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CUENCA, ECUADOR &  Mancora, Peru

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Every single day at this time of year a parade, an event, a concert, a festival, a celebration...wait until you experience what happens on New Year's Eve!
Back to Cuenca for the Holidays:
Are you ready to go back? Are you ready for the most amazing  New Year's holidays of your life? 
As so many of us already know Cuenca simply can't be beat. This adventure is Spanish with all our old friends and a litany of colorful events at the absolute best time of the year to be in Cuenca... we top it off with a week of exploring the history of the Conquistadors as seen through Pizarro's eyes in the sunshine, scenery, ocean breezes and unforgettable food of Mancora, Peru.
You will be in beautiful new apartments with great hot water (yes, we can vouch for this), good showers, your own kitchens...yet still right in the middle of "el centro historico". 
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Around any corner you will find celebrations and fine art events like this ballet of the Nutcracker on the steps of Santo Domingo...
Cuenca, Ecuador/Northwestern Peru will start in Cuenca where we will pick you up at the airport and then deliver you to your apartment in Cuenca.  Your time in Cuenca will be packed with one-on-one Spanish classes, and trips to fascinating destinations such as Gualaceo, Chordeleg, Saraguro.  We promise you will experience a New Year's Eve that will be the one all others will have to measure up to.  On January 14, we will be heading off on a spectacular five-hour journey through some of Ecuador's most riveting countryside with roaring rivers, great waterfalls, banana plantations, desert wilderness and Baja-like beaches as we descend from Cuenca to sea level and across the border into Peru. Classes on the conquistadors exploits and 500 years of unintended consequences will pack our mornings, and the breezes and world renowned food of Peru our afternoons and evenings. 

For more information, pictures and the itinerary of this program please email Christine at chris@southamericanlife.com 
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Parque Calderon is the center of Cuenca and a paradise of people watching...
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Cuenca, is a photographers delight...
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Yes they are "Tree tomatoes" and they make a great morning juice...learning Spanish is a lot easier when it is all around you!
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The friendliness and pride of the Cuencanos is a treat to be a part of...
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Who would have thought, gorgeous beaches and la vida buena en Ecuador...
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One-on-one Spanish means learning the practical skills needed to wander the streets and feeling comfortable in the everyday interactions of a fascinating life in another culture...at least for a month, whole it is winter back home.
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A little dancing is a great way to start the evening...
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Cuy or chicken...you decide, and you can cook it yourself
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What a great place to spend an anniversary!
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The New Year's Eve tradition of elaborate displays of "monigotes" full of satire and political comment....ends with the burning of all these "grumps" at midnight in a fun and fascinating celebration of a clean slate...