The People: Part 1

We are leaving Cuenca in a few weeks, so we are feeling more reflective. We are beginning a series of posts about people we have come to know in Cuenca. 

Our Conversation Group

Luis

First of all Luis is Vladmir Putin's biggest fan. You might be asking yourself, "why is an Ecuadorian enamored with the president and former leader of KGB of Russia?" Good question...well Luis actually used to be wrestler for the Ecuadorian National Team. He wrestled a number of Russians at championships and came to admire Russia in general. Naturally, the next step is to love the man with the steely blue eyes, who can wrestle bears,  supress all kinds of freedoms, and steal super bowl rings all on a typical Saturday morning. Don't get the wrong impression of Luis. He is a lover not a fighter. He is vegetarian due to his love for animals. More than once naive older gringo women have fallen to his charms and found themselves in our conversation group. One time a woman even said, "I don't know what I am doing here...I just met this guy (referring to Luis). I'm not ready for a Spanish immersion group (responding in English to all of our Spanish inquiries)." She paid and left. One last note. Luis and Andy have begun a personal revolution to change the Spanish language. In Spanish, it is not OK for a man to call a man handsome. Andy has made this mistake more than once. Luis and Andy are ignoring the norms of Spanish and pushing through calling various men handsome. We will miss Luis.

Mayra is in the hat with the yellow purse.

Andy once said that Mayra is the star of our conversation group. She comes every week smiling and giving sweet salutations to the people in our group. People light up when they see her come through the door. One thing I noticed about people who live in Cuenca is the way they say "no".  They extend the "N" sound and hold it like a person singing the last note of a song. Then they throw the "O" at the end with finality. It is something like "Nnnnnnnno!" When I brought it up to Mayra, she denied this saying "Nnnnnnnno!" It was so funny. Now she exaggerates her "no"s for me.  She is also a great help in our group. She speaks English very well and has lived in the United States. She is always willing to help us with our pronunciation while looking and dressing beautiful. I am impressed with her shoes and her scarfs. I love her accessories. We will miss Mayra. 

Sandra and Wayne are in the middle. 

Sandra and Wayne are the founders of our Conversation Group. I started talking to Sandra in a coffee shop one day and she told me about the group. Since then, we have been seeing them almost every week. We want to be like Wayne and Sandra when we group up. Wayne is a genuis. No really. He has a PhD in, I think, micro biology (if not micro biology, it definitely has an "ology" at the end). He also computer programer, tai chi practitioner, and a future barista. His hobbies include thinking and refuting bad arguments found on facebook. 

The city of Cuenca should hire Sandra and give her backpay for all the times she has informed people of all the events happening in Cuenca. If you ask Sandra "what is happening tonight?" she can usually tell three options with each having a sub option or two. She knows more about what is happening in Cuenca than the mayor. We kneel before her Spanish ability. She tells interesting stories in Spanish (and English...and French?) with grace and accuracy.  She continues to edit PhD theses and is in an constant state of revision in order to exploit Wayne for mugs of coffee and dinners. She finished revising a paper yesterday, but don't tell Wayne. We will miss Sandra and Wayne.

To be continued.....