Cuenca Ecuador Salsa Dancing + Allpafest 2019 (Episode 111)

This was an unexpected Day In The Life video! We planned to meet Olesya and Johnny for some Cuenca Ecuador Salsa Dancing lessons in the afternoon, but we didn’t have much else planned for the day.

Before lunch, we wandered down to the Allpafest event near Parque de la Madre for a quick look, but we ended up staying quite a while. Usually, when we go to popup ferias, we only stay a few minutes, but Allpafest was great! We saw lots of friends and ate some delicious vegan goodies!

Fans of Amelia And JP

On our way into Allpafest, we heard someone yell “JP” from behind us. It was Ivan and Mauricio who are fans of our YouTube Channel!

They’re both from Cuenca, but they have lived in New York for the past 15 years. Now they’re thinking about returning home to Cuenca to open a business!

And they’re vegan, too! Ivan told us he had some serious health issues that prompted him to go vegan. He lost 30 pounds and all his health issues cleared up! We hear that all the time! The human body’s natural healing power is unbridled when you fuel it with healthy, plant-based foods!

Ivan and Mauricio mentioned a few of our favorite places in the video. Here are links to our videos of them:

• Namaste India + Cuenca’s Christmas Lights (Episode 44)
• Delicious Treats at Zatua Miski in Cuenca Ecuador (Episode 46)
• Aphrodisiac Dinner at Café Libre (Episode 68)
• Apartamentos Otorongo Tour Cuenca Ecuador (Episode 81)

It’s nice to meet people in real life who watch our channel. Now that we have over 100 videos, mostly about Cuenca Ecuador, more people are starting to recognize us on the street and in stores. It’s still a bit strange to meet complete strangers who know us so well and reference interesting things that we caught on film.

If you see us out and about, feel free to stop and say hi!

Allpafest by Allpa Feria Holística Cuenca Ecuador

We’ve been to lots of ferias during our time in Cuenca Ecuador, but Allpafest by Allpa Feria Holística was by far the best one yet. We normally only stay at the ferias for 10 or 15 minutes, but we were there for almost 2 hours!

Jewelry from the Amazon

I managed to convince Amelia to pass by the shoes only to come to a screeching halt at a booth selling handmade jewelry from the Amazon jungle (de la selva).

We’ve seen this Amazonian indigenous woman at several other ferias here in Cuenca. Her facial tattoos are quite striking! These are common among the Amazonian people.

Amelia bought this necklace for $10. You’ll probably see it in a future belly dancing video!

Amelia’s Chakra Alignment

Our next stop was to get Amelia’s chakras aligned. As a man who appreciates science-based evidence, I’m not a big believer in this practice, but Amelia came out of it feeling very relaxed and peaceful. We have no way of knowing if it was the crystal waving or perhaps the meditative state combined with the aromas sprayed into the air.

Regardless, she was able to quash a hot flash before it overtook her for the first time. She may look like she’s in her 30’s, but she’s almost 51 and she’s going through early menopause like her mother did.

Thanks to our vegan whole-food plant-based (WFPB) diet and Dr. Rosy’s awesome cruelty-free skin care treatments, Amelia is aging in reverse! People from all over the world are searching for the fountain of youth and we found it in our WFPB diet!

Cuenca Ecuador Music Scene

Cuenca has quite the music scene. There are lots of very talented musicians that play in clubs, concerts and ferias around Cuenca. Allpafest featured several different musicians and bands.

Vegan Food at Allpafest

We are constantly surprised at how many vegan options we have here in Cuenca Ecuador. When we moved here, we had no idea Cuenca was going to become the vegan capital of South America!

Panda Cakes Cuenca

Pao and Pietro from Panda Cakes Cuenca are vegan friends of ours. They are the sweetest, nicest people you’ll ever meet. You may remember Pao from our Cuenca Ecuador Fitness video. Pao wasn’t there when we filmed this video, but we got to see her later in the day when we went back with Olesya and Johnny after our Cuenca Ecuador Salsa Dancing lessons.

You may remember Pietro from our Rock Climbing in the Rain at Cojitambo Ecuador video. In addition to helping Pao make delicious vegan desserts and snack bars, he also climbs mountains! He was very surprised to see Amelia’s new hairdo.

Kiosko Vegan

Kiosko Vegan is a vegan food kiosk that sells veganese, sausages and falafels here in Cuenca Ecuador. We were too full after eating Pao and Pietro’s delicious desserts so we’ll have to try out their vegan food on a different occasion.

Lupuna Organics Soap from Khatu Organic

I have very sensitive skin so I like to use this Lupuna Organics soap that can be found at natural stores around Cuenca, including Khatu Organic. We filmed their store through the window when we went to lunch at Yuraveg. We still need to go back again when they’re open.

Cuenca Ecuador Salsa Dancing with Salserios

Yes. It’s true. I did, in fact, agree to take salsa dancing lessons. WHYYYY????!!!! ?

When my friend Stephen came to visit before our trip to India, we took him to a Cuenca Ecuador salsa dancing hotspot and Johnny was there cutting a rug with his mad salsa dancing skills. That’s when Amelia gave me a couple drinks and tricked me into taking salsa dancing lessons when we got back from India. She’s very sneaky!

You may remember Olesya from our Yoga In The Park video. She’s also a dance assistant with Johnny, helping him teach his salsa dancing classes.

Olesya and Johnny are hosting a retreat in Vilcabamba on June 28th, 2019 and we wanted to help them promote it. It’s called Retiro de Yoga & Baile and will be a combination of yoga, dancing, hiking and relaxing. It’s at a small retreat hotel so there are only a few spots available. If you would like to go, please contact Olesya through the event page on Facebook.

Dance classes start this week! Wish us luck! If you watched the video, you know I really need it!

Hopefully you enjoyed our video, and if you did, please LIKE, COMMENT and SHARE it, and SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel. ¡Muchas Gracias y Hasta Luego!

Weekly Newsletter from Ecuador

Grab our Ecuador Cost of Living and Moving Calculator so you can more effectively budget for your move. After you sign-up for our weekly newsletter with expat-relevant news from Ecuador, you’ll get the download link.

The newsletter contains the latest information about covid, travel restrictions & guidelines, government actions, volcanoes, flooding, crime, and more. Basically, anything significant from the prior week that affects expats.

We don’t share this information ANYWHERE ELSE!

Follow Us on Social Media