After a long day of bus travel we arrived at our hostal which really didn`t live up to it`s reputation in the lonely planet. Caroline suggested that we look at another hostal for the following night only to find another place with exactly the same name and heaps better, obviousley the recommended one, cheating b******s! turns out the other hostal had changed it`s name to gain customers by default. So we moved the next morning and discovered that the area was full of really cool bars and restaurants unlike near the historic centre where everything shuts at 9pm.

Next day we went shopping for a Panama hat, or Montecristi hat as they should be called. Its misnoma that the hats originate in Panama, they actually originate in Equador. We went to a small factory & then an independent shop where they sold them ranging from $15-200. The man who owns the shop is 83 and has lost his voice from working with the chemicals they use to use. Stu bought a hat for $30 which he was well chuffed with.
After than we explored the town and were lucky to see a pre-carnival parade which was very impressive with fire blowers, people on stilts and lots of dancing and drumming. The tradition is for people to spray water and coloured foam at each other, but it seems they don`t hold back from spraying it directly in your face and even your ear drum.
Cuenca by day is beautiful and have a very modern, cosmopolitan yet relaxed feel. We enjoyed the cafe/heladaria (ice-cream parlour) culture and then headed to the bars for happy hour. We met an American girl called Janelle and after a few Mojitos we were well and truely trollied. To our delight we stumbled upon our 1st authentic Indian restuarant, where we feasted on delicious food whilst chuckling to the Indian music videos. The main characters in the videos reminded me of Chris & Sophia when they do their silly dancing.