El Prohibido Cultural Center

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Coffee Tasting at Tierra Diabla

Tierra Diabla. Exciting name for a small coffee shop in El Vado. It is part of the cultural scene in the neighborhood. The atmosphere around it is very special. A few meters from La Cruz, in front of the square and viewpoint. The landscapes and sunsets are unforgettable. You can enjoy them while having a cup of coffee and a dessert. The menu of Tierra Diabla is intimately linked to the Ecuadorian coffee culture. To the tradition of making coffee in the style of the grandmother. Rich and bitter house coffee. It is the connection with memories and emotions. The main ingredient is fresh Arabica coffee beans from the highlands, grown in Santa Isabel, in the south of the province of Azuay. Roasted and ground. The cafecito is also a center of culture, art gallery, design and applied art store. With its tables extended towards the plaza, there is space to listen to good music. The International Coffee Day is celebrated here every October 1st. In November it serves purple colada and bread guaguas. To accompany the coffee, nothing better than a 100% cocoa brownie. That's not all. Nonna" Diabla's suggestions include carrot and pineapple pies, cookies from her own recipe book, eggplants and baked tomatoes with cheese. Sicilian bread, fogaccio, sandwiches, doughnuts, lemonade or Mama Huma... the perfect place to clear your mind, clear your head, wake up your taste buds with something out of the ordinary. It offers the service of selling coffee in bulk, by the pound. Ana Benavides is the barista, guide of Tierra Diabla, a professional in high quality Ecuadorian coffee. She creates new and different drinks based on it, using milk, essences and liquors. She knows the art of latte or coffee with milk, with designs on its surface. Cuenca is no exception within the world-wide current of specialty coffee. Local baristas like Ana, with their talent and the use of the national product, have become the alternative to international chains. Tierra Diabla puts its share of effort into positioning national coffee. Ecuador cultivates 2 species of coffee plants: Arabica and Robusta. The crops are grown throughout the territory, even in Galapagos. There are coffee plantations in 20 of the 24 provinces of the country.

0.06 Km.

El Vado Traditional Neighborhood

The inhabitants of this traditional neighborhood in Cuenca consider the place as a cultural relic, because it preserves many characteristics of the city of the past and is a source of inspiration for craftsmen and artists, due to the presence of the Tomebamba River Ravine, the typical climb and the Cross. The culture and memory of Cuenca are still alive in El Vado, aspects that can only be experienced when walking along its paths and entering its houses, to share with the people. The neighborhood is full of characters. El Vado is so named because it was and still is one of the most important access points to the Historic Center of Cuenca from the south, crossing the unpredictable Tomebamba River. The buildings in the sector preserve colonial and republican styles, which are complemented by its cobblestone streets. The "Casa de la Lira", birthplace of the musician José María Rodríguez, is famous. The main street is called La Condamine in homage to one of the scientists of the French Geodesic Mission of the 18th century. The hanging houses of the Ravine are also admired. The history of the site goes back to the first years of the Spanish colonization, when the conquerors were looking for a visible place to place the christian cross. The main activities that take place in El Vado are crafts and art. Among the craftsmen, there are master luthiers or instrument makers, tinsmiths, forge workers, saddlers, hairdressers, barbers, embroiderers, pyrotechnic, hat makers or bakers. An intense artistic activity revolves around the El Prohibido Cultural Center, which contains a museum of extreme art, a meeting place for cultural managers and actors of the city or for the activity of bohemian groups. Within the framework of the local culture, El Vado’s festivals are renowned and mentioned in poems and popular songs, such as "Por eso te quiero Cuenca" to the rhythm of "capizhca", as well as its athletic competitions in the month of May.

0.08 Km.

10 de Agosto Market

Interest : Culture Type: Food and Supply Market Class : Urban Friendly with: children, families, seniors Relevant categories : Historic Center of Cuenca, Cultural Heritage of Humanity UNESCO - Within the Macizo del Cajas Biosphere Reserve UNESCO - Within Cuenca, National Cultural Heritage of Ecuador Hours : Monday to Sunday 07:00 - 18:00. The Historic Center of the city of Cuenca has three popular markets: August 10, October 9 and November 3, which curiously represent the three main dates of the Ecuadorian Independence process. Of these, the Mercado 10 de Agosto is the most central; a total mix of people, smells, colors and tastes. Visiting it may seem like a bizarre experience, but soon after being on the site this feeling disappears and despite its modernist structure, inside it preserves the characteristics of a popular Andean market intact. It was inaugurated on November 3, 1954. Years ago they remodeled it, placing two escalators to access the second floor, the food court. And on its façade, local artists painted three enormous murals in which they represented the symbols of Cuencanity: The Cathedral, the Plaza de los Flores, the Chola Cuencana and the Barranco. Tourists are surprised to find escalators in such a popular place. It has become a gastronomic custom for visitors to go to the food stalls on the upper floor, due to their cheap prices and because there they can consume a variety of traditional and typical dishes of Cuencan and Ecuadorian food: pork hornado, potatoes with leather or "crazy potatoes", corn or "mote" in its different preparations, potato tortilla or "llapingacho", lunches, smoothies and much more. The 10 de Agosto Market is also famous for its section of medicinal plants where it is possible to access an ancient healing method known as "clean", a process that has been inherited from generation to generation of herbalists and herbalists, vendors who know the properties plant healing. Vegetables, meats, handicrafts, fruits, sweets, all kinds of supplies and above all the spontaneous affection of people for foreigners, are part of this small world. Source: Fundación Municipal Turismo para Cuenca

0.16 Km.

Casa de la Mujer (Woman's House) craft center

The Centro Municipal Artesanal (CEMUART)-Casa de la Mujer, promotes the fair commercialization of Cuenca's artisan products, since 1998. CEMUART is located in an old patrimonial house, in front of San Francisco Square, in the Historical Center. Inside, there are more than a hundred commercial premises with all kinds of handicrafts. Tourists can find almost the entire range of souvenirs to take home to family and friends. Toquilla straw hats, silver and gold filigree jewelry, textiles, wood carvings, ceramics, basketry, tagua, Andean musical instruments, glass, leather objects such as belts, bags and wallets, etc. A special place to find a gift, all under the same roof. The name Casa de la Mujer has its origin in the need to emphasize the important role of women in the artisan trades and their ability to perform them as a life option and to maintain their homes. Although the site is very well located and easily accessible, organized craftsmen and women take advantage of holidays and important dates in the city to hold outdoor fairs in much more central locations such as the block of the Cathedral, Sucre Street and Benigno Malo. CEMUART is an encounter with design, color, variety and cultural influence from all over the world. Its craftsmen and women are duly qualified. The cultural richness of Cuenca exhibited in these small stands puts something for all tastes within reach. The interior courtyard and its premises are covered. Buying handicrafts has this comfort even on rainy days. A nice feature is the dialogue that the visitor can initiate with the artisans, while watching their work and products. When people visit Cuenca, they want to know where they can find a souvenir. Bring a little culture. If there is no time to shop, you should go to the Casa de la Mujer. It's an option that could save a long walk around the city.

0.25 Km.

Toquilla Straw Hats at Lazareto District

Lazareto, a community in the Bellavista neighborhood, linked to the history of a leper hospital. It is located in the north of Cuenca, between the hill of Cullca and the Milchichig River. The traditional weaving of the toquilla straw hat, Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, is part of Lazareto's handicraft activity. A family company that exports the garment is based there, with an important monthly production that it sends to 11 countries. The most direct experience for the tourists who come to the place is to enter the houses of the neighbors accompanied by a guide to admire the work of weaving. Weavers acquire the raw material in the Park of Maria Auxiliadora, a very close sector. The techniques are transmitted to the children at home, through observation and imitation. For this neighbourhood, which perpetuates tradition, this is a feature of its identity and a component of its cultural heritage. The toquilla straw hat is made from the fibres of a palm tree that grows on the Ecuadorian coast. The weavers start from the crown and brim of the hat. The duration depends on the quality and fineness. Near Lazareto is the hill of Cullca. Sister elevation to the hill of Turi to the south. Scenic viewpoint of the city from which pictures can be taken. Nearby infrastructures are the Catholic Chapel of the Virgen de Tránsito of the Dominican order, the Catholic University, Zenón Park, Lazareto's courts and a small place called "La Casa del Sombrero" (The House of the Hat) dedicated to the promotion of the toquilla straw hat. Mariano Estrella promoted the construction of a leprocomio in the 19th century. He chose a place in the Milchichig ravine which was estimated to be far from Cuenca. Four Dominican nuns arrived on July 14, 1889, to attend to 50 patients. Today the hospital is called "Mariano Estrella". With the passing of the years the lazaretto disappeared, the city grew and integrated it into its urban development. The nosocomial became the identity of the place.

0.27 Km.

Workshop-Museum of the Toquilla Straw Hat by Paredes Family

The traditional weaving of the Ecuadorian toquilla straw hat is Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity declared by UNESCO since December 5, 2012. In Cuenca there is a Hat Museum, owned by the Paredes-Roldán family, dedicated to the public dissemination of this centennial craft. The Museum opened its doors in 2007. A traditional house of the Tomebamba river’s ravine, with more than a century of antiquity. The house was converted into cultural center, to make known to the world a family tradition for generations: the production and commercialization of the toquilla straw hat. The Paredes Roldán house is also part of the El Vado neighborhood, an important area of handicraft activity in Cuenca. Its Museum tells in detail the history and the present of a craftwork admired in the world. The objective is that the tourist has a first class and pedagogical experience, about the toquilla straw hat in the Southern Region of Ecuador. The Hat Museum is divided into several rooms, which exhibit different collections: tools that were used to make custom hats, recreation of a workshop for arranging hats and what are the steps for the elaboration of a hat (harvesting, processing of the fiber and weaving). All this craft industry is supported by the skillful hands of thousands of Ecuadorian craftsmen and women. In the factory, visitors can appreciate live the making of the hat, from the hand-weaving in a traditional way, the work of the potting machines, the steam presses and the finishing with the making of bands and tafiletes (leather decorative borders). In the sales area, those interested can purchase a finished hat, which can be perfectly adjusted to the different head sizes. There is a great variety of models and designs. The cultural complex also has spaces for events, a cafeteria, a gallery and the terrace with a panoramic view of the Tomebamba river’s ravine and the south of the city.

0.27 Km.