It's been like Christmas!

Suzanne and Roger  in their new casa, upstairs in the sala de familia.

    

    The trials and tribulations of getting our container to Ecuador are over  (thank you for that!)  We went 20% over budget and it took us six weeks instead of the expected two but those are stories for another day and future blogs.  The important thing is that our most prized personal possessions are here with us in our new home! We have spent the past week like giddy kids on Christmas morning unwrapping their presents.  Some of these treasures have been in storage since August of 2010 when we first listed our Arizona home for sale so each unwrapping was a special nostalgic moment.    

   Regular readers will note that this is the first photo we've posted in awhile.  We have been limited to a wireless Ipad and now that the big computer is out of the box, we can start being a little more thorough.  The photo above was actually taken from our computer's built in lens as it sat on the desk in our family living room upstairs.  The second floor of our house contains the bedrooms and has a generous sitting room at the top of our skylight lit stairwell.  The lady palm in the background was one of first purchases after moving into the new house as we camped out, awaiting the arrival of our container.  She likes it there and in addition to the desk, the sala contains a secretary bookcase and two rocking chairs. We've also included an old antique table and chairs so we can enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning and/or the occasional glass of wine.

  For our Ecuadorian friends (who will be soon reminding me I haven't reviewed an available Cuenca wine lately....give me a break...I've been unpacking!):  the wine in the photo comes from Conde de la Cruz, located here in Cuenca and owned by Riunite. It is their Vino Tinto Italia and while somewhat of a fruit bomb, it is reasonably priced at about a $5 retail.  Conde de la Cruz skirts the import duties on alcoholic beverages by importing raw juice from Riunite in Italy and then fermenting the juice here.

Anyway, the toast above was in celebration of the fact that we are almost settled in our new home...there is a table in the dining room and a full set of dishes.  We have a guest room with clean linens so stateside friends are welcome to come visit.  Expadorian and Ecuadorian friends...be on alert...after a few more chores and a little rest and recovery, we plan on sending invitations for some open houses to introduce you all to our new home.

  We feel blessed and fortunate in our our new home and to be continuing our journey "juntos en el camino de la vida"!