A friend sent me this cool map, Check it out,  

Asuncion

Will start writing again once I arrive…well, not so soon I guess, have to catch up with friends and family, but as soon as I can I will, I promise! =-)

I recall that the last time I went to Paraguay on vacation I was invited by a friend to a local pub (Britannia pub), he ordered a bunch of stuff (most of it we didn’t even eat) and some drinks, even though it was not expensive considering the amount of food he ordered I offered share the check with him.

He gave me a strange look, he was almost offended by my offer, and I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with my offer to split the check, then he said to me: We are not in the United States…then it all made sense to me, I remember that in the latin culture, men invite, even though if the actually don’t invite you they pretty much always pay the check for the ladies anyway.

Nowadays I could observe a little change of the situation, sometimes big parties split the bills but usually the men pay for the ladies in the party.

When I’m in Paraguay I let my friends pay for me (it’s a cultural thing)  but I often make sure and insist to treat them and I’m so glad when they happily accept my invitation =-)

So, here is the deal.

1- I’m going to ask a friend to send it to me (the last time i read it was in highschool) hopefully it arrives soon.

2- I’m going to read it and refresh my memory

3- Going to write a post with my comments, personal opinion and some photos that I will try to get from a friend who is a professional photographer and had the honor to photograph Roa Bastos not long before he died in april 2005.

Roa Bastos was a big writer, the biggest Paraguay had and probably will have

Here is some info from Wikipedia

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Augusto Roa Bastos, (June 13, 1917 – April 26, 2005), was a Paraguayan novelist, widely acclaimed as one of the greatest that nation has produced. He was best known for Yo el Supremo (1974; translated as “I, the Supreme”), one of the foremost Latin American novels to tackle the question of dictators and dictatorships, in the person of José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, who ruled Paraguay with an iron fist and no little eccentricity for 26 years in the early 19th century. His other major work was Hijo de Hombre (1960; “Son of Man”); he also wrote numerous other novels and stories.

He was born and spent his childhood in Iturbe, a small town some 200 km to the south of Asunción, the capital, where his father worked as an estate manager. In 1932, with the outbreak of the Chaco War, he dropped out of school and joined the troops as a medical auxiliary; the horrors he experienced during this time set him firmly against violence for the rest of his life. After the war, his first jobs were as a bank clerk and reporter on the Asunción daily El País; around the same time, he also began writing for the theatre. During World War II he was invited to London by the British Council; he also served as the El País war correspondent in London and covered the Nuremberg Trials for that paper.

In 1947, because of his activities in opposition to President Higinio Morínigo during the Paraguayan Civil War, he was forced to flee the country. He settled in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he published most of his work. With the arrival of the military dictatorship in 1976, however, he left Argentina for France, where he taught Guarani and Spanish literature at the University of Toulouse. He did not return to his native Paraguay until 1989, following the downfall of Alfredo Stroessner. That same year, he was awarded the Premio Cervantes (Cervantes Prize), awarded by the Spanish Royal Academy and its correspondent academies in the various American nations, in recognition of outstanding contributions to the Spanish-language novel; he spent the prize money on educational and literary projects in Paraguay.

[edit] Bibliography

• 1942 – El ruiseñor de la aurora, y otros poemas
• 1947-1949 – El naranjal ardiente, nocturno paraguayo
• 1950 – El fiscal
• 1960 – Hijo de hombre (”Son of Man”)
• 1974 – Yo el Supremo (”I, the Supreme”)
• 1979 – Lucha hasta el alba
• 1992 – Vigilia del Almirante
• 1996 – Madama Sui
• 1953 – El trueno entre las hojas
• 1967 – Los pies sobre el agua
• 1969 – Moriencia
• 1972 – Cuerpo presente, y otros textos
• 1974 – El pollito de fuego
• 1974 – Los Congresos
• 1976 – El somnámbulo
• 1979 – Los Juegos
• 1980 – Antología personal
• 1984 – Contar un cuento, y otros relatos
• 1989 – On Modern Latin American Fiction
• 1996 – Metaforismos

I’m getting a lot of emails from people going to move to Paraguay or going to live there for a while, or retiring there (which I think it’s a very good option) or people that are going to study there o just visiting there for a short time. I thank all of you that keep reading my blog, and hopefully enjoying it =)

When people ask me if they are going to like Paraguay I always answer that there are 2 kind of people, the ones who will love it and the ones that will hate it, and maybe a 3rd category of people, the kind of people that will go to Paraguay to observe, to learn, to catch a mental image, to notice the unnoticeable, to believe the unbelievable, to look for the experience of enjoying the unthinkable and maybe to see beauty where there are just abandonment left.

I came up with some questions and answer about what people that are going to Paraguay need to know, not the why or the

Do I need a visa (not referring to credit card) to enter Paraguay? : If you are US citizen you will need a visa, maybe you want to get one from Brazil too, because while there its a must to visit Brazil, If you are Mercosur or European citizen, you don’t need visa, and for other countries, please contact your nearest consulate.

What is the usual first impression upon arrival in Asuncion? The first impact every time i arrive is the humidity, the air, is so much different, summer time is very hot and humid, in the airport in costumes sometimes they are corrupt and in other words they may ask you for some money to let pass your stuff, always in a nice way, but just give what you think is fair, that obviously gives Paraguay a bad image. The airport size is relatively small, and unfortunately Paraguay doesn’t not own a airline, sadly true.

Where to stay upon arrival: There are so many places to choose, on the utopist, on the way from airport to city there is a Sheraton Hotel ( that is not my choice, but is a nice place to stay, very good located). Please see my hotel list for more info from past posts or click here

Hotels

Where can i rent a car? Yes, you can rent a car even at the airport, it’s not as cheap as you might think but it’s a good option to get around, please read my post about driving in Paraguay, driving there is a chaos and you will have to get used to it and develop some skills. Some are: National Car Rental, Hertz at the Airport (+595 21 605708), Fast Rent a Car (+595 21 60 54 26), Inter Locadora (+595 21 66 02 17)

Can I get around public transportation? Yes, not very clean but it works for a big part of us, taxi’s are very cheap and is a good way to get around. Radio taxi (+ 595 21 311 080)

Is there a tourism information center in Asuncion: Actually yes, it is in downtown Asuncion, Direction General del Turismo, address: Palma y Alberdi. (more…)

In the past traveling by train were among the traveling options in Paraguay, well, that’s part of history now, but the good news is that from now on, there is a trip from Asuncion to Aregua we all can enjoy on Sunday’s, starting this Sunday.

It’s a great way to spend the whole day with your family

The “tren del Lago” (Expreso Tata Piriri), leaves from the Botanical Garden Station (Asuncion) on Sunday’s at 10am to Aregua (a very beautiful city on Ypacarai Lake), and comes back to Asuncion at 16.30, the price for the tour is 20$ a person.

The nice thing about the trip is that a play goes on inside the train, with actors representing old time travelers. It’s also interesting how they interact with passenger..

There is also soda and typical Paraguayan food that you can buy on the train.

I never had the chance to ride on that train yet but next time I go to Paraguay I will try it, it seems to be great experience.

I’m pretty sure I will love the trip, the play, the food, the environment, the people and the view (I will make sure to take some friends and my camera with me)

I lost a lot of money but what actually hurts its not only that, is the feeling of insecurity, violation against private property and the big frustration caused by this situation because its not the first time I sent things over there and my package arrived with less than half of the items.

These people like are rats, corrupt and they just don’t care about anything…the worse is that no one “knows anything“, all are innocent, they tell the biggest lies when you confront them, they say things like: you package was probably open in another country! come on! we all know that they were the ones who opened and stole things of my package, and I’m sure that there are a lot of people out there with the same problems.

One bizarre thing is when you try to claim the insurance of the postal company they tell you that is impossible because the insurance just pays if you don’t get the package at all or if the package get lost somehow and you never get it, but they don’t pay if someone violates your package and you get just a fraction of what suppose to get.

That is one of the things I hate about my country, some people in public administration are ignorant, dishonest, and have no scruples and this image gives Paraguay a bad reputation.

I bet they can still sleep peacefully to get up fresh in the morning and get another victim.

Beware before sending values to Paraguay, you will be lucky if they arrive partially.

It is very nice what you are doing to interest people in Paraguay. Paraguay is a very interesting country, but it has a ‘bad reputation’ because of certain things that have happened there is the past. One of the good things that not very many people know about is the legacy of U. S. President Rutherford B. Hayes (1878-81) who arbitrated a boundary dispute between Argentina and Paraguay after the terrible Triple Alliance War (1865-1870). He found in favor of Paraguay and is a national hero, of sorts, there.

November 12th is a holiday every year in the Department of Presidente Hayes, and there is a lot of celebration about this in Villa Hayes in the Chaco. I am going there in November 2007, and would like anyone interested in this celebration to go with me. November is ‘not too bad’ in Paraguay as far as the heat is concerned. I hope that anyone interested in this idea will contact you. Thank you again for your work in ‘bringing Paraguay out of the Latin American closet’.  John A.

I just want to share a receipe For Chipa Guazu, one of my favorite dishes, very easy to make, this is a partial translation of Tembiu Paraguay by Josefina Aquino

Enjoy!

 

Chipa Guazu

2 Medium Onions

1 cup of water

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 oil, in Paraguay they use pork fat

1 cup farmers cheese, in Paraguay they used queso paraguay but you can replace it with a white cheese, could be mozzarella.

3/4 Cup of Milk

1 1/2 ears of corn, grated, or you can replace it by corn in cans.

Fry the onions, with the salt, then add the water for about 10 let it boil. (set aside to cool)

Beat the far or oil, eggs one by one, and the crumbled cheese beating continaully, then add the onions and the water, grated corn and the milk and mix everything very well and put the mixture in a greassed and floured pan. Cook in 375 degree oven for 1 hour and 15 min.

Try it, im on my way of making one!!

There are many hotels in Paraguay, of all kinds and types, here I will list the most important ones of each Paraguayan Department. Just click the city below and you will the list with with the hotel name, address, Phone and Email will appear (Note that some hotels have no email addresses). (more…)

Very important tip: AIR FARE: Don’t get them online, they are too expensive. Ask your local Travel agency (you will find a list online or on local newspapers), just a regular old fashion Agency to get a quote of the prices, ask for specials

Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz and alike are good for domestic fairs but not for international ones. (more…)