You both are inspiring. Thank you so much for putting these together. My husband and I are planning to go for a month. Will check into the Spanish lessons. Thanks x a trillion.
Nice video. Love TR3S Pizza. Maybe a video about your Spanish lessons and the different options and prices. I'll be back in November and if I'm still enamored with Cuenca it will probably be my home base. It's one of the few places I've found where I can enjoy a good life and still have money left for travel.
I went to the Spanish Institute on calle Mariscal Sucre about 3 blocks off Parque Calderon. My cost for a private tutor was $10 and hour and they were very flexible with scheduling. I booked 4 hours a week (2, 2-hour lessons) which was enough to be enjoyable and enriching without seeming like work. Super nice people there and a great value, I think...I don't know the full range of options or even if there are options (everyone I've met there had 1-on-1 lessons). Have you tried Cafe Del Zaguan on calle Simon Bolivar? The carrot cake and coffee there are a little to addicting.
@@SlowpokeTravel Thanks for the info. Sounds reasonable. I haven't tried Cafe del Zaguan. I'll give it a try when I return in Oct. for my last exploratory visit. It looks like you're wrapping up there in Cuenca. Do yourself a treat and have dinner at Tiestos. I highly recommend the Menu de Degustacion #1.It's $80 for two. But it's five courses paired with wines, dessert and coffee. All prepared at your table. You don't have to thank me but you will owe me one. lol
it really is surprising to see where the money ends up...hanging out in coffee shops is really a form of entertainment for CG and I, but it's shocking how much money we spend on that activity, especially when we're in the USA
What we spend eating out almost daily in Cuenca is probably less than what we spend just on groceries in the USA...the drawback is that dining out all of the time is not the healthiest diet
Our Destination Bucket List is pretty extensive...CG and I talk a lot about locales in Asia and Europe when we're making plans, but so far we've stayed in North and South America because it's been easiest to work out the budget for those destinations. I tried to sell a 2-month long housesit in Singapore to CG earlier this year, but I couldn't get her onboard.
Can you comment about the difficulty of reaching Cuenca to and from Canada and many places in the US because of changes and stopovers?? Also, CSN you describe your process of getting your Airbnb sight unseen? I always wonder how people can be sure of what they're getting that way.
We flew from Tampa to Guayaquil. We considered flying into Quito, but the elevation in Quito is about a 1000ft higher than in Cuenca, and the bus ride from Quito to Cuenca is much longer, so Guayaquil felt like the better option. I think Flying into Guayaquil and then heading directly to Cuenca is the best option, whether by plane or bus. Too many locals told us to "be careful" while we were staying in Guayaquil, which is pretty off-putting, so while we visited in Guayaquil for a week before heading to Cuenca on this trip, we wouldn't spend extra time in Guayaquil in the future. You can take regional flights from Quito or Guayaquil into Cuenca, but we didn't really consider that option or look into it too closely since we travel with carry on luggage only, and I wasn't sure how complicated the baggage process would be with Latam or Avianca and we didn't want to have to check our bags if there was a complication. The bus ride from Guayaquil to Cuenca is 4-5 hours--if there are no delays--and only about $10 per person. The bus station in Guayaquil is gigantic and a bit overwhelming and "kind of an adventure" is the best way to approach it. All in all, I'd say getting to Cuenca isn't difficult, but it is a slight pain in the butt, and in future trips, I think I might try the regional airline since I already have the bus experience now. As far as airbnb's go, it's a crapshoot for sure. We comb over the reviews pretty thoroughly and search for keywords in the reviews like "noise" "noisy" "quiet" "wifi"...we only book highly rated airbnb's with multiple reviews, and we steer clear of new airbnbs with no ratings. I almost always know exactly where the airbnb is before we book it. I use google maps and info in the reviews and the photos to find the exact location of the airbnb, and then I explore the surrounding area on goolge maps, looking to see if it's truly the spot we want to be in. There's no way to be sure though. Ultimately, I find that just being open-minded and "Zen" are my best tools. My favorite airbnb here in Cuenca--so far--was also the dirtiest. It was pretty filthy, so the first day there we did quite a bit of cleaning. If we were only staying a day or two it would have sucked, but since we stayed a month, it was only a small drawback, and the pros far outweighed the cons. One of the airbnbs where we stayed in Guayaquil was super clean and quiet, but there was no water to drink, only 1 roll of toilet paper, and really nothing to make a person feel at home...and it was easily one of my least favorite airbnbs ever. A lot of airbnb stuff is going to be subjective. I think sticking to well-reviewed listings with lots of reviews--and crossing your fingers--is the best anyone can do on airbnb.
@@SlowpokeTravel Utterly incredible. I know my wife and I could never go through what you have. I don't particularly want to be involved with Airbnb anywhere! I can't trust the process. How could the company accept a dirty location on Airbnb? About the traveling, I guess we'd have to forget about Ecuador until something changes with getting to Cuenca. I wouldn't want to think of going from Calgary, change in Toronto, change to Miami or Atlanta, fly to Guayaquil, or even first to Bogota, and drive on to Cuenca. And back to Canada the same way as snowbirds every year Maybe if I were 20-30 years younger I'd do it, but not now. Maybe these are reasons so many people just stick to Costa Rica and Panama as snowbirds.....
It's great that you show examples of how much each meal costs. Is it possible to break down how much you spend for two for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? It would be good to understand if it's the same as the US where dinner is typically the most expensive meal of the day... or is it breakfast or lunch over there? I would assume the groceries are mostly for dinner? Only if it's easy to do... no need to go through a lot of work or reconciliation.
Breakfast and lunch are definitely the cheapest--with "almuerzos" almost always being the best dining deal of the day. In Ecuador, we mostly buy fruits and veggies at the grocery...something to offset all the carbs we consume eating out, and to use as side dishes for the leftovers we bring home. I've got a few daily cost videos where I show what we spend on meals during the day, although it is mostly breakfast and lunch...we don't eat dinners out much, even in the USA (or especially in the USA!)
You both are inspiring. Thank you so much for putting these together. My husband and I are planning to go for a month. Will check into the Spanish lessons. Thanks x a trillion.
Thanks for watching!
Nice video. Love TR3S Pizza. Maybe a video about your Spanish lessons and the different options and prices. I'll be back in November and if I'm still enamored with Cuenca it will probably be my home base. It's one of the few places I've found where I can enjoy a good life and still have money left for travel.
I went to the Spanish Institute on calle Mariscal Sucre about 3 blocks off Parque Calderon. My cost for a private tutor was $10 and hour and they were very flexible with scheduling. I booked 4 hours a week (2, 2-hour lessons) which was enough to be enjoyable and enriching without seeming like work. Super nice people there and a great value, I think...I don't know the full range of options or even if there are options (everyone I've met there had 1-on-1 lessons). Have you tried Cafe Del Zaguan on calle Simon Bolivar? The carrot cake and coffee there are a little to addicting.
@@SlowpokeTravel Thanks for the info. Sounds reasonable. I haven't tried Cafe del Zaguan. I'll give it a try when I return in Oct. for my last exploratory visit. It looks like you're wrapping up there in Cuenca. Do yourself a treat and have dinner at Tiestos. I highly recommend the Menu de Degustacion #1.It's $80 for two. But it's five courses paired with wines, dessert and coffee. All prepared at your table. You don't have to thank me but you will owe me one. lol
Tiestos. East of Parque Calderon. Just past Mariano Cueva on Juan Jaramillo. Suggest reservation.
I forgot to mention I use Google translate to take a picture of your menu and translated into English. I wanted to know what the pink dessert was.
what was it? I ate it and I don't know :^)
Lol😂
This is good to do, even if you're not traveling. I need to start again. I did it for a while and was always surprised at how much I spent on things.
it really is surprising to see where the money ends up...hanging out in coffee shops is really a form of entertainment for CG and I, but it's shocking how much money we spend on that activity, especially when we're in the USA
I don't blame your for spending so much on snacks! From what I've seen throughout these videos those snacks are awesome! xD
What we spend eating out almost daily in Cuenca is probably less than what we spend just on groceries in the USA...the drawback is that dining out all of the time is not the healthiest diet
Do you guys have any plans of traveling to Italy or Spain or somewhere similar?
Our Destination Bucket List is pretty extensive...CG and I talk a lot about locales in Asia and Europe when we're making plans, but so far we've stayed in North and South America because it's been easiest to work out the budget for those destinations. I tried to sell a 2-month long housesit in Singapore to CG earlier this year, but I couldn't get her onboard.
I’d love to know if you all track your steps. I’m guessing all the walking helps keep your weight in check. You both look great!
Like a fitbit? I've never tried one of those gadgets...seems like it would be motivational...do you use a device like that for fitness?
@@SlowpokeTravel yes my iPhone and Apple Watch do my tracking.
Enjoy … you can’t take it with you when the game of life is over.
that's it in a nutshell
Can you comment about the difficulty of reaching Cuenca to and from Canada and many places in the US because of changes and stopovers?? Also, CSN you describe your process of getting your Airbnb sight unseen? I always wonder how people can be sure of what they're getting that way.
We flew from Tampa to Guayaquil. We considered flying into Quito, but the elevation in Quito is about a 1000ft higher than in Cuenca, and the bus ride from Quito to Cuenca is much longer, so Guayaquil felt like the better option. I think Flying into Guayaquil and then heading directly to Cuenca is the best option, whether by plane or bus. Too many locals told us to "be careful" while we were staying in Guayaquil, which is pretty off-putting, so while we visited in Guayaquil for a week before heading to Cuenca on this trip, we wouldn't spend extra time in Guayaquil in the future. You can take regional flights from Quito or Guayaquil into Cuenca, but we didn't really consider that option or look into it too closely since we travel with carry on luggage only, and I wasn't sure how complicated the baggage process would be with Latam or Avianca and we didn't want to have to check our bags if there was a complication. The bus ride from Guayaquil to Cuenca is 4-5 hours--if there are no delays--and only about $10 per person. The bus station in Guayaquil is gigantic and a bit overwhelming and "kind of an adventure" is the best way to approach it. All in all, I'd say getting to Cuenca isn't difficult, but it is a slight pain in the butt, and in future trips, I think I might try the regional airline since I already have the bus experience now. As far as airbnb's go, it's a crapshoot for sure. We comb over the reviews pretty thoroughly and search for keywords in the reviews like "noise" "noisy" "quiet" "wifi"...we only book highly rated airbnb's with multiple reviews, and we steer clear of new airbnbs with no ratings. I almost always know exactly where the airbnb is before we book it. I use google maps and info in the reviews and the photos to find the exact location of the airbnb, and then I explore the surrounding area on goolge maps, looking to see if it's truly the spot we want to be in. There's no way to be sure though. Ultimately, I find that just being open-minded and "Zen" are my best tools. My favorite airbnb here in Cuenca--so far--was also the dirtiest. It was pretty filthy, so the first day there we did quite a bit of cleaning. If we were only staying a day or two it would have sucked, but since we stayed a month, it was only a small drawback, and the pros far outweighed the cons. One of the airbnbs where we stayed in Guayaquil was super clean and quiet, but there was no water to drink, only 1 roll of toilet paper, and really nothing to make a person feel at home...and it was easily one of my least favorite airbnbs ever. A lot of airbnb stuff is going to be subjective. I think sticking to well-reviewed listings with lots of reviews--and crossing your fingers--is the best anyone can do on airbnb.
@@SlowpokeTravel Utterly incredible. I know my wife and I could never go through what you have. I don't particularly want to be involved with Airbnb anywhere! I can't trust the process. How could the company accept a dirty location on Airbnb? About the traveling, I guess we'd have to forget about Ecuador until something changes with getting to Cuenca. I wouldn't want to think of going from Calgary, change in Toronto, change to Miami or Atlanta, fly to Guayaquil, or even first to Bogota, and drive on to Cuenca. And back to Canada the same way as snowbirds every year Maybe if I were 20-30 years younger I'd do it, but not now. Maybe these are reasons so many people just stick to Costa Rica and Panama as snowbirds.....
It's great that you show examples of how much each meal costs. Is it possible to break down how much you spend for two for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? It would be good to understand if it's the same as the US where dinner is typically the most expensive meal of the day... or is it breakfast or lunch over there? I would assume the groceries are mostly for dinner? Only if it's easy to do... no need to go through a lot of work or reconciliation.
Breakfast and lunch are definitely the cheapest--with "almuerzos" almost always being the best dining deal of the day. In Ecuador, we mostly buy fruits and veggies at the grocery...something to offset all the carbs we consume eating out, and to use as side dishes for the leftovers we bring home. I've got a few daily cost videos where I show what we spend on meals during the day, although it is mostly breakfast and lunch...we don't eat dinners out much, even in the USA (or especially in the USA!)
Thats not a great filter barely works
Hope you have a sizzling 4th!
thanks! we did! hope you had the same
for two skinny people you spend a lot on food!!!
Man guy u dont want to do anything fun lol