Cuenca Shoeshine
I’ve heard it said that life is made up of individual moments and those that connect in waves. I’ve started using my old iPhone 6s and with clunky hand-held-ness to capture scenes here and there. Not sure if these will hold any interest but I hope so. Maybe a life’s moment in Cuenca will spark something in someone else’s.
Growing up in Brooklyn and NYC shoeshiners were always around in subways. As a kid I always thought of them as in the province of businessmen who seemed fancy or sophisticated. Or, maybe they were for the WW2 generation. Guys like my dad, working guys who’d occasionally get one, though more likely they’d shine and buff at home.
Here in Cuenca young kids are often trying to earn some coins shining shoes. They populate some of the downtown parks.
In my neighborhood and in this quick vid, there’s always one or two regular shoeshine guys at the mercado de veinte siete de febrero, my local open air market. They charge the usual going rate of 50cents. This guys has some classic skills. I’ve used him.