Martes, 28/6/2016: More speed radars, Art bienal needs guides, Coopera payouts, Tattoo fair, Airport update, Road restrictions

Hola, Todos –

Pagina cultural –

Upcoming events –

Festival de Artes Escénicas de Género, LGBTI (Gender, LGTBI Scenic Arts Festival) – The festival starts today and runs to Thu. at the Teatro Sucre.  Performances start at 20:00.  Wed. is free.  Thursday, the work starring Juana Guarderas, will cost $5.00.

Exposición fotográfica – A foto show of work by the students of a workshop will be shown Wed. at 19:00 in the vestibule of the Teatro Casa de la Cultura.

Articles about –

“La Churonita” – This book about the Virgen de El Cisne was handwritten and illustrated by the artists Gerardo Machado and José Luis Espinosa.  The book is made of pergamino (lambskin or parchment) and the illustrations are done in pen and ink, oils and gold leaf.  (Sounds Medieval – monks sitting in gloomy halls illuminating texts.)

Bienal – The Bienal is calling for people to act as “mediadores” (mediators – or guides?) for the Bienal.  There will be a course including theory, aesthetics, art and education, mediation, a philosophical base, working with the public and children for 100 applicants, 50 of whom will be selected to work part time in the Bienal venues. The course is open to university students at advanced levels in scenic arts, music, literature or communications with a wide variety of knowledge.  The course runs from 6/9 to 20/10.

A book about Eduardo Solá Franco, one of the best known artists in Ecuador, will be launched on Thu at 19:00 in the Museo de las Conceptas.

OSC – There are now 4 conductors in the running for the Symphony.  The 5th did not submit all of his documents.

Feria del Tatauje (Tattoo Fair) – The fair will continue to Fri at El Prohibido Centro Cultural on calle La Condomine with hours from 9-21:00.  Eduardo Moscoso, El Prohibido’s director talked about the cultural origins of tattoos including the sacred, ceremonial and ancestral cultures such as the Huaoranis.  (So they’re not just for the Angels and sailors.)

Otras cosas –  
 
Titular – Citas en el IESS se ajustan a vacaciones (IESS appointments adjusted for holidays.  Google says it means “dating match ISSE holiday.”  I wouldn’t use Google to translate anything really important.)  It’s harder for patients to get appointments because it’s the vacation season and doctors are taking their vacations.  You can made appointments on line at www.iess.gob.ec.  Just follow the link.  To get a turn call 4134-555.  (Don’t you feel about as competent as a 6 year old sometimes?  Like when you have to make a phone call and talk to someone in Spanish.  It’s a real milestone when you can actually conduct business over the phone.)

Coopera – 542 creditors of the Coopera will receive $1,700 plus an additional amount depending on the percentage of savings with respect to the remaining debt Coopera ows.  $1.6 million will be paid out in the 6th phase of reimbursements.  The money comes from the sale of property in Naranjal and recoveries of non-performing loans.

Speed radars – More radars have been installed on the vía Cuenca-Azogues and on av. Enríque Arízaga which connects to the vía Cuenca-Molleturo.  The solar powered radars will take a picture of your license plate if you’re speeding and send you the ticket.  (I think that if you were really speeding, the cops show up at your door and take you to jail.)

Trade agreement – Ecuador is about to sign a trade agreement with EFTA which includes Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein and Switzerland.  EFTA has a population of 13.5 million and a GDP of $1.012 billion.  Ecuador wants to sell chocolate (cacao fino de aroma – the high grade stuff), bananas, tuna, shrimp, and fresh roses.  (So does Norway get to send us lutefisk?  Ask any Minnesotan about lutefisk.  Or will we be buying finished chocolate products from Switzerland and why is it Swiss chocolate if it actually comes from Ecuador?  I guess the Panama hat syndrome.)

Ballot design – For the 19/2 elections, new ballots and boxes have been designed.   There will be two ballot boxes – one for the Pres and VP and the other for local and national assemblies and the Andean Parliament.

Airport – It is expected that the design studies for recapping the runway will be contracted this week.  Currently, a short term solution to allow the airport to be opened is being worked on. This would be before the studies are finished.  The airport has an emergency fund of $975,000.  (Let’s hope that the recapped runway will perform better than recapped tires – remember when you were a student and you bought recaps or retreads for your car?)  While the recap work is being done, improvements to the drainage will also be made. The recap studies will take 60 days.

Bus fares – Approval of the Ordenanza que Regula el Sistema de Recaudo (Ordinance to Regulate the Collection System) will allow increasing the number of locations where you can recharge your transit card which would be the only means of payment allowed.  Use of the card would save time since it takes 1 second to pay a fare while it takes 6 seconds to pay in cash.  It would also stop people paying in slugs or bottle caps.

Tranvía – An additional $35 million of federal financing for project overruns will be transferred in early July.  Mayor Cabrera met with Pres. Correa last week to plead his case.  This $35 mil is not part of the $21 mil in pending payments and the project needs to finish according to schedule.  (I wonder if the break between the mayor and the prefect was the price for this additional funding?)

Road restrictions – Travel on the vías Gualaceo-Plan de Milagro-Limón and Paute-Guarumales-Ménez is restricted to the hours from 6:00 to 16:00 due to major landslides.  The vía Sígsig-Matanga-Gualaquiza is closed due to a slide in the Granadillas sector at km 54.  Go to the Twitter account of (SIS) ECU 911 for road conditions on the routes to the Oriente.

And that´s all for today so Hasta Mañana –

Jeanne