That’s the official name for the huge plaza that’s directly outside the east entrance of the 9 de Octubre Mercado in Cuenca, Plaza Civica 9 de Octubre in Cuenca. It’s one of my favorite places in el centro.

One of the things that fascinates me about Plaza Civica 9 de Octubre is that el centro is very densely populated but here you have this enormous sprawling plaza with pretty much nothing on it. It’s lies directly above a huge underground parking facility which I guess explains why there is very little plant life on it like you’ll find in every other plaza in el centro. There are some planter boxes though around the perimeter and on the northern end.

The vast majority of the people you see on Plaza Civica 9 de Octubre are just walking across it to get to somewhere else. There are a few vendors on it and musicians play live music and sell their CD’s occasionally. It’s also where a very large population of pigeons hangout and a few of the vendors sell food to feed them. Because of the large pigeon population city employees wash down the plaza where they’re most prominent regularly with a water hose.

 

The real draw though isn’t the plaza itself but the entire area surrounding it that’s bustling with commerce for several blocks in every direction. There are walkways with tiendas and other types of retail activity everywhere and it’s a lot of fun exploring the maze of paths that go between buildings, through buildings, and weave in and out of the blocks themselves.

In the second shot below is a bike shop where I bought two new mountain bike tires for $8.50 each a couple of weeks ago. When I’m looking for a deal, which is always, this area is where I go.

I’ve been buying avocados lately from the street vendors on the street that runs along the north side of the plaza, Gasper Sangurima.

You just never know what you might happen upon around the Plaza Civica 9 de Octubre.