I shortly mentioned in a previous post that my family and I will be moving to Cuenca Ecuador. I want to use this post to share some of our excitement about the move. All of the information in this post will be second hand from watching videos of people already living there and from webpages so there may be some mistakes.
So Cuenca…
It was founded on April 12, 1557 has been called the “Athens of Ecuador.” This is primarily due to its old town which is a UNESCA World Heritage site. The old town has many hundreds of year-old buildings and cobblestone streets. These features make the city architecturally similar to Southern Spain with towering cathedrals. Additionally, some Incan ruins still remain in the city.
The city is a geographical beauty with the Andes in the distance and four rivers crossing the city. The city is around 8k feet above sea level. This can lead to moderate to severe altitude sickness in many people. Cuenca has a highland subtropical climate and the locals say that its climate is “Forever Spring” with a mean temperature of around 60 degrees year round.
Despite theese amenities the cost of living in Cuenca is extremely low and the barrier for permanent visa status is low as well. Therefore, it has become an expat hub where an estimated 8k-10k North American expats live and call home. As I have said before to friends, the road we are taking has been paved by thousands of others which makes it less daunting.
We are excited for this move for several reasons, but we are especially excited that our daughter, Eleanor, will easily become bilingual in spanish and have an international experience. We have a daycare picked out and are researching the surrounding neighborhoods. My wife has worked tirelessly on researching daycares, schools, and neighborhoods.
Millionaire Librarian 