Cuenca High Life

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa celebrated his fifth year in office, Friday night, January 13, in Cuenca. To mark the occasion, supporters threw a party in Alejandro Serrano Aguilar football stadium. Among the 25,000 in attendance were 1992 Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchú and s... [More]

By Anne Carr Thanks to the late and formidable Steve Jobs, again…it’s possible to use your iphone or ipad and get immediate helpful hints on how to have a little understanding and consequently some strategies to negotiate not just the language but also a culture different from o... [More]

Ecuador has become the latest testing ground for the attempt to use higher education to reverse decades of racial and social inequality through the country's prohibition, following a new constitution in 2008, of fees for all public education (including public universities). Equity was th... [More]

Ecuador sees the loans it has agreed to with China as "good news" because they are long term, and all that is required in return is "oil, and not the horrendous adjustments imposed by the IMF [International Monetary Fund]," left-wing Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa told anal... [More]

With all the talk about gringos in Cuenca, the question arises, what exactly does the term "gringo" mean? And where might it come from? "Gringo" is a demonym, which has nothing to do with demons. Rather, it's Greek for the name (nym) of a populace (demos), a linguisti... [More]

The Fundación para la Sobrevivencia del Pueblo Cofán (FSC) and its US-based branch The Cofan Survival Fund have launched a new fundraising campaign, "The Campaign for 5000" to support the one-of-a-kind Cofán Ranger Park Guard program. The Cofan Ranger Park Guard Prog... [More]

by Anne Carr The third health discussion group was held Friday June 3. The consensus was that a survey might help in planning various kinds of quality care for expats who might need extra support in daily living activities at some time in their life in Cuenca. Traditionally, quality is... [More]

by Anne Carr  Recently, a student from L.A., here in Cuenca to study for a few months, and I carried out a series of interviews with extranjeros (foreigners), mostly jubilados (retirees), and Cuencanos. The intent of the interviews was to identify some of the adaptations expats and... [More]

by Anne Carr and Monica Aguilar Sizer Here we are in Cuenca -- visas, residency, property, and all! Most of us researched Ecuador extensively before we came to visit, then arranged our return to stay long-term here. Almost everything is perfect about Cuenca: climate, cost of living, relative... [More]

It's a common topic of discussion around here in expat circles: What impact will the fate of the U.S. dollar have in Ecuador, which uses the U.S. dollar as its currency? Everyone seems to have a different idea about the future of the U.S. dollar in Ecuador. Some people point to evidence ... [More]

[Editor’s Note: On April 6, Cuenca High Life published an article by Lee Dubs, proprietor of the English-language Carolina Bookstore and long-time Cuencano, in which he classified expats to Ecuador from a long-timer’s perspective; Lee and his wife Carol have lived here for eight y... [More]

The image of the San Rafael waterfall is ubiquitous in Ecuador's Amazon region, appearing on everything from tourist brochures to the backs of buses, alongside the Virgin Mary meant to protect drivers. The waterfall, the country's largest, is in the Sumaco Biosphere Reserve, a lush s... [More]

By Anne Carr Bienvenido to Ecuador as a new immigrant!   We are the fortunate immigrants who got to choose our new country, our method of transport, our accommodations, and what belongings to bring with us.  We are not an exodus frightened of regime change, dangerous border cros... [More]

By Edd Staton I took the time to read through some of the online forums dedicated to Ecuador this weekend and noticed something interesting. On the one hand, there were folks totally gung-ho about making the “big move;” others were quite timid and unsure, asking questions like, &... [More]

Editor´s note: Edd Staton is a Cuenca resident, writer and community activist. He is author of the Edd Said blog, www.eddsaid.blogspot.com, and writes a column for Cuenca´s afternoon newspaper, La Tarde. My wife and I returned home from the United States Tuesday, and we felt Ecua... [More]

Editor´s note: Ashley Armstrong is an archeology graduate student at the University of California - Berkeley. She is currently working on an excavation project in Challuabamba, northeast of Cuenca. Earlier this year there was an article in Cuenca High Life about what Cuencanos think of... [More]

Democracy has taken root in Latin America, but remains fragile three decades since coup-imposed military regimes were replaced by freely elected governments, a new U.N. report warns. It says drug violence, weak states with corrupt police and inefficient courts, and wealth concentrated in few... [More]

Although there is overwhelming consensus that there was never a coup attempt during last week’s police strike, President Rafael Correa refuses to give up the idea that the strike was an effort to destabilize his government. In his weekly television and radio address on Saturday, Correa claim... [More]

When a friend told me recently that there are 4,000 gringos living permanently in Cuenca, I asked where he got his information. “I read it in a blog,” he said. “Who’s blog?” I asked. “I don’t remember,” he answered. My f... [More]

Editor’s Note: Frank and Shel Drake scouted Ecuador in February and March looking for a retirement and expatriation destination; the story of how and where they found it is told in 10 installments on CuencaHighLife.com. This is the second installment of a new series on getting ready to ... [More]

Editor's note: The following is a sample of opinions of Cuencanos about the foreigners living in and visiting Cuenca. They were compiled by University of Cuenca graduate student Silvia Lara for an article about international immigration. The comments refer to all foreigners considere... [More]

Bear with me on this one. First, I’ll tell you about one of my favorite Cuenca restaurants. Then, I’ll tell you about a couple of low-cost eating alternatives interlarded with cautionary tales about how to avoid the “gringo gouge.” I wrap things up with with a rant against&... [More]

What’s the real story behind Ecuador’s electric power shortage? Will the rolling blackouts get worse before they get better? When will they end? Probably most important: Is this something we will have to live with for years to come? The answers paint a “bad news, good news&... [More]

Torrential rain has washed away the blood where the family fell under a hail of wooden spears. But memories of what happened this summer are still fresh in the minds of those who live and work here.   At first the security guard inside the perimeter fence of the oil drilling station is nerv... [More]

 “Is it as cheap to live in Ecuador as they say?” The question came from an English friend but it’s one I’m asked fairly often. What he's referring to are the claims made by a number of publishers and web services, particularly International Living, Gary... [More]