Sunday Surprise

You never know what we'll come across on our Sunday walk.

After checking out the progress on Av Solano and headed on to breakfast, we spotted this...

Closer...

Yeah!  A parade!

Marching against drugs and alcohol.

Here are the Sunday walkers, enjoying the spirited marchers!

After they had passed on down Av Doce de Abril, the streets were empty again. 

Always a treat to walk the (almost) empty streets on a Sunday.  Never a dull moment.

Av Solano is Coming Right Along

Here are more pics of the street renovation taken recently. 

Sidewalks are getting done.  This phase includes all the work on the underground utilities, too.

More amazing work at the round-about at Av. R. Crespo.

New conduit.

Scaffolding at the Solano statue...the head disappeared a few days ago!  Probably in the shop for repairs.

Here's the 'before' pic again of the statue and the circle, so you can compare.

No head.

We passed by at lunchtime one day.  Besides a couple workers taking a snooze, some were playing a quick game of soccer during the break.  Fun to watch!

ROJO, Color of the Walk

 

 

Sometimes we like to have a 'theme' when we walk...lately it's been the color RED.
Having a theme of sorts can make our walks even more interesting (if that's possible).  It also lets us share a wider variety of pics...

Here's the RED shots of the last few walks.  Enjoy!

 

 

Selling treats at an art fair.

A sign at the gas station, a little snack...
(Ricas are a Ritz-type cracker...not quite the same taste...)

Phase 2 Begins on Av Solano

We walked on down Av Solano to check out the construction activity at the intersection of Av Solano and Av R Crespo.  This is the big round-about that is the focus for Phase 2 of the massive street renovation project.  Work on this phase began earlier this week.

Traffic has been diverted to side streets and Av Solano was pretty much closed off for the construction.  Almost surreal to walk the street without all the usual heavy traffic on a weekday.  Side streets were jammed, but the traffic police were doing their job in keeping the traffic moving.

Work continues on the sidewalk renovation, Phase 1.  About 70% done and looking good.

New sidewalk going in on the right side
of this picture.  Left side will be done later...that's the walkway in the middle of the street.

Gardening crews have been trimming the trees in the middle section and trimming the grass with weed-whackers.  Looks nice.

This day was so cold, windy and rainy.  Felt like a snow storm was brewing!  (But, we know better...it doesn't snow in Cuenca, but sure feels like it sometimes.) 

Despite the freezing temps, we are glad we bundled up and ventured out to see all the progress.  Work on the circle is scheduled 24/7, 3 shifts, until done in 45-60 days. Major progress already with lots more to do.







(You can still see the statue of Solano in the midst of all this activity at the circle.)

 

All the old cobblestones will be replaced with asphalt.  Stones will be recycled for other projects.

Phase 3 will focus on the updates for all the monuments along Solano. 

Stay tuned, should be lots of photo ops  to share with you later.