Cuenca

Driving up those winding mountain roads almost felt like home....we have been with the Andes now for almost 7.000 kilometers and 3 months. And behind the clouds, a marvel of colonial architecture awaited us: Cuenca, UNESCO world heritage site. built on the ruins of an Inca fortress, the city does not only have the most charming squares and streets, but also South america' largest cathedral (which looks rather unusual, since the towers had to remain unfinished due to a calculation error of the architect...building them as intended would have sunk the entire construction; German architect btw). The next day, we made a trip to the national park Cajas...in which the Andes showed us another new, unknown face...an extremely wet one! over 800 small lakes and lagoons and numerous plants save an incredible quantity of water. Due to heavy rain we actually shortened our hiking trip considerably, allowing us some time to visit the local museum, with big life sized dioramas of the different indigenous peoples of Ecuador. All in all, Cuenca was definitely a while-worth stop for getting acclimatized again for the height and our last days in the northern Andes.Read more