2 million instrument is used during surgeries and after the tumor is removed, to direct radiation into the area to impede regrowth of cancer cells. A lead lined operating room is used with medical staff on the outside when the machine is on. (Kind of like when you get dental X-rays – everyone but you leaves the room.)

Carnaval activities for Tue (forget about today unless you want to go to San Fernando – somewhere west of Girón – for a dance with Medardo y sus Players at 20:00.)
Sígsig – a show with Américo (playas Pamar Chacrín) at 14:00 and a popular dance at Playas de Shingate.
Gualaceo – a show at 13:00
Paute – a show with Jazmin y Falconi, Jr. at 14:00
Sayausí – a mishqui and motepate festival at 12:00, and an accordion festival at 13:00.

Intercultural –

Shungumarca – in the General Morales Parish, Cañar canton, is a historic Cañari site. The author’s drive there was through thick fog where he navigated by following other cars’ lights. (He was lucky he didn’t follow the guy with the flashlight who was climbing down the hill.) The name, shungu (corazón -heart) and marka (comarca – region) refers to its history. The Cañaris who helped Huáscar against his brother Atahualpa were massacred by General Rumiñahui who “planted” their hearts to find out “que fruta daban los corazones de los traidores” (what fruit will these traitors’ hearts give). 50-60% of a stone temple was destroyed about 60 years ago when the priest wanted to build a church and the stones were carried to less marshy site. There are no restoration plans. (Unless the current parish wants to restore the temple and carry all those stones back. Then they’d have a tourist attraction.)

Amenidades –

3 designers – won the best typical costume contest for 2016. “Herencia Ancestral Amazónica” by José Luís Ayala was first and Miss Ecuador will wear his costume at the Miss Universe contest. It has a lot of feathers and beads and there´s also a parrot on a branch. (But there’s really not a whole lot of fabric so Miss Ecuador better have nice legs.) The other two designs had Indigenous Wedding and Chronology of the Precolombian Cultures themes and will be worn at two other international events.

Deportes –

The Club A Correr – had its usual Sunday run. It was in Ochoa Leon with 30 runners yesterday, will be in the sector Puertas del Sol this coming week, and at Parque El Paraíso in two weeks. (They had a photo of some of the runners, but I can’t tell if there are any gringos in the mix.)

And that´s all for today so Hasta Mañana –

Jeanne