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Following Saturday’s Constitutional Court decision ending the state of emergency, the Cuenca Emergency Operations Committee issued a statement Monday clarifying the health restrictions that remain in force. The COE said it is in discussions with the national...
By Joshua Zitser In a bid to avoid Covid-19 restrictions back home, a considerable number of Americans have traveled to Mexico for a vacation or -- in some instances -- to settle down there. "A lot of people are either coming down here and visiting to test it out or...
By Cathy McKay Some expats choose to stay in one place. Other want the freedom to travel around the world. But no decision is necessarily irreversible. Having lived in Cuenca for over a year now, I have had the opportunity to meet and befriend many expats. They have...
By Ben Quinn Julian Assange cannot be extradited to the US to face charges of espionage and of hacking government computers, a British judge has decided. Lawyers for U.S. authorities plan to appeal against the ruling, which was delivered at the central criminal court...
Uncertainty about the timing of Ecuador’s mass vaccination program continues to grow while some health professionals claim the government lacks a cohesive plan to vaccinate the population. Early expectations that mass vaccination would begin by March or April are...
President Lenín Moreno said Sunday that he is "greatly disappointed" that the Constitutional Court ended the national state of emergency he declared on December 20. The court ruled on Saturday that the declaration was unconstitutional and violated the civil rights of...
A friend of mine got a tattoo the other day. The last few months have been wearying and she needed a talisman to give her strength, an indelible guide leading her out of the cruel cyclone that has caused so many to lose their way and become disoriented. She was...
By Liam Higgins When he was asked last week about the highlight of his first year in office, Mayor Pedro Palacios didn’t hesitate: “Obviously, it was the launch of the tram,” he said in a television interview. “2020 was a very difficult year because of the pandemic...
By Doha Madani A large percentage of front-line workers in hospitals and nursing homes have refused to take the Covid-19 vaccine, a hurdle for public health officials as the U.S. struggles to roll out inoculations around the country. About 50 percent of front-line...
By Zeynep Tufekci A new variant of the coronavirus is spreading across the globe. It was first identified in the United Kingdom, where it is rapidly spreading, and has been found in multiple countries. Viruses mutate all the time, often with no impact, but this one...
By Sylvan Hardy It was Cuenca’s quietest New Year’s Eve in memory. Although the skies briefly ignited with fireworks at midnight, mostly launched from private courtyards and driveways, and a few renegade dummies burned on sidewalks, city streets were mostly deserted...
By Michelle Minton It may be impolite to talk politics at the dinner table, but when it comes to government advice on what we eat, political agendas are usually baked in. Updated every five years, the official Dietary Guidelines for Americans have long been the...
By Jeremiah Reardon Its mind made up, the four-inch wide insect plopped onto the street and stepped gingerly across the concrete. For a few minutes I stood over it, fascinated by its steady gait toward the other side. If traffic remained light, its chances looked...
Following what he calls a “catastrophic” 2020, Cuenca's Mariscal La Mar Airport executive director Juan Pablo Vega sees a strong rebound in 2021. “We suffered a 43 percent drop in revenue and a 60 percent drop in passengers this year, all of it due to the coronavirus,...
Two and a half miles due south of the New Cathedral, offering much needed adornment to an otherwise unsightly and commercially developed hilltop, sits Iglesia de Turi. If it didn’t enjoy its commanding location, offering beautiful panoramic views of the city, it would...
By Richard W. Soudriette and Cynthia Gilley For many, the American Dream includes retiring to a warmer climate. But after a steep drop in the stock market a decade ago and the coronvirus pandemic today, many older North Americans are forced to rethink and postpone...
By Patti Neighmond At the start of the pandemic, stores quickly sold out of disinfectant sprays and wipes. People were advised to wipe down their packages and the cans they bought at the grocery store. But scientists have learned a lot this year about the coronavirus...
Following Monday’s announcement that several thousand Ecuadorians will participate in phase 3 trials of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine, Health Minister Juan Carlos Zevallos disclosed Tuesday that he is negotiating with developers to produce the vaccine in Ecuador. “We...
The National Emergency Operations Committee (COE) is asking municipal governments to intensify crowd control efforts during the New Year’s holiday. “The National Police were effective in their efforts over the Christmas holidays but we need help at the municipal level...
By John Otis Just three days after crossing the border into Colombia to escape food shortages, joblessness and authoritarian rule in Venezuela, Alexander González says he's shocked by the xenophobia of his adopted homeland. "Colombians treat Venezuelans badly," says...
