SHOPPING AT THE MARKETS IN CUENCA ECUADOR - Our first MARKET DAY in Cuenca!

We finally dragged ourselves out of bed to start our first full day in Cuenca.  It may take us a few days to recover from that long journey and catch up on our sleep.  We haven't felt any altitude affects, and that's a good thing!  After tidying up and more unpacking, we grabbed our produce bags and headed for the Mercado 10 de Augosto.  Our condo is about two blocks away.  As we walked into the Mercado, Bo's words were, "I'm liking it here already!"  Woohoo!!!  We walked around looking at the beautiful produce, then decided to go upstairs so Bo could have his coffee fix.  We were so graciously served by a beautiful Ecuadorian woman.  I asked her (in Spanish, of course)  if she put any sugar or water in her juices, and she assured me they were pure blended fruits and vegetables.  My order came and it was DELICIOUS - Zanahoria (carrot), Pina (pineapple), Y (and) Papaya.  I savored it.....

Bo had two Cafe Con Leche and a roll.  We paid $2.25 for everything.  Off we went to begin our shopping.  I'm so ready to use my Omega Juicer after hauling it over 4,000 miles.  Both my Vitamix and Juicer adorn the kitchen counter ready to perform for me.  (Oh, Elizabeth and Caroline, you would both appreciate this fine produce for your juicing.)

There were hundreds of vendors selling meats, vegetables, grains, fruits, and on and on.  I can't even begin to mention all that our eyes feasted on. 

I imagine we got charged a bit higher from some of the vendors (we're Gringos), but I was sure to speak Spanish and compare some of their prices.  Some wanted to charge $1.50 for a pineapple, and others $1.  Guess how much I paid?  We're here to live with and pay as the locals.  It will take time to know the local prices, but that will happen.

These are all the fruits and vegetables Bo and I hauled home - back to front:
2 huge bunches of Chard, 2 heads lettuce, 1 each cauliflower, broccoli, red cabbage, 2 bunches (8) beets (50 cents each) two large bags HUGE carrots ($1 each), pineapple ($1), 6 mango ($1), 10 apples(1), 2 huge bags tomatoes ($2), 10 red onions ($1), 4 HUGE cukes ($1), 3 large avacado ($1), Bag of already peeled fresh garlic (50 cents), 20 limes ($1).  GRAND TOTAL $15
We're Happy!

After we put away our beautiful produce, we headed back out towards the grocery store SUPERMAXI.  As we crossed the bridge, I stopped to capture a photo of Cuenca's beautiful Rio Tomebamba.  We still have much to explore along this river walk.  We finished our shopping at SuperMaxi and then took a taxi back to our condo.  The rest of our day was spent cooking and relaxing.  We had a fabulous salad for dinner, and Bo is making healthy beef broth, soaking brown rice and black beans, and he's back into his joy of cooking.  

Tomorrow, we hope to get our cell phones taken care of so we'll have our Ecuador phone numbers.  We're thankful we have high-speed internet and can still stay in touch with our family and friends back in the USA.  In the evening, we will be going to DiBacco's for dinner to meet a couple whom I've been corresponding with for a few weeks.  It will be nice to finally meet them in person.

It was another day in Cuenca paradise.  I can't wait to get up and juice that yummy produce.  Time for more sleep.