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 | Cuenca Warnings or Dangers | Tips 1 - 7 of 7 |  |
Popular Warnings or Dangers | Miscellaneous Warnings or Dangers Tips | All Tips (7) The following day, I was ready to forgive and forget. I was carrying the same stuff as the night before in the same manner. I also had a small ordinary travel bag with my chapstick, my notebook, my postcards, my stamps, my decongestant, my umbrella, and a couple of souvenirs, including a phony shrunken head. Priceless stuff, as you can see. The bag was like an old friend. I stopped for lunch at a small restaurant named La Fama, on Bolívar 128 and Montalvo, which was recommended on the Frommers web site, making it possibly a good hunting ground for thieves. I sat a table - inside - and put my bag on a chair tucked under the table. A man (a customer) at the counter gestured for me to come order at the counter. Come to think of it, he was wearing a muddy business suit, and his helpfulness was unctuous. I got up to go to the counter, then returned 7 or 10 seconds later to pick up my bag before ordering. It was gone, and so was the "businessman," and whoever he had distracted me from. I ran outside and couldn't find anyone or anything relevant. I went back inside, and everyone commiserated "Que pena" and so on. I was really upset. I felt old, stupid, drained, presumptuous, worthless. Who was I kidding, playing the Grand Explorer, instead of using the money to buy Long Term Care insurance or pre-arranged funeral arrangements? After a couple of hours spent walking and talking to myself, I sat in an internet cafe, logged onto the Misc. Forum of VT and ranted. Then I logged off, went for a big dish of therapeutic ice cream, and to visit a heavily policed market. I did talk to the police, and they said it must have been Peruvians or Colombians. I told them nothing like this happened to me in Peru. I went back online after that, and so many VT members had responded kindly to my wailing, it made me feel somewhat better. I took hold of myself, and managed to have 24 more good hours before leaving Cuenca. The following week, in a park in Harrisburg PA, a jogger overtook me. You should have seen me jump! Leave a Comment
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I've been cautious through my travels - but not paranoid. I've bought cracked Chinese CDs, overpaid for cabs and riverboats, had postcards never mailed and so on. But that night in Cuenca was my first upsetting experience. The second one would be the following morning! It was around 8 p.m. I had my wallet in my back pocket (buttoned), my money and passport in a pouch under my shirt, a few coins in my left pants pocket, and my Lonely Planet book in my hand. I was walking along Horatio Vasquez Street. In front of the Mayambe Bar, I noticed a tall, thin youth who seemed up to no good. I turned right onto deserted Luis Cordero Street. Completely out of the blue, I felt something come in and out of my left pants pocket, very forcefully and very fast. For a fraction of a second, I thought it was a guinea pig - it was that weird! I shouted very loudly and turned around. It was the shifty youth, of course, and I scared him with my shout. I threw my Lonely Planet at him (why?) and he ran away saying "loco" and spilling my few coins. This was quite upsetting. In a way it was violent and scary. On the Plaza, I talked to the police who were overseeing a free warm rum distribution. They said it must have been a Peruvian or a Colombian (nice, heh?), and gave me a safer itinerary to walk back to my hotel. On the way back, I walked in the street, not on the sidewalk. Leave a Comment
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The roads around Cuenca, and in the Andes in general, are subject to frequent landslides and mudslides. Be sure to talk to the locals about road conditions before you make any long distance trips between cities! Leave a Comment
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| | | | SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS CLOSE EARLY | | | | | |
OK, this was something that I found difficult to understand. Cuenca is, like, the 3rd largest city of Ecuador. OK, maybe it is a distant 3rd. But once I stepped out and hit the street at 7pm and found that nearly all the shops were shut, and the streets were nearly deserted with most lights out. It was frankly, a little eerie, as you just see the stray long shadow of one lone passer-by down one street and another. Gosh, I was hungry and I had to find a place to eat. I hurried along to try and locate a place. Some cafes were absolutely empty and the owners were stacking up chairs and about to lock up. What?? At 7pm?? It was quite unbelievable, that the 3rd largest city of Ecuador can be so 'sleepy'. I finally found a Chinese restaurant that was opened (I was the only patron). But gradually, through the days spent there, I did come across a very small handful of other restaurants that stayed opened til 8pm. My warning to you is to head out to grab your dinner EARLY. Leave a Comment
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