Azuay Province
Azuay is one of the 24 provinces that make up the Republic of Ecuador, located in the south of the country, in the geographical area known as the inter-Andean region or sierra, mainly on the Paute basin in the northeast and the Jubones basin in the southwest. Its administrative capital is the city of Cuenca, which is also its largest and most populated city. It occupies a territory of about 8,189 km², being the twelfth province of the country by extension. It limits to the north with Cañar, to the south with Loja, to the west with Guayas, to the southwest with El Oro, to the east with Morona Santiago and to the southeast with Zamora Chinchipe.
909,585 people live in the Azuayan territory, according to INEC's demographic projection for 2022, making it the fifth most populous province in the country after Guayas, Pichincha, Manabí and Los Ríos. The Province of Azuay is made up of 15 cantons, from which 27 urban parishes and 60 rural parishes derive. According to the latest territorial regulation, Azuay will belong to a region also included by the provinces of Cañar and Morona Santiago, although it is not officially formed, called the South Central Region.
It is one of the most important administrative, economic, financial and commercial centers of Ecuador. The development of the industry in the province in general was based on the manual skills of its inhabitants. It has a very unique importance for the history of southern Ecuador, as it is a midpoint between the coast and the Amazon, since ancient times it was established as a meeting area between cultures, merchants and events of religious connotation.
The first recorded settlements date back 10,000 years in Chobshi and Cubilán. He had different migratory periods coming from the mountains like the Cañaris. Later it was conquered by the Incas under the command of Túpac Yupanqui. The Spanish colonization occurred when Francisco Pizarro commissioned Captain Rodrigo Núñez de Bonilla to perform the functions of encomendero in the distribution of the Province of Los Cañaris or Tomebamba in 1538; During that period, the maximum and precursor entity of the province would be the Corregimiento de Cuenca, after the independence war and the annexation of Ecuador to Gran Colombia, the Province of Cuenca was created on June 25, 1824 (which in 1835 would change its name to Azuay), which makes it one of the first 7 provinces of Ecuador. This province is the corollary of the subdivision of the extinct Department of Azuay.
History
First occupations
During the Pre-Ceramic Period (10,000 BC-3,500 BC) according to archaeological and anthropological remains found in Chobshi (Sigsig canton) and Cubilán, it is known that the first inhabitants of the area date from the year 8060 B.C. C. being these nomadic hunters and gatherers. Its presence extends until approximately the year 5580 a. C., from that date the human settlements disappear and it is not until 2000 a. C. that reappear companies.
In the Formative Period (3500 BC-500 BC) the Cerro Narrío Culture (2000 BC-500 BC) appeared, also called Challuabamba, This culture presents small settlements of an organization corresponding to a Formative culture, an incipient division of social classes, it is also characterized by the presence of agriculture and the mass manufacturing of ceramics.
For the Regional Development Period (500 BC-500 AD) The Tuncahuán cultures developed, as well as the first stages of the Tacalshapa (Azuay) and Cashaloma (Cañar), being these phases corresponding to the Cañari Culture. This stage is characterized by societies with a division of labor and perfectly hierarchical, they use intensive agriculture and their ceramics have certain anthropomorphic figures. The most representative of this phase is the use of metals such as gold, silver and copper.
Cañari Stage
During the Integration period (500 AD -1500 AD) this area is characterized by conquests and alliances, so the nuclear part of the Cañari culture would be integrated into a diarchy whose capitals were Shabalula (Sigsig) and Hatun Cañar (city of Cañar), while the outer parts of the Cañari territory only remained confederated to the nuclear part, which is why they were politically independent. The Duma dynasty ruled from the capital Shabalula, while Hatun Cañar's line of rulers is not known.
What is now Cuenca was an important stately center of the Cañari diarchy, this area was called Guapondelig in the Cañari language, meaning "plain as wide as the sky" (although others raise the name of Surampalti) and was characterized by agriculture, since the Cañari region is not very suitable for this practice, this made Guapondelig one of the most important areas of the Cañaris.
At the middle of the XIX century, in the cantons of Gualaceo (Chordeleg) and Sigsig, a series of tombs were found, from Cañaris rulers, rich in precious metals and ceramics, unfortunately most of what was found was looted and sold, fortunately Marshall Saville wrote a book about the extracted pieces, the book was called "El Tesoro de Oro del Sigsig, Ecuador", as there are other books that talk about the huacas of Chordeleg.
Inca Stage
By the year 1470 AD. C. (approx.) the Cañaris were conquered by the Incas, and the Inca Tupac Yupanqui refounded Guapondelig, but this time as the most important city of Chinchaysuyo, Paucarbamba (which means "plain of flowers" or " plain of the flowery garden"), later it was called Tumipampa as it is believed due to the opposition of its Cañari inhabitants who had their throats beheaded with a circular knife called Tumi; this hypothesis, however, is disputed by those who believe that the city was renamed by Huayna Capac in honor of his Panaca or Royal Family, the name was later employed as & # 34; Tomebamba & # 3. 4; by Hispanics with strong vocal resources.
This new city will be erected as the northern capital of the Inca Empire, and according to numerous chroniclers, Huayna Capac would have been born here.
During the governments of Tupac Yupanqui and Huayna Capac, 60 years or so, approximately half of the Cañari population was removed and relocated to other parts of the Inca empire to be later replaced with mitimaes, this caused a distortion in the culture (acculturation) of the Cañaris, however despite this this group was able to maintain its identity.
Years later, when Huayna Capac returned to the north of the empire, to reconquer the Quito area and the Caranqui-Cayambe diarchy, he settled in Tomebamba and carried out a series of constructions to beautify the city and the entire Cañari province in general. There are theories that affirm that the city maintained its pre-Inca name until the return of Huayna Capac, and it would be at that moment that the Inca renamed it Tumipampa, a name that in fact was the same as Panaca de Huayna Capac. During later years the Inca and his son, Ninan Cuyuchi, co-ruled the Inca Empire from Tomebamba, helped by Huáscar and Atahualpa, who were in Cuzco (the main capital of the Empire) and Quito, respectively.
About around 1528, Huayna Capac died in Quito and Ninan Cuyuchi, the successor prince, in Tomebamba, creating a power vacuum that unleashed the civil war between Atahualpa and Huáscar. As part of the Cañaris and the Inca aristocracy of the province supported Huáscar, this provoked the wrath of Atahualpa, who militarily conquered and destroyed the city of Tomebamba, in addition to ordering the murder of thousands of Cañaris and the Inca apricots, however later He ordered the reconstruction of the city, something that was never carried out due to the arrival of the conquerors.
Hispanic conquest
The civil war was won by Atahualpa and while he was going to Cuzco to ratify his sovereignty he was captured and assassinated by Francisco Pizarro in Cajamarca. Due to their hatred of Atahualpa, the Cañaris allied themselves with the Spanish and helped, with the participation of other ethnic groups, to conquer the Inca Empire. [Sebastián de Benalcázar], convinced by the Cañaris, set out to conquer Quito, passed through the ruins of Tomebamba and there he received more reinforcements, so with the help of 11,000 Cañaris, Benalcázar defeated Rumiñahui and conquered Quito.
The Cañaris due to the mortality carried out by Atahualpa and European diseases, as well as the fact that they fought in favor of the Conquistadors for years, caused that by 1547, when the chronicler Pedro Cieza de León passed through Tomebamba, he saw that there was one man for every fifteen women, he also verified that the Cañaris were Christianized. When he passed through the city and the province, he was able to see the ruins of many of the Inca temples and palaces.
In the current city of Cuenca you can see many vestiges of its Inca past, highlighting the Pumapungo palace.
Colonial period.
Gualaceo, has a pre-colonial history and as a colonized settlement in 1534, before the provincial capital Cuenca. Sebastián de Benalcazar was one of the first Spaniards to arrive in Gualaceo led by chief Llivicura, in April 1534, in the context of the colonization of the Inca Empire (Arízaga, 1983). When Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of Peru, commissioned to Captain Rodrigo Núñez de Bonilla to exercise the functions of encomendero in the distribution of the Province of Los Cañaris or Tomebamba in 1538 he settled on the plain of Paucarbamba raising a small settlement.
After 19 years, the Viceroy of Lima Don Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza orders Captain Gil Ramírez Dávalos to found a new city.
On Easter Monday, April 12, 1557, Cap. Gil Ramírez with the company of a group of Spaniards and the chiefs Diego, Juan Duma, Luis and Hernando Leopulla, on the ruins of Tomebamba a city was refounded with the name of "Santa Ana de los ríos de Cuenca" 3. 4; in honor of the Spanish city of Cuenca, place of origin of Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza.
On Sunday, April 18, 1557, Easter Day, Gil Ramírez Dávalos conducted the legal act of the Constitution of the First City Council, then worked until April 26, adjudicating the first land and creating the layout basic checkerboard type of the city.
In 1563, when the Royal Audience of Quito was created, it became part of it as a Corregimiento, having at that time under its jurisdiction the towns of Azogues, Cañar, Cañaribamba (today called Girón), Miniature, Déleg, Gualaceo, Paute, Paccha, San Bartolomé and Sayausí. This lasted until 1777 when they elevated it to the category of Governorate.
In the year 1730, the French Geodesic Mission passed through this city and in 1778, the first real census was carried out in the city. The official count of this fact reached the figure of 18,916 inhabitants in the city, of whom 12 936 were in the urban area and 5,983 in the rural area. The social structure had at its bottom 10% of the population that were Spanish of pure blood, the 22% of the population that were mestizos were the following, the indigenous were the majority of the population and occupied the next social level with the 67 % of the population and at the end were the blacks with 1%.
The city continued to grow during the three centuries of the Colonial Era, in which a mestizo personality with interesting features was consolidated: sensitive, lover of the landscape, conservator of its assets, calm and hard-working, which was enriched, particularly, by the trade of their handicrafts, especially their fabrics, and thanks to the exploitation and work of metals. Thanks to its development it acquired great social and political importance; It was thus that, during the colony, it managed to become the main link between the populations of the south of the Audiencia.
In this period, Cuenca society was not attracted by culture or the arts (it was under the control of the church) or by education. The most outstanding artists of the time were Gaspar Sangurima and Miguel Vélez, whose most representative Christs are still preserved.
During this period the city also took as its architectural model the one used in Spain, particularly that of the Andalusian region.
One of the last Spanish governors of Cuenca was Juan López-Tormaleo y Teijeiro.
Independence
Since the year 1795 there was public expression in Cuenca to achieve freedom, in different parts of the city, on March 25 of this year, various writings and signs circulated that contained ideas of freedom.
The Spanish authorities rationed and prosecuted those responsible, the exact whereabouts of the trials are not known, but it is believed that the participants in the creation of these legends were: Paulino Ordóñez, Fernando Salazar y Piedra, Joaquín Tobar.
In order to obtain freedom, two attempts were then made, but both failed, until on November 3, 1820, Dr. José María Vásquez de Noboa, as governor of the city, ordered the publication of Royal Spanish Orders, accompanied by the military escort; While the command was being read in a corner of the city, nine patriots in a plot with Vásquez attacked the escort and forcibly disarmed them.
The nine were commanded by Lieutenant Tomás Ordóñez, who was wounded when he was engaged in a fight with a soldier and a bayonet pierced his leg with a blow. The patriots met in the Plaza de San Sebastián. There, with a large group of Cuenca citizens, they proclaimed the freedom and independence of Cuenca. Ordóñez, despite being wounded, walked the streets, encouraging and exciting the crowds; then two priests joined: José Peñafiel and Juan María Ormaza, who was the main speaker, eloquently expressed the sacrifices that everyone had to make for freedom and independence. The military chief named Antonio García Trelles, originally from Spain, upon seeing this attack, gave the order to his 109 soldiers to leave the barracks and start the fight between the townspeople and the military.
On the afternoon of November 4, help arrives from the town of Chuquipata under the command of another priest named Javier Loyola. With the arrival of these people, the patriots finally managed to defeat the Spanish troops in the Verdeloma sector.
With independence, the patriots proclaimed the Republic of Cuenca. On November 8, the Sanction Council was convened to prepare the Government Plan or Fundamental Law of the Republic of Cuenca later known as the Cuenca Political Constitution of 1820, approved by the deputies on November 15, 1820. The Supreme Board The Government was chaired by José María Vázquez de Noboa who at that time communicated the libertarian feat to the then Vice President of Gran Colombia, General Francisco de Paula Santander.
Spanish repression
However, the joy did not last long since on December 20, 1820 the patriots were defeated in Verdeloma, by Colonel Francisco González, who with six hundred veteran and well-armed soldiers faced a thousand men with no experience and little armed, leaving more than 200 corpses in their wake on the battlefield before breaking into Cuenca and thus ending the Republic.
True independence
After little more than a year of repression and after carrying out the campaign from Machala to Saraguro and from this place to Cuenca, General Antonio José de Sucre makes his triumphal entry, commanding his troops, on the 21st of February 1822. When the royalist troops, led by Colonel Carlos Tolrá, see the liberating forces approaching, they leave the city, heading for Riobamba.
Finally, real independence occurred when the entire territory of the Royal Court of Quito, present-day Ecuador, became independent on May 24, 1822 in the battle of Pichincha, a battle in which Abdón Calderón, from Cuenca, despite receiving multiple wounded he did not withdraw from the fight, he would die days later in a hospital in Quito, said act of bravery during the battle was considered heroic by the liberator Simón Bolívar, and he promoted him in rank. Today, Abdón Calderón is considered a national hero.
Republican Period
With the organization of the Republic of Gran Colombia, Cuenca was assigned as the capital of the Department of Azuay, in the Southern District. In 1828, during the Great Colombo-Peruvian War, the city was about to fall into the hands of Peru, whose forces were commanded by the general, president and also Mariscal José de la Mar from Cuenca. However, in the battle of Portete de Tarqui, to the south of the city, the forces of Gran Colombia managed to defeat the Peruvian army, thus preventing them from reaching the city.
Also in 1828, Fray Vicente Solano, who is the forerunner of the arts movement in the city, introduced the first printing press, also imported books and founded the first newspaper called "Eco del Azuay".
After the separation of the Republic of Quito (later renamed the Republic of Ecuador) from Gran Colombia in 1830, Cuenca became the capital of the province of Azuay.
During the construction of the Panama Canal in Azuay, Toquilla Straw Hats began to be mass-produced, and despite the enormous drop in demand, after the aforementioned Canal was completed, Toquilla Straw Hats became part of the typical indigenous clothing of this area, being prominent in the Chola cuencana clothing, and Azuay would become the adoptive home of this product, so in this city you can visit the Museum of said product.
In 1885, construction began in the center of the city of the New Cathedral of Cuenca, also called the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, which would not be completed until 1975. The plans for the cathedral were drawn up by the Redemptorist brother German Juan Bautista Stiehle, who following the guidelines given by Bishop León Garrido, designed a temple of colossal dimensions, however the cathedral was never built as indicated in the plans (the two towers on the façade should also have had their domes). due to the excessive weight of the roof. Today it is one of the largest and best-known icons of the city.
Geography
The Province of Azuay limits to the north with the Province of Cañar, to the south with the Province of Loja, to the east with the provinces of Morona Santiago and Zamora Chinchipe, and to the west with Guayas and El Oro. In territorial extension it is twelfth, with 8,639 km².
There are two distinct zones in the province: the east, an area dominated by the eastern and western Andes; the west, an area that belongs to the Coastal region, which is populated by sub-Andean ramifications. The most important fluvial courses are the Jubones River and the Paute River. Its highest point is the Nudo del Cajas, at 4,500 meters above sea level, which has become the Cajas National Park.
Climate
The climate is variable due to the altitude, from tropical to glacial, due to the presence of the Andes mountain range and the subtropical vegetation to the west, the province is climatologically fragmented in various sectors. Also, because of its tropical location, each climatic zone has only two distinct seasons: wet and dry. In the West, the temperature ranges between 20 °C and 33 °C, while in the Andean zone, it is usually between 10 °C and 28 °C. Currently the climate has varied reaching 11 degrees Celsius
Government and politics
Politics and Government
The political structure of Azuay is made up of the Provincial Decentralized Autonomous Government, commonly known as "Prefecture", which is a legal person under public law that enjoys political, administrative and financial autonomy, and exercises executive, legislative and control within the territorial circumscription of the province. The headquarters of this sectional government is in the city of Cuenca, as the provincial capital.
The provincial government is made up of a prefect, a vice-prefect, and the provincial council. The prefect is the highest authority and legal representative of the executive function within the province and is elected jointly with the vice-prefect by popular vote at the polls. by the prefect -who presides over it with a casting vote-, the vice-prefect, the mayors of the 15 Azuayan cantons, and representatives of the governments of the rural parishes. Currently the position of prefect is held by Juan Cristóbal Lloret, elected to the period 2023 - 2027.
Parallel to the Provincial Decentralized Autonomous Government of Azuay, the executive power of the President of the Republic is represented in the province by the governor. The position of governor is occupied by an individual designated by the President of the Republic, and he can last in his functions indefinitely as long as the country's president so decides. Currently, the governor of the province is Consuelo Orellana.
Administrative division
The province is made up of 15 cantons, from which 27 urban parishes and 60 rural parishes are derived. Each of the cantons is administered through a municipality and a cantonal council, which are elected by the population of their respective cantons. The responsibility of these cantons is to carry out road maintenance, manage state government budgets for social and economic assistance programs, and manage infrastructure such as parks and basic sanitation systems.
| Canton | Pob. (2010) | Area (km2) | Cantonal head | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Chordeleg | 12.577 | 105 | Chordeleg |
 | Cuenca | 505.585 | 3.086 | Cuenca |
 | The Pan | 3.036 | 132 | The Pan |
 | Giron | 12.607 | 347 | Giron |
 | Guachapala | 3.409 | 41 | Guachapala |
 | Gualaceo | 42.709 | 347 | Gualaceo |
 | Nabon | 15.892 | 636 | Nabon |
 | Oña | 3.583 | 295 | Oña |
 | Paute | 25.494 | 267 | Paute |
 | Ponce Enriquez | 25.494 | 267 | Ponce Enríquez |
 | Puca | 10.052 | 848 | Puca |
 | San Fernando | 3.993 | 142 | San Fernando |
 | Santa Isabel | 18.393 | 781 | Santa Isabel |
 | Sevilla de Oro | 5.889 | 314 | Sevilla de Oro |
 | Yesgsig | 26.910 | 657 | Yesgsig |
Border conflict
There are discrepancies regarding the line of political-administrative separation between Azuay and its neighboring provinces of Guayas, Cañar and Morona Santiago. The Prefects in 2015 reached an agreement on the limits, however, that agreement was not ratified by the corresponding presidential decree.
In 2021, the prefects of Azuay and Cañar requested the annulment of the agreements and requested a popular consultation to resolve them. Likewise, they requested the annulment of the cartography issued with the limits established in the agreements, for not complying with legal procedures.
Tourism
Historic Center of Cuenca
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Cuenca is located in the southern part of the Ecuadorian Andean Cordillera. Its Historic Center was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1999. It is called the Athens of Ecuador for its majestic architecture, its cultural diversity, its contribution to Ecuadorian arts, sciences and letters and for being the birthplace of many illustrious characters of Ecuadorian society. Handmade hats are a specialty in Ecuador and are sold to tourists from all over the world who visit Cuenca.
In the center of the city there are important historical vestiges: museums and old churches (such as the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, one of the largest and most beautiful in America, and others dating from the 16th and 17th centuries), cobbled streets and houses with Republican-style facades that highlight the different European influences with characteristic artistically carved balconies and ceilings and other painted brass wrought ironwork.
The city is also known as the "Cuenca de los Andes" or the "Athens of Ecuador" for being the cradle of poets and illustrious men who have left the name of this city high, such as Miguel Vélez, Gaspar Sangurima, Santo Hermano Miguel, Honorato Vázquez, Remigio Crespo Toral, among other characters such as Abdón Calderón Garaicoa, Antonio Borrero. In Cuenca there are also numerous cultural organizations.
It also enjoys a wide variety of cultural and traditional programs throughout the year such as the Corpus Christi festival that is celebrated in June and the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed that is celebrated in Ecuador nationwide on the 2nd of November and there is a single festivity with the festivities of November 3 during the independence commemoration festivities, in which a contest sponsored by the Municipality is held in which the "Chola Cuencana" of the year who will preside over the Foundation of the same name, an entity that promotes various social works in rural parishes. Another great festivity loaded with tradition is the Pase del Niño Viajero that takes place on December 24 in the streets of the Historic Center (although many people also do it during the months of December and January, sometimes reaching February), in which children disguised as characters from the Bible, shepherds, mayorales, cholas, gypsies, and others, walk the streets, organized by families, educational, neighborhood, religious, and parish communities.
In Cuenca there are numerous museums, among which we can highlight:
- Museo de Tierra y Artes del Fuego. It is located in the "Casa de Chahuarchimbana", one of the heritage buildings of the city. Its name means “Lugar less deep of the river”, to be placed on one of those points, on the banks of the Yanuncay River, one of the 4 rivers that cross the city.
- Museum of the straw hat toquilla, (Carludovica palmata) also known as "Sombrero Panamá". Cuenca is among the leading manufacturers of this type of hat.
- Municipal Museum of Modern Art. It works in a building built in 1876. This building worked as a home for alcoholics, male and school prison, among the most important functions performed by the old House of Temperance.
- Museum of the Old Cathedral.
- Museum of Aboriginal Cultures. It has more than 8000 archaeological pieces.
- Ceramic Museum.
- Metal Museum.
- Central Bank Museum. It dates from the early 1980s.
- Centro de Artes Populares Interamericano. CIDAP Museum. Founded in 2004, the museum has about 7000 pieces of collection, which include handicrafts from several Latin American countries.
- Cañari Identity Museum.
- Museo Casa de la Cultura Nucleo del Azuay. Founded in 1945.
- Museo de Historia de la Medicina Guillermo Aguilar Maldonado. It works at the former School of Medicine at the University of Cuenca.
- Museum Remigio Crespo Toral. It has more than 18,000 archaeological pieces and about 700 pieces of colonial art.
- Jefferson Pérez Museum. It has more than 200 photos of the famous Olympic champion, the gold medal winner at the 1996 Olympic Games.
Cuenca itself is a beautiful city that deserves to be visited; in its streets it keeps secrets and fabulous places among the main ones we have the thermal waters of Baños de Cuenca, with its delicious typical food, the roasted guinea pigs of Don Bosco street, the delicious Cafecito de Doña Aurora Calle is a cafeteria that exists in the immediate vicinity from the market on August 10 for more than 30 years. For people who like nightlife, Calle Larga with an innumerable number of bars, discos, inns, and cybers, including Hostal el Cafecito, Internet Santa Ana, Wunderbar, and Prohibido Cultural Center; preferred by foreigners. It is also advisable to visit the ravine where you can appreciate the beauty of the Tomebamba River. Visiting neighboring cantons such as Chordeleg famous for its jewels, Gualaceo with its unique landscapes and the delights of its typical food, Girón with its beautiful waterfall are activities that could be considered a sin not to do when visiting this city.
Cajas National Park
The Cajas National Park is located in the Andes, south of Ecuador, in the province of Azuay, 33 km northwest of the city of Cuenca. The most common accesses to the park all start in Cuenca: From there, the Cuenca-Molleturo road crosses Control de Surocucho in just over 30 minutes; Further on, this same road passes by the shores of the La Toreadora lagoon, where the Park's Administrative and Information Center is located. Continuing along towards Molleturo, along this road, the northern sector of Cajas is known and it winds between several major and minor lagoons. To access the Park from the coast, the Molleturo-Cuenca road is also the best option.
With the fundamental framework of a paramero ecosystem, there are 232 well-defined lagoons in the Park located on its extensive valleys; Among the most important are Lagartococha, Osohuaycu, Mamamag or Taitachungo, Quinoascocha, La Toreadora, Sunincocha, Cascarillas, Ventanas and Tinguishcocha. This large number of lagoons regulates and preserves the streams in the area through their drainage; rivers such as the Tomebamba, the Mazán, the Yanuncay and the Migüir are born in the Cajas and supply drinking water to the city of Cuenca; They are, at the same time, the main contributors to the Paute Hydroelectric Complex, which supplies electricity to almost the entire country.
In the heights of the Western Cordillera of the Andes to the west of the city of Cuenca, is the Cajas National Park, formed mainly by large elevations that keep lake systems in their interior in the form of enormous interconnected boxes, hence its name, Boxes. In the area there is not a marked regularity of the climate; There are frequent frosts and there is a permanent presence of drizzle (garúa) and mist.
On the eastern edge of the Park stands a Subalpine Rainforest (bp-SA), composed mainly of tree species and shrubs with a great diversity of orchids, ferns, and mosses. The forest formation of Polylepis, qiwuña, "quinoa" or "paper tree", which is between 8 and 10 m tall, and grows on the banks of lagoons or ravines and in rocky places and is the only tree species above 4,000 m s. no. m.. In the western limit, timber species abound.
There are white-tailed deer, spectacled bears, miniature deer, ocelots, páramo deer, páramo rabbits and the Andean tapir. The most important birds are the caracara, the condor, the Andean toucan, ducks and hummingbirds. The Cajas water mouse is an endemic species of the park. Like the northern El Ángel Ecological Reserve, the Cajas lagoons are renowned and very popular for their trout.
Attractions:
Lagartococha Lagoon: On its shores it is possible to camp and the place is very popular for sport fishing. Next to Lagartococha is the "Cave of the Dead", so called because travelers from more than a century ago would have perished victims of malaria on the site.
Avilahuayco: It serves as a natural viewpoint or watchtower; the panorama that it offers from its summit is very attractive since from there you can see "the boxes" They dominate the whole area.
Hill of Tres Cruces: It is one of the highest parts of the Park where the watershed is found between those that go towards the Amazon and those that advance towards the Pacific. The García Moreno Road crosses there and tradition says that it owes its name to the many dead who tried to spend the night in the place on their journey from the coast, but due to the intense cold of the night they were unable to see the sunrise.
Taitachungo Lagoon (Mamamag): Starting from La Toreadora there are some paths that lead to it. From here you can follow a stretch of the Ingañán or Camino del Inca towards the Luspa cave. In Mamamag, other remains of pre-Inca constructions have been found, represented by stone steps and foundations of some type of building, presumably rooms for the night; More than houses, these constructions seem to have served as tambos, travel shelters, since the site is key to the passage to the coast.
Canton Gualaceo
Due to the unique beauty of this Azuayo canton nestled in the Santa Bárbara valley and the welcoming nature of its people, Gualaceo is called the "Azuayo Garden" and currently holds the title of Cultural Heritage of the Nation. Due to its situation, it is a communications hub to the Ecuadorian east. It is also an important gastronomic power since it has several products such as the drink called Rosero prepared with various fruits; the sweet beans, with a flavor similar to manjar de leche; the Pork Hornado; the moroco with tortillas; among many others. Some of its most visited places are:
- Historic Center (Cultural Heritage of Ecuador, INPC)
- Mother Church of Gualaceo
- Market June 25
- Former Hospital Moreno Vásquez
- Bimbambum Bridge
- Velasco Ibarra Bridge
- Museum of the Vicar of Gualaceo
- López Abad Museum
- Aguarongo Forest (Jadán Parish)
- Collay Forest (Uchucay, Luis Cordero Parish)
- San Juan Parish
Chordeleg Canton
Chordeleg is a canton famous for its crafts, such as ceramics, hand embroidery, and jewelry. It has dozens of jewelry stores in which the wonderful goldsmith work of its inhabitants stands out. It is a canton recognized around the world for its wonderful cultural content that is unique for the high quality of its handicrafts, whether they are made of clay, straw toquilla or noble metals. In the cantonal center there are more than one hundred jewelry stores, where you can find countless masterpieces in gold, silver, white gold and other metals used for thousands of years by the inhabitants of these latitudes. Some of its most visited places are:
- Urban Center
- Central Market
- Punguayco stone
-Municipal Museum
- Museum for you Chordeleg of Mr. Manuel Galarza
- Main Parish (Tres Lagunas and Cerro Fasayñan)
Other tourist places
- Parish Turi
- El Barranco del Río Tomebamba in Cuenca
- The archaeological remains of Pumapungo
- Banks of the river Tomebamba, the river Yanuncay, the river Machángara and the river Tarqui
- The Portete de Tarqui in the Canton Girón
Popular festivals and culture
- Fiesta del Durazno - Gualaceo - March
- Fiesta del cuy - Ricaurte - February
- Fiesta de la Caña - Santa Isabel - September
- Feast of the Bulls - Canton Girón - October and November
- El Pass del Niño - Cuenca - December
Sports
Azuay is the cradle of great athletes who have left the name of the country very high, this is the case of the runner Rolando Vera, and the walker Jefferson Pérez, who has been the only Ecuadorian who has won a medal in the Olympics, a gold one in Atlanta in 1996 and a silver one in Beijing in 2008.
In soccer there are several teams in the province, the most prominent being Club Deportivo Cuenca.