Asunción, Paraguay
So, you´ve read all about our "wonderful" adventures through Bolivia, and now for the continuation . . .
Luckily here in Paraguay the roads are paved and not just dirt paths as their Bolivian neighbors´! So you´d think that things would be better, right?? Well, no!!!
Try being dropped off in the middle of nowhere, with just fields and fields all over, not much sign of life besides the individuals working at Immigration in Mariscal Estigarribia . . . well, that´s what the Chaco Paraguayo is all about!! The Jungle!! With lions and tigers and bears, oh my!!! :) But seriously, supposedly there is, in fact, a sort of lion that roams around the Chaco, and, of course, other strange creatures too!!! Welcome to the Jungle!!! ;)
I was actually quite surprised by this because I was expecting a lot more development in this country, but no. A good amount of Northern Paraguay is just wilderness, aka El Gran Chaco.
We were still in a bit of a jam financially, and consequently didn´t have the funds needed to take a bus to Asunción. So our only option was to wait and hope that a vehicle could take us to our destination. But again, God was looking out for us because Andres, the trucker who brought us ´til this point, helped us out again!! He knew of our little money problem, so he arranged for us to ride on a bus, free of charge!!! He was friends with one of the drivers who was going to Asunción that day, so voilà, we had our transport to the capital all set!! Gracias Andres!!!
Finally after waiting over 6 hours, we were on our way to Asunción!!! Upon arrival, we contacted our friend, Valeria, who was going to host us during our time there.
As for Asunción, it´s a particular capital. Doesn´t have much of a tourist industry, but still a very nice visit. We were able to see all the sights rather quickly, considering there weren´t many!!! So the rest of our time here was spent resting . . . we needed it, for sure!!!
I have to admit that I didn´t know much about this place, so it was really interesting talking to Valeria about Paraguay and its history. As we strolled around the city, I noticed that there were lots of hotdog vendors all over the place; but what I didn´t know was why!? I learned that there was a direct link with Paraguay´s political past. Really interesting!
Apparently, in the past, the country was under dictorial rule, and at one point, a curfew was even imposed on the population. And so, the hotdog stands were the only things that were small and easy enough to transport and put away quickly.
And remember the infamous Tereré drink I mentioned previously? . . . these folks are no joke when it comes to it! All over the place, you can see Paraguayans walking around with their Tereré mugs and huge jugs of cold water, as if it were an accessory or something!! I couldn´t imagine carrying this myself, but these people just can´t live without it!! Some people even told us that if they don´t have their jug-mug combo with them, then they feel as if something is missing!!! Are they serious!!??? YES!!!!!!!!
Enough said for Asunción!! Off we go!!!!!!!
La capitale est vraiment en plein coeur du pays, il n y pas grand chose autour, seulement des routes desertes, un peu triste a mon gout.
Asuncion est une ville moyenne, pas tres moderne, pour trouver un cyber cafe il a fallu 2h et en Amerique Latine ca fait drole! On s y est promener tranquille, appreciant le beau temps pour une fois!! Ville sympa avec son petit truc quand meme: en general dans une ville l endroit a visiter c est le vieux quartier, vrai ou pas.
Une 2 chose originale, c est que toute la population se promene avec leurs "petites glacieres portatives" pour boire le fameux terere, c est aussi commun que de porter des chaussettes!! Il y a de differentes tailles, differentes couleurs, la fashion, la traditionnel, avec le porte gobelet integre...
