Creme Brulée Restaurant

Calle Larga 7-30

European and Asian Dishes

Average price for a meal without wine: 15 USD

Super star at Ascot a freshly in Cuenca – ECUADOR acquired Panama Hat (you don’t buy Panama Hats worn at Ascot), whose reference number should be exchanged for a name like ‘wellington’ or ‘earl grey’, we suggest.

Spaniard say ‘men keep word’. As times are, we will finish by saying ‘women do’, as Lorraine had promised to provide us with these pictures and … she really did (!)

We will never learn which horse and whose finally won, even less, who lost his bets. (Do women bet?)

As the royal pavillion had staid at a careful distance, royal presence was just given an indirect proof of – you may believe in or not.

In ant case, the hat was well combined with dress colours and leaves a freshest impression of how it still possible to insert oldest Panama Hat traditions into contemporary contexts.

One of the good, if not best, things about Cuenca is that it is difficult to make the difference between reality and fantasy, as people live exactly there where myth joins the fairy tale to look as if wrapped in reality.

Thus. We were told that these pictures, taken secretly by a maid, belong to the house of one of the richest people in Azerbaidjan, and only inheritor, it is said, of a never ending number of petrol resources. Or gas. Differences become slight with distance. It is said, although nobody believes it, that the one is prosecuted by at least 13 members of the SVR, as it was suspected that new revolutionary anti Russian movements could be accompanied by the sudden enrichening of a certain number of people belonging to radical wings. Reason why – whispers continue – the person in question decided to move to Cuenca, Ecuador, where nobody, except ourselves, would manage to locate her.

In order not to draw attention on her, she hid away behind classical Cuencanian interior architecture.

And this while other rumours insistendly maintain that members of the Cartel of Cali have moved to town giving in to increasing pressure in Colombia.

As we tend not to believe in anything of what is said, we just maintain that copper is well worked in the region, that silver shows its best in some of the items shown and that deep blue darkness gives a home a certainly quite particular touch. With or without Amaretto, you may say.

After long days visiting Quito and crossing the country on the vulcano path, Mr and Mrs Bust finally arrived to Cuenca, where they would stay for two days inside of what they would call a well deserved rest.

Having been to eat a pizza and a most wonderful maracuya ice cream, we first went to buy  a few books on birds and other natural marvels in Librimundi.

Tiring enough (!) to deserve a coffee a little after at Mansión Alcázar where we were caught by a suddenly pouring down rain, which made of one coffee, two and … a rum.

We thus had the occasion to visit the place and have a cigarette in the inner garden, too. Enchanting enough, we decided to have dinner there the day after.

Called the ‘House of Angels’ the Mansión Alcázar is at the same time a hotel and a good restaurant.

With a few drops still pending from heavens we just crossed the street in order to have a look at well restaured ‘Casa del Coco’ actual siege of the art ‘Bienale’ taking place every two years and full of those painted tin plates imported from Germany at the end of the 19th or early 20th that decorate several houses in town.

Mrs Bust was thus testing a possible role as future president of the ’Bienale’ without anyone’s permission.

As the Museum of Modern Art was closed we walked down through the old colonial quarter along the Tomebamba river and found hats that were still not Panama hats. TV showed a soccer game inside of what seemed a swimming pool taking place at that very moment.

Ready for Ascot! At Paredes & son, business – they say – awarded by the British Royal family. We were promised a picture of our hats in Ascot if they ever managed to find out where Lady Chatterley was …

The day ended with a short visit to the private Museum Cecilia Toral and yes, they had a mint tea at my place (!!)

The day after (they had had a drink at Café Tugo in the evening, they said, and strolled along the Tomebamba river for a while) we decided to engage ourselves in great business but everything was closed, reason why we decided to visit the Cathedral first, which – obviously – is full of gold.

We were said that these were emeralds and having a look at actual prices, we could say we had about a million dolar in front of us, if it was true. Do you believe it? I didn’t buy any, just in case. In order to recover from the shock we went to have coffee at the ’boheme’ café inside of the town theatre.

A walk around the ‘Conceptas covent’, whose walls are peopled by small painters and antiques shops. To the left, in Jaime Cabrera’s shop and to the right, in Kleber Moscoso’s shop.

Time to go for dinner. After an excellent meal with (quite good, don’t say) Argentinian wine we got lost in … theological conversations. Logical. The height invites.

Interesting sample of the harmonic insertion of commercial activity (banking) into a classical building, in this case French architecture of the 2oies with common elements to other buildings of the city, such as the European tin plates used as ceiling (Casa Cecilia Toral, Casa del Coco, Casona Verde, Instituto del Patrimonio Nacional, etc.), the inner court and the glass roof  on the court. Inner decoration uses on top traditional decoration elements, as well comercial as private, such as dry flowers and lamps.

Parque Calderón in Christmas dressing

Rock life concert for the New Year

“Belén” at the Otavaleños square

Christmas family 2009. Lourdes Braker with husband and daughter Viki.

Cardboard puppets, called ‘viejos’, all around town wait for midnight …

to be burned down along with the old year while people dance around or jump over the fire

traditional ‘Belén‘ with ceramic angels at House Cecilia Toral

horses after the ‘desfile‘ December 24th

If he decided to tell us everything or almost everything, it was because he thought it may just be the best way to tell us his deepest secret.

It started with the garden. We were explained that his father adored orchids and had a whole amount of them in there, among other flowers.

Followed explanations saying that orchids do rarely grow in pots, except of one species and that all the rest live suspended between heaven and earth. To the right, a coming orchid.

Among the orchids you could also find his small sister, who shew little difference with the rest, he said.

Then he shew us pictures taken during a journey to Spain, showing the Prince of Asturias and his mother with what seems to be a royal guard.

The visit continued through a whole lot of most ancient objects, including photo cameras, a film camera, a sewing machine and a telephone of those time when Onassis became rich through the listening to foreign conversations (around 1927)

Then we had to go through the guard post strongly hold by cocker Lisa

And in a corner, hidden away of human eyes in the very depth of the court yard, his best kept secret: a lavanda plant, having been given to him by a Dutch living in the south of France and which seems to feel well in its new environment among mint and other aromatic plants …

A man born in Cuenca in Ecuador is called cuencano, differently to the one born in Cuenca, Spain, called conquense. The similarity of name is due to the fact that the founder of the town (16th century) came originally from Spanish Cuenca and chose a geography showing similar features with his birth town.

The cuencano may do whatever and will still be hiding somewhere a secret poet, painter or … photographer. The one having made a small selection of his huge photography collection on Ecuador is Ing. Petronio Peña, Chief of Security of Colineal, one of the finest furniture producers in Ecuador.

Sundown in Aguarongo and Nabón, proximity of Cuenca

Sundown at the beach, proximity of Guayaquil

Church in Baños (Azuay) – another town with the same name is to be found next to vulcano Tungurahua – this is famous for its termal baths

Common fireworks, called ‘castillos’ (castles) burned in local feasts

Flower chuquiragua and wild flower, from National Parc Cajas, a few kilometers away from Cuenca

River Cajas inside of the National Parc

Orchids from plantation in Gualaceo

National Parc Cajas

Kingos from the Cria heights in the proximity of Cuenca

National Parc Cajas with tree Quinoa