HOW I SPENT MY BIRTHDAY

I have always been a proponent of having "A Grand Day Out" for my birthday.  Today I was not disappointed!  We set out from Cuenca early so we could get to nearby Paute in time for the Sunday market.  It was raining when we left Cuenca, but true to form when we reached Paute, some 30 minutes later and 1,000 ft lower, the sun broke through and it became quite warm.  The market was in FULL swing with tons of people and their wares.

This stall was the herbalist.  There were some murky things in a jar and I didn't quite understand what they were used for.

Any type of implement for your donkey could be found here.

Leather saddles

Wooden saddles

Potatoes, anyone?

Or perhaps pasta?

So many great faces!

Last time I was at this market the upstairs was crafts.  Now it is the food court.

After buying a huge bag of Meyer Lemons for $1, and some avocados as well, we left to meet up with friends Randy and Karen who graciously showed us around their house.  We had met Randy years ago when they still lived in Eastern Washington.  It was so nice to see the comfortable nest they have made for themselves in Paute.

We all went to lunch at a wonderful restaurant, Casa Romana, where some of us had the corvina (sea bass) done with tomatoes and capers.  Yum!  Just when I thought we were getting ready to leave, the music changed to "Happy Birthday" and this was brought out to me:

Yes, it was as good as it looks!  This was a great surprise thanks to my brother Chuck.

Hard to top this off, but the drive home was also really nice.  We passed through what I call the "Sunday Lunch" village, where everyone has rotisserie chickens or pigs along the main highway and it is so popular it is difficult to drive through.

He's being carved off the back

He was about the only whole pig left in town

A little farther on we stopped at some roadside "antique" stalls which had an interesting assortment of stuff.  I was quite taken by this chicken wind vane but it won't fit in my suitcase.

All in all it was an excellent birthday grand day out and now we have to rest up for the next adventure.

Audrey