September 5th through September 11th, Part 3 and September 12th through September 18th:

 

September 5th through September 11th, Part 3 and September 12th through September 18th: 

Saturday: We were picked up by Wilson, our guide, to go to the waterfalls in Giron at 8:30am.  We stopped for what we thought was gas, but it ended up he needed radiator fluid.  Wilson then decided his radiator had a hole and he wanted to go to a shop and see if they could fix it.  Well, the shop could fix it, but it would take the rest of the day.  We took a taxi to his brother-in-law's house and he borrowed his car.  We finally got on the road at 10:00am.  We first stopped at a monument to celebrate the victory of the Grand Colombia Army, (Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador) which defeated the Peruvian Army at the battle of Tarqui just outside of Cuenca in 1829. 

 

View from the top of the monument looking down on the town of Giron.

We next stopped at the building in Giron where they signed the treaty ending the war.

We then drove to the waterfalls.

There are 3 waterfalls one above the other and the total drop is about 1400 feet.

 The one at the bottom is 270 feet tall.

Looking back down the valley from the waterfall.

We then drove to Busa lake and had a late lunch.

We then drove back to Cuenca, arriving about 3:30pm.  Sabastian, our guide on Friday, had told us about a famous restaurant in Cuenca.  He said that the chef was one of the best five chefs in South America.  So we called up Tiestos Restaurant and got a reservation for 6:00pm.  Juan Carlos Solano, the owner and chef, greeted us and was so engaging and fun.  He ordered for us and while we waited for our first course he painted a desert plate.  Dinner was amazing and we loved the whole experience. 

Video of Juan Carlos painting our dessert plate.

 

All the different salsas for the soup.

Our waiter would ask us to take a spoonful of shrimp and then he would add one of the salsas and it was like, "wow". Then he would ask us to take just the soup and put a different salsa and it would be a completely new experience.

Second course was sea bass in a sweet glazed orange sauce and eggplant in a creamy blue cheese sauce.  To die for!

This is how the food came to the table.

Third course jumbo shrimp in a butter sauce.

The waiter mashed our potatoes on the plate with the butter sauce.  It was so good.

Dessert was a chocolate moose cake with mango ice cream.  Perfect ending.

Sunday: We went to two different sacrament meetings, one at 9:00am and then one in a different chapel at 11:00am.  We wanted to see the great growth of the church.  I remember that there were only a few members in the branch when I served in Cuenca in 1971 and now it is a stake with 5 buildings and 7 wards in the city.  

Three "gringa" missionaries serving in the first ward.

The girl in the middle was baptized the day before and confirmed in church.

These are the missionaries in the second ward we visited.

We took a cab back into the historic district and found lunch.

September 12th through September 18th:

Monday: We spent the morning posting the blog and packing.  We then went to a Panama hat factory.  Panama hats are not made in Panama in case you were wondering.

Homero Ortega Hat Factory is a four generation company.

They are called a toquilla straw hat.

A hat can cost from $20.00 to $1,000.00

We then found a place to have lunch and then a stop at an ice cream parlor.

The new cathedral in the background.

Waiting for lunch.

We then took a taxi to the airport for our trip home. We got home about 7:00pm.

Tuesday through Friday: We participated in virtual trainings sessions for the office volunteers.  One session in the morning and one in the evening. Saturday: We only had a training session in the morning. I cooked orange chicken and invited one of the managers of the patron housing building to have lunch with us. Sunday:  We took an Uber to and from church.  We then had Elder and Sister Cameron, who are serving in the Quito Mission office to lunch.  They brought two of the office elders with them. We cooked a roast and had baked veggies, mashed potatoes, and gravy for lunch.  It was nice to have someone else to talk to.  We talked to the kids who were together for their monthly family dinner.

Elder and Sister Cameron

Elders Oman and Rojas