Cuenca Shopping Tips by retired_poppi

Name of Shop: Cemuart, Centro Municipal Artesanal

The Cemuart is a collection of 106 stalls operated by local artesans. There is a wide selection of goods, and prices appear to be reasonable. (I paid $US 5.00 for a funky panama baseball cap). All of the goods are made in Ecuador, whereas one is not sure about the origin of tourist goods in the Plaza San Francisco.

What To Buy: Straw goods - baskets, hats, etc., ceramics, wood carving, blacksmith work, and needle work.


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Theme: Local Craft
Address: General Torres 7-33
Directions: Across General Torres street from Plaza SAn Francisco. One enters a narrow walkway leading to the open, cheerful, two-story market.

Name of Shop: ABC Libreria

The ABC bookstore has a large, well organized, collection of used books in English. The prices of the books on the shelves are clearly indicated. The owner, Carol, is very knowledgable about the books and takes great pride in the organization of them. The selection of language translation dictionaries includes English/Spanish, German/Spanish, French/Spanish, Italian/Spanish, and Portuguese/Spanish. There is also a good selection Spanish language materials.

What To Buy: Sell your Ecuador travel book before you depart and purchase something to read on the airplane going home. The ABC bookstore will purchase any used book for $US 2.00.

What To Pay: Typical January 2007 examples: Dick Francis @ $US 4.50, Tom Clancy @ $US 7.00.

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Theme: Books
Phone: 593-7 2845 749
Address: Padre Aguirre 8-11 y Sucre
Directions: Diagonal to the flower market. Or, think of it as behind the new cathredral, across the street
Other Contact: liberia_abc@yahoo.com