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Late this morning we caught a taxi to the Terminal Terrestre (bus terminal) and had our choice of many buses going east to get to our destination, the crossroads at El Descanso. Alex was to pick us up there but he was waiting on one road east where he expected the bus to stop, whereas the bus stopped in heavy traffic and we were on the other way north where he would be headed. It took us about ten minutes to locate each other.
We then headed up the mountain to close to 9,000 feet where they have their acreage (finca). While the house was built by an architect on a European style the interior is still fairly basic.
Alex and Cecilia enjoy the fresh air, the flowers and fruit trees, a dog, chickens, rooster, cat, and a pet chicken they have named Peep Peep, from the sound it makes... The view of Cojitambo across the valley is breathtaking and they even can see the edge of Cuenca. With a short walk they can see Azogues as well.
Internet reception is really iffy there unless you walk up the hill another 100 meters or so, ...and no television either. That is one reason that they borrow a lot of movies from me.
Along with one of their daughters, Elisa, they enjoy the solitude away from the rat-race of the city. It is fortunate that Elisa attends school on the outskirts of Cuenca, but it is still a 25 minute commute. Dawn helped Elisa with her English book from school, and Elisa has wonderful pronunciation, but doesn't really understand a word she is saying... There is very poor schooling in this regard.
We enjoyed a really lovely meal prepared like they do on the coast, where Cecilia is from, with beer chasers.... We spent the whole day outside under a gazebo that they had set up so it was a comfortable afternoon with lots of laughs. Alex and I took a short walk to take a few photos.
One of the photos is of a basket of tomatoes from nearby Paute. There are many tomato growers and competition is fierce so that whole basket cost him only $1..!!
We spent a great afternoon with the big Lab female dog named Crazy, and we were constantly visited by Peep-Peep.
What a great getaway for a day... Thank you Alex, Cecilia and Elisa. So we have photos taken with Dawn's phone, my phone, and the new Canon.
My replacement at Joes', Indy, has committed to buy my old camera with a new lens and many accessories, payment on Wednesday.
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I hope you enjoy the pictures. That was the day’s excitement.
Al
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| Tourist waiting for Alex |
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| Their lovely country house |
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| A chicken partly de-feathered by the aggressive rooster |
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| The rooster rules the roost |
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| Crazy listening in on Dawn and Alex |
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| The neighbour's geese and goslings |
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| A view from the terrace, Pachamama in the background |
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| Dawn helping Elisa with her English book |
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| Cojitambo dead center in this shot |
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| Cojitambo 2 |
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| Cojitambo 3 |
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| Cojitambo 4 |
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| Artsy pine cone silhouettes |
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| Pachamama looks pretty flat from here |
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| Trying to get Crazy to pose |
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| Alex, Cecilia, Elisa 1 |
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| The country squire and his family |
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| Many tomatoes for $1 |
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| Peep-Peep 1 |
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| Peep-Peep 2 |
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| Peep-Peep 3 |
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| More family shots with the phone |
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| A very lovely bunch of people |
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| Add some guy in a Tilley hat |
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| Peep-Peep joining us for lunch |
