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Azuay is the austral province of Ecuador and one of the provinces of major attraction nationally and internationally. Its capital, Cuenca, is located 2500 meters above sea level; it has all the charms to be visited by the world. It is the capital of culture and the arts. Cuenca has four rivers: Yanuncay, Tomebamba, Tarqui and Machangara and it also counts with various marvelous attractions to visit.
 Culture -Architecture, Art, handicrafts and Museums |
Culture  Cuenca |
Cuenca, Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is called the Athens of Ecuador for its important cultural activity; its colonial constructions, its paintings, and its literature are a reflection of a typical city during the colonial era. It also has cobblestone streets, iron balconies, florid plazas, and patios.
In its historical center there stands two cathedrals; the Inmaculada Cathedral which is the largest temples in Ecuador and is considered one of the major works on the Latin American level. The pillars of the cathedral are decorated with red and white marble. On its interior, its beautiful canopy decorated with gold and stained glass windows. The Romantic and Baroque styles are present in its architecture.
The El Sagrario Cathedral represents the oldest construction of Cuenca. Its foundation was constructed with ancient Incan stones from the destroyed city of Tomebamba. It has four chapels, oils, mural paintings, and one of the most beautiful wooden tubular organs of the country elaborated by artists from Cuenca. At present time it is a museum of religious art.
Handicrafts. At the historical center you can find a museum where you can observe the complete process of the making of a straw hat, the same that are world renowned. At the Rotari plaza you can acquire or just simply see the handicrafts made from wood, ceramic, straw, plastic, etc.
Cholas Cuencanas. Her personality is as colorful as her clothing and preserves a traditional mode of dress.
Museums
The Monastaries of El Carmen and Las Conceptas, the Municipal Palace with its marble façade, the Museums: Cloister of the Conceptas of Modern Art, Remigio Crespo Toral, The Central Bank, House of Culture and popular arts.
The Museum of the Central Bank
This museum is one of the most prestigious and illustrious of the country; it contains various rooms which exhibit past and present cultures, distributed by the regions of all o the provinces of Ecuador. This is the only place in Ecuador that presents an actual exhibit of Shuar head shrinking known also as Tzansas.
Museum of the Aboriginal Cultures: This museum shows a lively exhibit about the forms of life, customs, and transcendence of each of the aboriginal cultures of Ecuador
The Archeological Museum of Ingapirca: Along with the archeological zone; it exhibits a scaled model explanative of Ingapirca and an important show of diverse objects found during the excavations that show the presence of the Cañari and Inca cultures. Exhibits of textiles, ceramics, and jewelry can be appreciated.
At present day, Inti Raymi is continually celebrated here which is a festivity for the June solstice that thanks the sun for its good harvests. Many tourists both national and international come to observe.
| Cuenca and its Outskirts |
Culture Cuenca |
Turi Viewpoint. From this viewpoint you can observe the magnitude of the colonial and modern of the city.
Gualaceo: Is characterized by its charming natural surroundings. Gualaceo is adorned by the crystalline and tranquil waters of the river by the same name. Every March the festival of the Peach is celebrated. Bullcay deserves a mentioning; a artisanal town located 5 minutes before arriving to Gualaceo where the famous cloaks by means of the millenary technique of IKAT.
Chordeleg: Internationally known as the artisanal center of the south of the country, for it jewelry work of gold and silver elaborated by the local artisans. The make necklaces, earrings, bracelets and decorations of gold, silver, and copper. Here you can find the principal workshops where the finest jewelry is made for the best jewelry shops of the country. Chordeleg was a sacred place for the aboriginal communities.
Giron. On the trajectory you can visit el Portete de Tarqui, a place where the battle of the same name took place. Places to visit: the museum “Casa de los Tratados,” and the waterfall of Giron with its impressive cascades which is visited by national and foreign tourists.
A place of interest due to its characteristic landscapes, the archeological valor of the zone, the flora and fauna richness, and especially the endemic and the 230 lakes with which are incorporated to the national system of protection of Ecuador. The Cajas National Park has 29,000 hectares and is found between 3,000 and 4,500 meters above sea level.
In this marvelous park there lives a large amount of bird species. The park is constituted for a large part to the moor. There exists a great variety of plants in the form of moss that grow over reservoirs of water in the ground. There is also a large number of different species of shrubbery. There is also a vegetable formation denominated the Forest of Quinoa, Polilepys or the commonly called “paper tree” due to its bark detaching in sheets.
This forest is formed by trees between 8 and 10 meters in height which are found on the edges of rivers and constitute the only trees that survive above 4,000 meters. Their trunks are twisted and covered with moss. This indicates the natural valor of the zone and its species.
Only 8 kilometers from Cuenca you can find these marvelous thermal waters. These are of volcanic origin and reach the surface with a temperature of 70 degrees Celsius which then cools down to 35-40 degrees Celsius. Tourists are also offered hotels and other services.
The Virgin of Pramo, Sanctuary in El Cajas
The devout of Cuenca and those from other areas visit the Paramo daily for religious reasons. The image of the Virgin Mary is ten meters away and is found on a stone surrounded by red and white roses.
| The Ruins of Ingapirca |
Archeology Cuenca |
This is the most important archeological compound in the country. Here the Incan mark is reflected through the architecture, this elliptic construction dates to the era of Huayna-Capac and is constructed with perfectly shaped rocks and joined with natural mortar from the Cañari and Incan cultures. It is thought that Ingapirca was not just a fort but also an administrative and religious center since ceremonies to worship the sun took place here. The ruins are composed of a cemetery, solar observatories, paths, deposits, priest lodging, and an indigenous plaza, among other structures.
El Barranco is one of the monumental collections of most importance in the historical center of Cuenca. It has historical value because the archeologist Max Uhle found the sector named Pumapungo, archeological vestiges of the ancient Incan city with its warehouses, sun temple, gardens, and religious center. It is considered that Tomebamba was one of the principal urban Incan centers.
Is one of the oldest settlements in the province of Azuay. Its name means “strength” in quechua and in Incan times was a strategic point. Archeological remains were found at his site.
Tarqui: Community tourism is a pleasant intercultural travel program where you can have access to the daily life of a rural community. They offer community services to tourists to participate in the harvesting and sowing of fruits and vegetables, basting, observation of traditional dance, eat traditional foods or “Pampamesa,” where tourists are invited to help with the preparation of food.
Another site of community tourism is the Biotourist Passage of Yanuncay where the communities offer a tourist local foods and handicrafts.
The Cajas National Park is paradise for those who love sport fishing, where you can find large populations of trout in the lakes, the most important fish species of the park. You can also go for a hike, go rock climbing, or go camping alongside a lake.
There are also other sporting alternatives such as bungee jumping and paragliding. Cojitamba is one of the three sacred Cañari mountains. This volcanic rock peak offers hiking opportunities through sport routes, traditional routes and artificial routes. At the base you can also take a bike path or rappel among the many options available at Cojitambo.
This is an extraordinary refuge of wildlife. The romerillo reaches a height of 25 meters. It counts with 350 species of plants of which 40 are orchids and 831 are epiphytes. There are 88 species of birds, 7 species of bats, 20 species of mammals, 2 species of small lizards, 10 species of frogs, and a great variety of insects that have yet to be identified. Birds: the Condor of the Andes, the curiquingue, the toucan, the carpenter bird, and many more.
| Cajas National Park |
Avifauna Cuenca |
To observe the national bird, the condor, there exists no better place than Cajas. Here you can also observe rabbits, ducks, and trout with great ease. In addition there exists white tailed deer, the spectacled bear, pumas, deer of the moor, moor rabbit, hummingbirds, tapir of the Andes, and other animals of the moor. Species near extinction: the condor, vulture gryphus, turdus serranus, salmo trutta, felix concolor, larus serranus, mazama rufina, metallura baroni, odocoileus virginianus, gazelle, puma(felis concolor), and deer. The representative animals representative of the area are rabbits and ducks and among the important birds the caracara, condor (vulture gryphus) and the toucan of the Andes.
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