Cuenca

"The Jewel of Ecuador", Cuenca is the third largest city in Ecuador but with the feel of a small colonial town.  Compared to the high activity of Banos, we mostly relaxed and took in the charm of its windy cobble-stone streets, romantic plazas, and sprawling markets.  One of Oliver´s goals in Cuenca was to find a nice Panama hat, made of tightly woven straw, which the city is known for producing.  After browsing and haggling our way through the markets, he finally found one we both loved.  We toured the Museo del Banco Central "Pumapargo", which had a number of ethnographic exhibits, though the real draw was the "tsantas", or shrunken heads.  Photography was banned, but we can tell you they were quite creepy and small.  The real highlight of Cuenca for us was a romantic dinner at La Vina, a delicious Italian restaurant where we gorged on real pizza, bruschetta, pasta, and wine.  Happy and full, we strolled back to our hostel passing beautifully lit plazas with many other couples walking arm in arm.  Cuenca was colonial Ecuador at its most romantic.

Hat museum.

Found the perfect fit.

Llamas!