Cuenca

We are now in a city called Cuenca, which is in southern Ecuador. Cuenca is considered, by many, the cultural capital of Ecuador. It is a small city, much cleaner, quieter and safer than Quito. The central part of the city is old with beautiful cobblestone streets and of course many churches. The river Tomebamba divides the city between old and new. We are continuing our Spanish studies here. We have taken a couple of side trips including one to Parque Nacional Cajas (Cajas National Park). This park is 45 minutes from Cuenca. The highest point is over 14,700 feet. It is filled with many lakes and incredible flowers and vegetation, most of which we have never seen. It was raining the day we went, which it does most of the time, but nonetheless we had a great day walking through the mud on a fabulous trail.