Our friends Mary Jo and Charlie came to visit us from the
states. After their 6000 miles of cramped legs, meals on board, and two
layovers, we met them at the at 2:30am. It was so exciting to see our
neighbors, from home, in the Paraguayan airport- a little surreal, actually.
Our visit and vacation was a whirlwind of activity. We spent
a few days in Asuncion, catching up on sleep, eating good food, and sharing
stories. Charlie rented a car, and we were off to Arazape. While in town we
visited our two schools, delivered books, saw
Porto Garata, then made it back to the house to start dinner. Emily
stayed with us that evening as well.
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| 500 Books for the school in Arazape! |
The following morning we attended the Ovecha Rague- an event
our community has been preparing for all year. The beautiful wool items,
created by local artisans, were on display, including a parade, and lots of
typical foods.
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| Ovecha Rague |
Onward to Encarnacion, and the Jesuit Ruins of Jesus and
Trinidad. The sound and light show at Trinidad was fantastic! Mary Jo and
Charlie were troopers through the rain and even used some Spanish along the
way!
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| Jesuit Reductions |
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| Smile! |
Next we headed to Ciudad de Este, where the real adventure
began. We were pulled over twice, as expected, by the police. We were told to
expect to be asked for money, (bribes), but with Charlie’s international
driver’s license our Peace Corps ID’s , we were sent on our way without being
asked for a dime, (or quiniento)! We nearly went over the bridge to Brazil,
(for which we had no visas), but Charlie’s keen eye and expert driving skills,
maneuvered us through a space in the cement partition, and got us headed in the
right direction. Good thing, too, as if we did end up in Brazil without visas,
we would have been detained and fined heavily, (we joked about handcuffs, pero
probablamente no).
Finding the ferry to cross the boarder to Argentina took
four stops and four kind Paraguayans patiently directing our way, some correct,
some not.
Again, thanks to Charlie’s quick U turns, Mark’s skills as navigator, and Mary
Jo and my determination to keep our backseat driving to a minimum, we made it
to the ferry.
Crossing the river on the ferry, we made it to Argentina. A
pretty special crossing, actually, as the river touched the three boarders of
Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina- 3 South American countries in 15 minutes!
After spending the night in Porto Iguazu and eating more
wonderful food, we headed to Iguazu Falls. In two words, Absolutely Amazing!
The shear force of the falls created strong wind and left everyone drenched!
Rainbows were created by the lower falls, as butterflies, coatis, turtles and
fish were spotted along the way. We hiked and again, ate more wonderful food!
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| Just two of the many falls at Iguazu |
Finally, we started our trek back to Asuncion. We were
stopped by another police officer who we thought asked us if we had any
“contraband.” After assuring her we had no contraband, we realized she was
saying “contramano”, (the wrong way), looked up and saw the one-way sign. We
had a big laugh about that one- while the officer kept a straight face- Loco
Nortes!
What a wonderful adventure we had with our buddies from the
states! When I announced that I had made the decision that they “were not
allowed to leave Paraguay”, Mary Jo and Charlie continued on their way to Costa
Rica to celebrate their anniversary, anyway. Were they not listening?
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| Thanks again, Mary Jo and Charlie! |
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