Cuenca, A Very Nice Place

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So, arriving in Cuenca late we checked into the Hostal Tinku where Claudia (another Galápagos friend) was staying. After marvelling at the spectacular noisiness of the place with the barking dogs and children we went for a brief excursion to get some food and thought "hmmm, this is a nice place".
In the morning we met up with Claudia who was recovering from a rather nasty form of stomach bug and went for a walk via the Café Austria and the market - nothing to report there.

A Real Panama Hat

As part of our sojourn we came across a marvellous shop - that of Alfredo Pulla, a hatter since the age of 6 (now in his 80s). He showed us to his upstairs showroom from the main shop downstairs (with hundreds of hats hanging from the ceiling - all being refurbished).
The particular type of hat in question is the Panama - origin of the name is a bit sketchy but it´s widely accepted that they originated in Ecuador, and notably the city of Cuenca.
Panama Hat Info
Long story short, Sarah bought me one of the finest quality hats and I now carry it with pride in my main bag. It´s taking up quite a bit of room with its carry box (much like a cigar box) so I really should entrust it to the wonderfully efficient South American postal services soon.

We later went to the museum, and had a nice dinner that night.

The next day we went on a group hike around the Cajas national park (really great views), saw lots of bromiliads and paper trees and had trout for lunch.

We took the 4pm bus to Loja and the next installment, written by Sarah, should detail the ensuing fun that night.

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Photos

A real panama hat
Pete and Alfredo Pulla (the not so mad hatter)