Cuenca

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Our Arrival

The bus from Guayaquil arrived at the bus station at 1:25pm. The bus station is very close to town. As you exit the station turn right down the main road Av Espana. At the roundabout we turned left down Huayna Capac and took the first right down Mariscal Lamar. The walk to our hostel on Mariscal Lamar took about 20mins. There are also buses that run down Mariscal Lamar from the terminal that cost 25 cents including bus no 28.



Where We Stayed

Hostal Perla Cuencana - $14 for a double room with shared bathroom. On Mariscal Lamar between Benigno Malo and Luis Cordero. There is internet and a kitchen including a fridge available for use. Bathroom was supposed to have hot water and had an electric shower head but it wasn't working in the morning we used it. We stayed in room 18 which had a flimsy partition wall with a gap at the top to the room next door. Also rooms have a padlock and a door lock however after closer inspection our door lock didn't work. It locked it when the handle turned one way but you could still turn the handle the other way and get in. This meant we couldn't lock our room at night when we were in it. However we were allowed to store our bags behind reception and use the hostel sitting area and kitchen until our night bus.

This hostal seemed to be one of the cheapest places in town. We asked at a fair few and all were $20 for a double room.




What We Did

Walked around the City looking at the parks and old churches. There are a couple of small ruin sights in the City which are really just a few piles of rocks that look like dry stone walls.

Climbed Turi hill for a lookout over the City - To get to the bottom of the steps is about 40min walk. Walk straight down Benigno Malo, cross the river and carry on straight down Av Fray Vicente Solano. Cross over the next river at the 3 bridges and take the 2nd left at the roundabout (the 1st left is a small road and the 2nd is more of a main road). Go past the bus stops, over the 3rd river and take the 1st right up a hill. Keep heading straight and up and go up the stairs. At the top of the steps the path goes down and you have to cross over a busy road. Infront are more steps which take you up the hill. There are 439 steps to the top which takes less than 10 mins with a couple of short breaks. At the top are City views and a map identifying the sites. You can see the whole city but the view isn't that great, however if you have time to waste it is worth a visit.



Where We Ate

The hostal had a kitchen so we cooked. There is a Tia supermarket on Gran Colombia between Luis Cordero and Presidente Borrero.

Market 10 de Augusto on calle Larga near General Torres st has a big food court upstairs. We didn't eat there but it seemed to have meals for just under/over $2.

We got a meal at the bus station for $2.



About Cuenca

Cuenca is pretty much the same as any historical Latin American City with lots of parks and chruches although it was a bit chilly. Not worth a visit on its own but if you are heading this way its a fine place to stop to break up a journey.

We changed money from Colombian Pesos to US $ and also from US $ to Peruvian Soles in Vazcorp which is on the corner of Gran Colombia and Luis Cordero.



Where We Went Next

We caught a night bus to Peru. As it was dark we got a bus to the terminal. The bus no 28 left from Gaspar Sanguirima and Benigno Malo. As you walk up Malo turn left at Sanguirima and the bus stop is at the undercover stand. To the right down Sanguirima is a bus stop sign however this is only outside a tour agency and is not a bus stop. The bus to the terminal cost 25 cents. You need exact money and put it in a box which beeps to let the driver know you have paid. We just missed a number 28 bus but a few mins later a number 100 came by which also went to the terminal. We caught it at 7:55pm. The bus drives into a local bus terminal on the North side of the main bus terminal and we arrived at 8:05pm. Exit the terminal and turn left to go to the main bus terminal next door.

For more info on the Ecuador/Peru border crossing see the next post.

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