Touring Todos Santos Church

We have blogged before about this wonderful Church undergoing a massive renovation.  Todos Santos is one of the oldest Churches here in Cuenca.

This first picture is a before-picture of the Church before the work began several years ago.

This week we joined up with friends to tour the renovation project.  Ever since we got here, we'd all been itching to see the inside and we were so pleased to have had this special opportunity. 

The event was organized by the City and school children were ready to be our hosts. 

We always smile when Ecuadorians assume us Gringos only speak English and not a lick of Spanish, but in this case, we were glad that our guides wanted to practice their English!  We didn't want to miss anything!  We practiced our Spanish, too.  We said Gracias, the kids said Thank You....We said Buenos Dias, the kids said Good Morning... Fun!

A very nice young man gave us the tour of the Church.  His English was pretty good!

He told us the stories...  These crypts are at the entry of the Church.

Workers are busy uncovering original paintings from years of paint.  They are restoring them back to their original splendor.

Gorgeous tin ceilings, all carefully restored and repainted.

Our guide showed us samples of the building materials and techniques. The builders used traditional adobe and another process called bahareque, involving a mixture of sugar cane, clay, plants and straw.

Here are a few interesting discoveries...  an old irrigation system

and an old grave site.

More supplies staged on the terrace overlooking the views.

Looking back at the Church from the terrace.

After touring the Church, we continued to another area for a cooking demonstration also hosted by students.  The children practiced their excellent presentation and English skills.

They explained the cooking ingredients and baking techniques of the delicious bread and cookies sold by the nuns of the Church. 

The kids were absolutely delightful and their presentations were very professional!  What a fun day!

The Church is scheduled to be open to the public in just a few more months. 

We can hardly wait to return when the work is all done. 



Todos Santos will be even more beautiful!