The Sky Over Cuenca

We are constantly amazed at the sky over Cuenca and have never lived anywhere that provided such dramatic shifts in the weather hour by hour. Though the following photos were not all taken on the same day, they are an example of what a typical afternoon and evening can be like. 

Photographers in Cuenca are almost always looking up at the clouds overhead where the intense sunlight causes a dramatic contrast between the clouds and the deep blue sky. This sharp contrast is a photographer's dream. Sometimes clouds reach down into the mountain valleys creating a constant surprise that totally changes the landscape.  The above photo is typical of a bright sunny day. 

Late in the afternoon, it is common for a rainstorm to sweep across the city. This one was unusual because the sky was black behind the city still illuminated in sunlight. 

The afternoon storm clears and early evening presents a constantly changing and often colorful hour. 

Sunset. What more can we say? It often seems like an inferno is roaring behind the mountains

The sun is gone and purple glows behind the clouds. Then darkness falls over the city until tomorrow when a whole new series of changing weather blows over the mountains. All of these photos were taken from the windows of our apartment in town, a never ending panorama. 

Careful – the sun is strong

         

It is too easy to forget that Cuenca is nearly on the Equator and at approximately 8500 feet in elevation nestled in the Andes Mountains. Those of you who have skied at high altitudes in America’s west or the European Alps already know how strong the sun can be. Though the temperatures in the mountains of the US and Europe can often be freezing, skiers will have their nose and cheeks covered with a protective zinc oxide cream to stave off the sun.  Add to that, the fact that the sun in Cuenca is directly overhead because we are almost directly on the Equator and you have come up with a powerful combination of UV rays raining down on you year round. On a day like in the photo, the sun can be deceptive. 

Our dermatologist at Monte Sinai Hospital has warned us to take precautions as Cuenca has the highest level of skin cancer incidences in all of Ecuador. While we are never as diligent as we could be, we wear sunscreen cream on our uncovered faces and arms. Loretta and Jonny being redheads often wear hats. An excellent choice of sunscreen in both gel and cream form is a local product appropriately named Umbrella. It can be purchased without prescription at any pharmacy.  On a bright, sunny day, it is quite common to see people walking with an open umbrella or holding a magazine or newspaper over their heads to keep out of the sun. Many people also wear wrap-around sunglasses, as the sun not only bears down with harmful UV rays, but it is also extremely bright to the point where it can actually hurt your eyes. Fortunately, you will find street salesmen almost everywhere loaded down with sunglasses for sale at around $12 and up. So, covering your arms, applying sun lotion to your face and exposed arms, wearing hats and sunglasses are all good protective precautions. We have seen too many visitors with bright red faces from painful sunburns who walked through town on a sunny day or even on a cloudy day not realizing how quickly they can be hurt by the sun. It takes only one experience like this to make a believer. 

The drought is over

As you can see by the photos of the River Yanuncay as it rages through town, the drought appears to be over. It is apparent that there has been a lot of rain up in the mountains. In fact, we have had a few good rains over the last few days right here in Cuenca.

El Nino has kept us pretty dry for the last few months so possibly this is the beginning of a change to a more normal amount of precipitation. Down on the coast, El Nino is giving them a rough time with very high tides and waves that have done a lot of damage to the shoreline.

Mild weather, absolutely

One of the major cost and quality of life advantages to living in Cuenca is the constant mild weather which has a huge impact on everything from cost of living, to clothing, to the lack of bugs. On the cost front, because the weather is almost a year round 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit with nights going down into the 50’s, homes and buildings are built without heating units or air conditioning.  Initially, we could not believe it when we were shown houses and apartments without them.  Back in North Carolina, our monthly costs for heating and air conditioning ran an average of $300 a month. Plus, there were continual repair issues with recharging air conditioners, rusting out and replacement costs because of the salt air by the ocean, and huge spikes in cost every time we got a delivery of propane.  Because of the mild weather here in Cuenca, this $300 monthly electric and propane utility cost has been reduced to about $30. New construction expenses are reduced considerably as there is no need to install the expensive ducting, piping, and electrical wiring plus the expense of installing heating and air conditioning units. Ductwork in our house or apartment doesn’t exist.  There are no heating units or air conditioners. On the rare hot day, we just open the window and let the breeze blow through. Speaking of windows, there is no need for storm windows or screens. There is no reason for storm windows to keep out the cold. There is also no reason for screens to keep out insects.  In the city, bugs like mosquitoes and flies are rare though there are a few. Fortunately, the mosquitoes at this altitude are not the variety that carries malaria. Worse case, their bite makes a little, itchy spot.  At our house in the country, there are mosquitoes but still not enough to require screens. There are ants but, again, not like back in the states. We could not sit in the grass in North Carolina without being attacked by red ants that bit and caused little, itching sores. Here, you can sit in the grass without becoming a meal for the ants. Spiders are another story. While not a pest, they are prolific. Seems this climate is perfect for them. From tiny black spiders to huge CD sized tarantulas, you will find them everywhere but, again, they don’t bother you.  As far as clothing goes, the mild weather means there is no need for seasonal changes of clothes. There is no need for parkas, heavy sweaters, boots, gloves, or scarves. A man’s day time outfit might be jeans, sneakers, sport shirts or t-shirts plus a sweater or light jacket at night. Some of our male friends wear shorts during the day.  For women, casual attire is slacks, blouses with light jackets and low heeled shoes. Though few women wear skirts or dresses, they often wear high heel shoes which is amazing considering the flagstone sidewalks in Cuenca. To compensate for the constant change of weather during the day, most people wear multiple layers of light clothing. Of course, one of the most important effects the constant mild weather has on many people is the ability to plan ahead without considering the weather as a factor. You can bank on tomorrow or a month from tomorrow being the same as today. The only variable is when in the day, it will rain. The pattern is consistent, clouds in the morning turning to sunshine later, then clouding up in the afternoon with a possible rain shower, then clearing again toward dusk with cool, clear nights. Over and over, the weather follows this pattern with slight changes in the time of day that each event occurs.  When you look at the cost savings in not having heating or air conditioning, and the fact that annoying pests are almost non-existent, that you always wear light clothing, and that day after day, the weather will be near perfect, Cuenca’s climate becomes a major factor in most people’s choice to live here.

The weather and climate in Cuenca

Living in the mountains of the southern Sierra is living in a land of one season. As Cuenca is just below the Equator and at approximately 8000 feet, it is cooler than at the coast or the Amazon. Days and nights are about equal in length all year long. Daylight begins within a few minutes of 5:30 and ends at about 5:30 pm. Dawn usually starts the day with clouds covering the sky, many low enough to hide the mountains from view. The clouds slowly receded and expose sun washed mountains in all their glory. It is cooler in the morning than at mid-day which is almost always sunny and warm. Toward mid afternoon, dark clouds usually appear and a half hour of rain falls. Then it clears again, often with a beautiful sunset. Nights normally have clear skies and become cool enough to put a light comforter on your bed. The next day is almost always very close to being the same. We think the climate here is like that of San Diego yet without the Santa Anna winds. We are having a drought right now but it usually rains every day for a while especially during the rainy season. Most of the time the temperature is in the 60’s or 70’s during the day and in the 50’s at night. It is often cloudy but never cold. In the evenings we wear a light jacket or a sweater. Daytime attire is a t-shirt and jeans all year round. The clouds are almost always brilliant, white, fluffy cumulus clouds. A warning though, the sun is extremely bright, in fact, so bright that people walk with umbrellas for protection or drape a cloth over their head during the days with cloudless skies. We visited an English speaking dermatologist who advised us, without fail, to use a strong, locally made, sun screen called Umbrella. Cuenca, because of the altitude, bright sunny days and proximity to the equator, has a high incidence of skin cancer. Even the dark skinned Ecuadorians walk with a real umbrella or a shawl over their heads to protect them from the sun.

Since there are no seasons, just the same weather year round, the only thing that differentiates the weather is the rainy season. During those few months when the rains come, huge quantities of water fall on the mountains, water that is engine for our electric grid, the hydroelectric plant in nearby Paute, Ecuador. Huge turbines are rotated by falling water creating much of the electricity for the whole country. Fifteen years ago there was a huge drought and, just our luck, this year looks like a repeat. All summer long, there has been very little rain high in the Sierras. El Presidente has called a national emergency and imposed mandatory electric blackouts to conserve electricity.

 Every day during November and early December, the newspapers announce when the blackouts will occur. Power can go off for up 7 hours. Our apartment building has a huge diesel generator which our security people turn on in anticipation of the blackouts, so we have not been too inconvenienced. But some of the other buildings and most of the private homes and businesses are not so fortunate. Last night, a building a few blocks away looked quite eerie with most of the windows illuminated by candle light. The indigenous Indians have a belief that, if they light huge fires, the smoke will cause the clouds to dump water as rain. So, our crystal clear sky in late November looked like LA with haze caused by dense smoke. Unfortunately, what the Indians did was burn large tracts of wooded mountainous land upwind and the smoke blew down on the city. I don’t know why they kept doing it as it did little good.
Normally it rains almost every day for a while, then clears up and the sun comes out but we have had almost no rain for the last three months. The normal rainy season begins sometime around December but with global warming and who knows what other factors there are at play, this appears to be a difficult time for those of us used to unlimited water and power. Interestingly, there are no restrictions on watering flowers, or shower use, or washing cars. It’s just one more thing to get used to.

As I post this we have had rain off and on for the last few days, one day it was absolutely torrential, so we all have our fingers crossed that the drought is over. As a side, I am looking out of the window of our apartment as I type. It is dusk. A few moments ago, the sun was streaming across the city. Now it has set and, even though it is still full daylight, the biggest full moon I have ever seen crept up over the mountain ridge. It is so huge that even our maid came to the window to look and said, “Magnifico.” My new camera is at the repair shop so all I have is the memory and the wish that next month it will repeat and I can capture it as a photo to show you. Never have I seen such a full moon in the States to compare with this.