Highlites and Lowlites on Ecuador

Now that we have been in Ecuador almost three months, I thought that it was time to explain some facts regarding living in this country and specifically the city of Cuenca.

When I was researching Ecuador I read a lot of BLOGS as I felt that they gave me a more realistic perspective than reading what professionals wrote in magazines like International Living. Not that the magazine writes untruths- I'm a fan- but people like me actually living here told me much more of those details in which I was interested. And now that there are others researching  and actually reading my BLOG, I'd like to return the favour.

Here are my findings on several topics;

Availability of certain things I can't live without
When we packed to come to Ecuador I brought Peanut Butter, Freezer Baggies ( hadn't been able to buy either in Italy) shampoo, conditioner, and face cream among other things.
I have found that I could buy all of these here though peanut butter was rather expensive- $7 for a 490gram jar. I even found hair colour for blondes, panty liners and depilatory cream- all items I cannot live without!

Drinking Water
In Salinas and most other parts of Ecuador( and most countries I have visited in general) we buy drinking water. In Cuenca as long as you live in a reasonably modern building, you can drink the tap water and we do with no adverse effects.

Buying vegetables/fruit at the Mercado( Farmers' market)
Both in Salinas and Cuenca, we go weekly to the Mercado to buy our fruits and vegetables. We soak  them for 5 minutes in a solution of  Kilol ( available in grocery store) a natural bacterial cleaner. We speak little Spanish but as long as you can point at what you want and understand numbers below 10, you will have no problem. We normally walk away with 2 large grocery bags for under $8.

Grocery Stores
We normally shop at Super Maxi ( there are many others) a large grocery store equal to any we have shopped at in the USA,Canada or Italy. We even have a discount card for sale items. The store carries any type of grocery including beer, wine, meats, fish, produce, dairy products, fresh baked goods, pharmacy items, cleaning products, detergent- even towels & pillows. In other words, anything you can buy at home you will find here at a lower price if you stick to local brands.

Restaurants
If you insist at only eating where the gringos eat you will pay gringo prices though even these are lower than at home. In Arizona, Uwe and I would have a pub lunch with wine or beer for approximately $30 ( $40 in Canada). Here we would normally pay for the same between $15-20. But if you go to an Ecuadorian restaurant and order their Almuerzo  ( a 3 course lunch consisting of soup, meat/fish with rice & veggies, dessert and juice) you would pay anywhere between $1.50 to $3 per person with an additional $1.50 if you ordered beer as well. There is also a great variety of restaurants such as Chinese, Indian, burger joints, Italian, pizza places and ,of course, lots of fast food places including KFC, Burger Chef etc.

Buses
We've taken buses in both Salinas and Cuenca. In Cuenca, there is even a great little colour coded booklet showing a guide for all the 29 different bus routes. We've taken buses at 25c each to all over town.  They come often- have never waited more than 10 minutes, usually much less- safe and go almost everywhere.

Taxis
Taxis are very cheap in both cities and safe in our experiences. In Salinas, $2 will get you almost anywhere and in Cuenca we have paid up to $4. Of course since we walk almost everywhere and take buses, our taxi experience in Cuenca is limited.

Personal Safety
Our favourite past time is walking. That said we have walked extensively in Salinas, Guayaquil and Cuenca and have NEVER felt uneasy, threatened or leery of our surroundings. In both Salinas and Cuenca we have walked home at night ( never later than 9PM because we are early birds not because we were worried) and again have never had a bad experience. That said, we do not go out late at night even when we lived in Phoenix and Collingwood and , as in all cities, there are places to avoid though we have yet to find them here- at least during the day.

Haircuts & Pedicures
It took me awhile to find a hairdresser that spoke English- she advertised that fact on her sign outside store. Regular looking Hair Salon- both Uwe and I had our hair cut there- $7 each - and a good job. I also had a pedicure- nice relaxing chair with attached warm water basin- much like in Arizona- nice foot massage and all for $10.

Ecuadorian People
In all three cities we have visited so far, we have found the people extremely friendly, helpful and welcoming. We do our best with our 2 word sentences to speak Spanish and they, in turn, do their best to understand and help us. While doing our daily walks, we often get stopped by those who speak English asking how we like their city- all are very proud of Cuenca as they should be. Those that only speak Spanish say  good morning to us. Cuencanos are also very outwardly affectionate. It is common to see married couples holding hands along with their children or even openly embracing on the streets. Young couples are always seen hugging/kissing as they walk along the river or hang out around the university.

Some Lowlites
Just so you do not think everything is rosy here are some cons. Stray dogs, though not very common in Cuenca, are everywhere in Salinas. Though not vicious, none are fixed and it is a sad sight to see so many unwanted dogs and puppies roaming the streets together. The sidewalks are major walking hazards other than downtown in Cuenca and along the malecon in Salinas. Always always look where you are going. Manholes are left open without covers, changes in height  ( up & down) occur without warning and dog poop is common( no one poop-scoops).