This weekend was the first Madre Tierra (or “Mother Earth”) festival in Tarqui, a town about 15 minutes from Cuenca by taxi.  The eco-festival was organized by Sarah HB, a long time expat friend here in Cuenca.  It consisted of 43 workshops, dozens of vendors, music and theater. The festival was very well attended, with many of the workshops being filled to capacity.  Above is a small collection of some of the vendors, selling their organic and sustainable wares.

Workshops were held in four tents plus a geodesic dome.  There was a campground available for the weekend, where many of the attendees and instructors stayed for the entire festival.

There were a dozen vendors making lunch for the attendees, mostly chicken and cuy (known in the US as “guinea pig”).  We opted for cuy, choosing a nice fat one off the BBQ spit, and had a delicious lunch.

Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves — even the kids.