Turkey 13 – The Turkish Pinch

We spent today with Aysin, from Cookistan to learn how to cook a 6-course Turkish meal.  We traveled there using Uber for the first time, which worked well in getting us directly to the meeting point, though it took 93 minutes to travel 27 km (about 16 miles) in Istanbul traffic.  With Aysin’s directions, we […]

Turkey 12 – Grand Bazaar

Today we visited the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul.  This is the largest covered market in the world, covering 61 streets and more than 3000 vendors.  In addition, there were many more vendors on the outside surrounding this market. There is no way that anyone can visit more than a small portion of the bazaar in […]

Turkey 09 – Camera Mania!

Today was an adventure in exploring transportation around Istanbul, shopping, dining, getting lost, and spending way too much money on stuff we can’t get in Ecuador.  Let’s see how it unfolded… Evelyn decided she wanted a new camera bag. She is in love with luggage, and still searching for the ideal bag that will weigh […]

[Recipe] Honey-Coca Cola Chicken

I try to make it a point to experiment with at least one new recipe each week.  Sometimes I look at what is in the fridge and freezer and then choose a recipe that sounds good.  Sometimes I find a recipe that sounds good, and then shop for the ingredients.  A couple weeks ago, I […]

Medellin 2 – Exotic Fruits Tour

Having lived in Cuenca and shopped at mercados weekly for the past two years, I wasn’t sure about wanting to take a tour of a Medellin mercado.  However, we have loved most of the walking tours we have taken in various cities, and the reviews were good, so we decided to take the “Exotic Fruits […]

[Recipe] Stuffed Bell Peppers

[Recipe] Stuffed Bell Peppers Recipe Type: Main Dish Author: Burt Johnson Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 50 mins Total time: 1 hour 20 mins Serves: 4 This is a quick and easy one-pot meal that has become a favorite of guests. It also makes excellent left-overs. Just spread a little tomato sauce over top […]

Madre Tierra Festival 2015

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 […]

National Strike — Cuenca Style

Ecuadorian president Correa has had an unprecedented 84% approval rating in his country until recently.  He has improved education on many fronts, reduced crime in every category, improved infrastructure, and generally been a very positive, and thus popular, president.  With his political party having an overwhelming majority in Congress, he can push through almost any […]

[Recipe] Tuscan Chicken

We eat a lot of chicken in Ecuador.  It is cheap, plentiful, and can be used in so many dishes that it becomes the go-to meal, both for quickie “what do I make tonight?” meals and for guests.  This is a recipe I first saw in The Wanderlust Kitchen web site, and have slightly modified […]

[Recipe] Coconut Balls

I read lots of food blogs, and often come up with recipe ideas from them.  I usually make a recipe three or four times before I decide I have it tweaked to my satisfaction, and certainly before I decide it is delicious enough, and easy enough, for adding to my blog.  In the last several […]

Photo Galleries

At the top of this page is a menu that will take you to a variety of galleries showing our favorite images.