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Blog postMark and I have been anticipating the opening of Hansel and Gretel Panaderia/Pasteleria at the corner of Luis Moreno Mora and Roberto Crespo Toral in the Plaza Europea complex for quite some time. When I walked over to Plaza Europea to check on its progress, I happened on the restaurant next door which is Goza (numero dos), which was quite a surprise!
Everyone (it seems) is familiar with the Goza in El Centro (on Calle Larga), where you can enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner al fres -
Blog postWow, it looks like I'm posting twice a year -- Christmas and Easter!
Since I last blogged we have two more grandchildren (Adeline Grace and Ellis Jon); we both have our Social Security; Mark is still teaching one ESL class per cycle at CEDEI; and I'm still writing (just not here -- it seems). Three more Chicken Soup books have come out and I have four stories in them, which is always fun. I love going back to the States to Barnes & Noble and browsing through the book section an -
Blog postWow, the past few weeks have been amazing and exhausting. There have been concerts, ballets, galas, private dinners, parties galore...more parties, the festival of lights, Christmas plays, musicals, symphonies, more dinners, and today is Christmas Eve and the Pase del Niño Viajero parade (that lasts eight hours).
If I could pick a favorite event this season, it would be the Nutcracker Ballet with the Cuenca Symphonic Orchestra. It was the first time either one of us had seen -
Blog postMark and I recently celebrated a milestone (42 years of marriage) and we didn't even have to leave town. We took a taxi three blocks up the hill (that was my suggestion), and entered the doors of the new five-star Four Points Sheraton.
The lobby of the hotel is spacious and luxurious with five-star service as soon as you enter. And the view is amazing at every turn, especially from Cook's Restaurant at sunset and there is plenty of balcony space to enjoy the city lights "al fr -
Blog postIt's that time of year when we start thinking about what to give our neighbors and friends for Christmas. It's easy for us; we just send our kids an Amazon card via Punch Bowl Greeting Cards. And, of course, in January 2018 we'll be going back to the States for the "twins" -- both our daughter-in-laws are pregnant and due at the same time. We thought it was so kind of them to coordinate that for us!
But what about our friends in Cuenca, what do we give them? We have our g -
Blog postWhat happens when a guy from Berkeley, California goes in search of the best hamburger in Cuenca and comes up short? He makes his own burger and his business is an overnight success!
Bodhi and His Welcoming Staff
We went to Bodhi's Burgers the first week they were open and just followed the crowds (literally!). I felt like I was in the movie "Field of Dreams" where all the cars led to the same spot. With their "In-N-Out Burgers" logo and 1950's soda fountai -
Blog postThe New Pier at Puerto Lopez Last month we visited Puerto Lopez and stayed at our favorite place – Hosteria Mandala – and got to finally see the completed malecon (boardwalk). It’s been three years since our last visit and I couldn’t believe the transformation. There are bike lanes, pedestrian lanes, roads and bridges, where dirt and sand used to be. They landscaped the areas with palm trees, flower beds and street lights. The bad news is the side roads—off the malecon--are still dirt (aka
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Blog postWe've been part of the IESS System (Ecuador's National Social Security and Health Care) for the past five years and during that time our premiums have not gone up. For a couple we pay $80.03 monthly, which is all we pay -- no co-pays, no deductibles, and you cannot be denied based on age or pre-existing conditions. It even includes dental care!
All that is changing as of July 2017. New rates are as follows: 17.6% for the holder of the pension and 3.41% for each dependent, so f -
Blog postThe food truck craze isn't only in the States, it's come to Cuenca!
The new "El Patio Comida Urbana" is on the corner of Av. Solano and 28 de Febrero. Opening date was March 30th and they're the new hot spot in town.
It's so close to our condo, we can't help to stop by for a Chai Te Latte Caliente, a gyro, a slice of pizza or a crepe or waffle. All the food trucks have specialties -- even sushi! There's something for everyone and a wonderful courtyard where yo -
Blog postThis is the third part in the series under the New Immigration Law 2017. After you have applied for permanent residency and have been in Ecuador for three years, you're eligible to apply for citizenship if you so choose. The main difference between residency and citizenship is that with a residency visa, you cannot run for political office. With citizenship, you can run for political office, with the exception of the presidency. I don’t know of any expat who has such high political asp
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Blog postThe Newly Released Human Mobility Act (Immigration Law 2017) is causing a bit of confusion for some folks, so I'm going to try and clarify a few things.
In the good old days, we entered Ecuador on a T3 visa, which allowed us to stay 90 days. Actually, we arrived with a 12-IX visa which allowed us six months, but we were able to get permanent residency in three weeks! Imagine that? We were either an immigrant or non-immigrant.
Under the new law, you’re either a transient (visitor) jus -
Blog postThe one thing you can be sure of in Ecuador is change and now we have new changes in residency visas. To clarify the many questions that I’ve received, I’ve decided to blog about it. There are still some unknowns about the new act, but I’ll clear those up as I receive news.
Back in the day (meaning when we got our permanent residency visas in 2010), we went to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Washington DC and received our 12-IX and three weeks later upon arriving in Ecuador we had our pe -
Blog postIt’s hard to believe, but we’re coming up on seven years in Cuenca—almost as much time as we spent in Italy, so naturally it’s a time of reflection (the good and the bad).
The other day a newcomer asked, “What’s changed in the time that you’ve been here?”
At first, I didn’t have an immediate response (my mind went blank) and then it all came to me. Here’s a list (by no means complete), but it will give you some idea of the transformations that have taken place in this beautiful city -
Blog postRight now while I'm writing this blog post, I can hear the fireworks outside in all directions and it's not even New Year's Eve yet! Tomorrow will be spectacular and I hope to capture it in pictures and on video.
Unfortunately, last year I forgot to plug in my camera battery, so you can imagine my disappointment when the red light went on while the fireworks were exploding and I got a snippet here and there.
The New Year's Eve fireworks are the best I've ever witnessed -
Blog postIt’s been six years since we made the journey to Cuenca and we’re beginning to see the end in sight. No, we’re not leaving Cuenca, but in May of 2017 we’ll be receiving our Social Security and we’re going to be traveling more (lots more!). We have three trips planned and one of them is going to be Italy, where we lived for six years and where we started our family.
Let me back up a little bit and say that retiring at age 55 is one of the greatest gifts we could have ever received and we’re -
Blog postMark and I are approaching our six-year anniversary in Cuenca next month. It hardly seems possible, but in that amount of time we have grown to love this country and its people.
April 2016 - The Gardens of Mansion AlcazarWe were young retirees (age 55) when we first arrived and I wondered how we would fit in because everyone was sixty-five or older and now that we’re in our sixties, we feel right at home! Actually, the tide has changed and there are a lot of younger retirees in their 30’s -
Blog postLast Saturday, April 16, 2016, at 6:58 PM, Mark and I were sitting in our living room when we felt a "trembler"; we get them occasionally and never think twice about them. As California natives, we don't consider them noteworthy. But this one was different -- a lot different! The trembler got more intense and then shook hard as we watched the pictures fall from the shelves and the lamps swing back and forth. The shaking continued for a good minute. We heard children cry
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Blog postMy sister and her husband visited us for three weeks and I thought it would be a great time to introduce Question #27 from the book, Living and Retiring in Cuenca: 101 Questions Answered -- Second Edition
We also spent three days in Guayaquil, where we visited the Botanical Gardens, Parque Historico, Malecon 2000, Samborondon, and Plaza Lagos, which was my personal favorite.
I'll save our time in Guayaquil for another post as the majority of our time -
Blog postComing out next month is the book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Joy of Less. In it is my story "Fire Drills" about how we whittled down thirty-five years of marriage into six suitcases. It wasn't easy and it wasn't fun. In fact, I'd rather forget about that part of the journey because it also coincided with selling our house, marrying our younger son, and doing "fire drills."
To be honest, going through photo albums was the most difficult part b -
Blog postQuestion: What is the best time to book tickets to Ecuador?
Answer: According to recent studies, the best time to book a flight is 50 to 100 days before your scheduled flight. The best day to purchase tickets is on a Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. EST. If you can book your flight on a Tuesday or Wednesday, returning the following Tuesday or Wednesday, you also can save some money. If you use all three methods, you can save hundreds of dollars. There are s -
Blog postTres Cupolas
Every week, I'll post a question from the second edition of the book 101 Questions Answered. After five years of living here, some of the questions are vastly different and others are amazingly the same, like Question #1.
Question #1: Why retire in Cuenca and not one of the other top retirement destinations in the world?
Answer: Cuenca was not really our top retirement destination; Italy was our first choice. But on $1,317 a month with my husband’s pension fr -
Blog postFinally, it's finished! After many delays and setbacks, Living and Retiring in Cuenca Second Edition is available on Amazon.com.
When I wrote the first edition in 2011, it was the first English book on Cuenca with the nitty-gritty nuts and bolts on just about everything you would need to know to get your life started in this lovely city. Since that time, many more have jumped on the bandwagon and wrote their own version, either on Cuenca or Ecuador. So do we really need another book on Cu -
Blog postWe have some great news!
On August 17, 2015, we became grandparents for the first time. What a game changer it's been. Our hearts are bursting with joy--the first girl in our family in a very long line of boys. We're thrilled. It also marks a transition in our expat life as we know grandchildren are one of the reasons why expats return to the States for good.
We definitely plan on staying in Cuenca and making more frequent trips back to the States. I look at it this way -
Blog postFor years we've been hearing from our friends, the kids that we teach and from our Ecuadorian neighbors how wonderful Salinas is and the old refrain, "You're going to love it there." Well, I was skeptical because I also heard how it's not so great six months out of the year. There are so many conflicting stories, so we decided to check it out for ourselves. Surprise, surprise, surprise...I loved it.
Here's why:
Reason #1: It's sunny. I guess that's not a big surprise -
Blog postIf you wonder where I've been, I've been writing--just not blogging!
I'm revising the book, 101 Questions Answered on Cuenca. I've uncovered so much material that it really can't be considered a revised edition any longer, but rather a second edition. And my commitment is to keep it updated every month because I never want to go through this much work ever again.
Also, since it's been raining all day in Cuenca, it's perfect writing weather (for me anyway). I gain a lot
Titles By Connie Pombo
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Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Power of Gratitude: 101 Stories about How Being Thankful Can Change Your Life
Aug 23, 2016
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Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Power of Forgiveness: 101 Stories about How to Let Go and Change Your Life
Dec 16, 2014
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Chicken Soup for the Soul: Think Positive, Live Happy: 101 Stories about Creating Your Best Life
Sep 24, 2019
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Chicken Soup for the Soul: Time to Thrive: 101 Inspiring Stories about Growth, Wisdom, and Dreams
May 5, 2015
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