When I started to think about world traveling a couple of years ago the thought of visiting Paraguay never entered my mind. This adventure started out as being a trip only for a few months. Based on the advice of friends, I didn't think it should or needed to be any longer. (Obviously, I changed my mind) I would not have spent any time in Paraguay. If you told me I would be in Paraguay 2 years later I would not have believed it. Yet, here I am. And if you told me I would be accessing the Internet wirelessly at high speed from my hotel room in Paraguay on my Tablet PC, just a month or two ago, I would have thought you would be joking. Yet, here I am doing that very thing. Amazing....
Surfing the Internet Wirelessly
Asuncion, Paraguay in the heart of South America will forever hold the distinction as the first international place (Outside of the USA) I accessed the Internet wirelessly. Crazy! I'm still in shock. Not many tourists visit Paraguay, it is a tourist backwater, partly due to a violent past. The 6 hour bus ride from Foz do Iguacu went a long way in confirming my cloudy, not so positive initial impressions for touring and visiting places that might stand out on a world circuit. The only things I saw were agricultural lands until we entered in the city. We passed a truck full of cotton along the way among other sights. According to Lonely Planet, agriculture accounts for 25% of the GNP here, and nearly ALL of its export earnings. I don't find this hard to believe. They probably spend a large majority of it on cars, if my observation on the high # of car dealerships and car repair shops has any merit - relative to the money spent on other parts of building and maintaining a city's infrastructure.
Hotel Westfalenhaus in Asuncion, Paraguay - German owned (W) (I would have never found this place without the Internet!) Very nice I might add - for US $35/night special - breakfast and high speed Internet included, expensive by local standards I am sure)
At first passing it doesn't look too "advanced" here. It's a bit of a shock coming from a more modern Brazil (Parts I saw). Horses towing carts still cross the city streets among the cars and numerous run down buildings. I'm in the capital, not a little out of the way town. (As I'm thinking about country capital impressions, I'm reminded of --- What do people think when they find out Washington DC, America's capital, is the murder capital of large cities in the United States and Europe? (BBC 1998 news link) -- murder only, not all violent crime, important distinction - but still shameful! ) I won't even go into detail about the Mercedes taxi, what's left of it anyway, that I got into on the way to my hotel. I know I'm sounding somewhat contradictory - not being advanced enough to have more modern cars, yet perhaps spending too much on cars.
Why are some cultures more advanced / cultured?
Perhaps this very brief explantion will help: I'm often fascinated by the ingenuity of people from countries that have small populations -- such as Switzerland or the Netherlands, and seeing how they live, then comparing it to a place like this. If people worked together to build a solid efficient transportation system for the masses (Like the train network in each of these countries) would that not free up resources / time / money to improve life in other ways? One could even have modern clean cars, you just wouldn't need as many of them. Less can be more. I hope this makes sense. A spirit of cooperation (not the only factor of course) doesn't just extend to building efficient transportation systems, but in every facet of life. Another example: if people shared and trusted each other more than they would spend less time and money on security (Alarms, guns, cameras, lighting, etc..) and more on some other way of improving society or making it more interesting. I hope I can talk about this concept more in the future by comparing and contrasting different countries more throughly. It gets at the heart of why some countries are more advanced / cultured than others - kilo for kilo, pound for pound of human brain matter.
Paraguay Impressions
I know some of the reasons why Paraguay is the way it is -- the history of government is a big clue. A city and regional tour the next few days will reveal more. Perhaps better weather will brighten my impressions. I'm sure I am being a little hasty in my judgements. I might have unreal expectations after traveling in nearby Brazil. Perhaps it is because I don't have a guidebook that I don't think there is much worth seeing. But, then again - I did cross nearly the whole country East - West to get to Asuncion. Regardless, these are my first impressions and thoughts.
Why am I in Paraguay? I'm here with no guidebook (Not many exist), no maps, and a command of the Spanish language that is lagging behind my knowledge of Brazilian Portugese now. Part of it is the mystery of the place. How many people can say they have been to Paraguay? (See link below) The other part is a challenge to myself. To see how I manage at exploring a place with no written detailed guide in my pack, in a place where I don't speak the language that well, and a place that is off the common tourist path. I think I can travel all over the USA without a guidebook and not "break a sweat." I did break a sweat today, however slight. If not physically, then in my mind.
How I got to Asuncion, Paraguay
Just getting to Paraguay started off interesting enough. In Brazil at Foz do Iguacu I learned that only recently - Aug 2002 - US citizens need a VISA in advance. All prior information I had read claimed I didn't need a visa. (At time of this writing - LonelyPlanet.com still claims no VISA is necessary) It cost me US $45! The tourist official at the airport told me it was US $65. Fortunately, I was able to get this in just a few hours yesterday. That was just the paperwork.
Shortly after the 7AM bus headed out towards Asuncion the driver stopped on the side of the road and proceeded to go to the back of the bus for some reason. An older scruffy gentleman sitting right behind the driver, grunted (one row in front and to the left of me). I just thought it was a strange sound from an old man.....until I realized what he was grunting about!! The bus was headed for a rear end collision with a small parked red truck! The driver didn't stop the bus properly! We both looked back, the driver had no idea. Without hesitating further, the scruffy man rose up, opened the door separating the driver compartment, and stopped the bus just a foot or two away from the truck! Phew! For a moment I felt like I was in the movie Speed (Speed movie review at mediacircus.net).
As if that wasn't enough, the bus stopped quite frequently at police stations along the road. There were many armed police / military along the route. A policeman / military man actually got on the bus and stood at the doorway for the final stretch into the city. Not exactly a welcome feeling in my book.
Of course, excitement is nothing without humor. This experience was tempered by the playing on the TV screens of the movie Rush Hour 2 (W) (Rush Hour 2 official site). Which coincidentally is the exact same movie that was being shown on my last 1 hour+ bus ride in Taiwan. What are the odds? Do all the bus companies use the same movie distributors? I have so many little coincidences in my life that for me now - I find them humorous. I used to think there was some divine reason behind them - there may yet be one. But, the outcome of these coincidences hasn't always been positive - that is why I laugh them off now. Or at least my interpratation....
Where is Paraguay?
In case you don't know where Paraguay is I've added a couple of handy links on the left hand side of this journal. Especially interesting is the UpsideDown World Map page. Yet another example of looking at the world through new eyes. I bought one of these maps in Australia during Sept 2001.
More Related Links
Paraguay Global (W)
Organization of American States - Paraguay Tourism Statistics (15k/yr from US in Mid 90s - like I said, not alot)
Latin American Press (W)
Pluma Bus Company - Brazilian (W) [Bus company I used from Foz do Iguacu to Asuncion, Paraguay (Fortunately - I didn't have to "feel" the safety of their buses which they advertise!)]
USA Today Opinion - You Probably Won't Be Shot to Death
CNN story on Ballou Senior High School in Washington DC
--- Ok...I still need to tell you about the sexual attitudes in Brazil, and the beautiful waterfalls in Foz do Iguacu! I'm working on em' ---
Surfing the Internet Wirelessly
Asuncion, Paraguay in the heart of South America will forever hold the distinction as the first international place (Outside of the USA) I accessed the Internet wirelessly. Crazy! I'm still in shock. Not many tourists visit Paraguay, it is a tourist backwater, partly due to a violent past. The 6 hour bus ride from Foz do Iguacu went a long way in confirming my cloudy, not so positive initial impressions for touring and visiting places that might stand out on a world circuit. The only things I saw were agricultural lands until we entered in the city. We passed a truck full of cotton along the way among other sights. According to Lonely Planet, agriculture accounts for 25% of the GNP here, and nearly ALL of its export earnings. I don't find this hard to believe. They probably spend a large majority of it on cars, if my observation on the high # of car dealerships and car repair shops has any merit - relative to the money spent on other parts of building and maintaining a city's infrastructure.
Hotel Westfalenhaus in Asuncion, Paraguay - German owned (W) (I would have never found this place without the Internet!) Very nice I might add - for US $35/night special - breakfast and high speed Internet included, expensive by local standards I am sure)
At first passing it doesn't look too "advanced" here. It's a bit of a shock coming from a more modern Brazil (Parts I saw). Horses towing carts still cross the city streets among the cars and numerous run down buildings. I'm in the capital, not a little out of the way town. (As I'm thinking about country capital impressions, I'm reminded of --- What do people think when they find out Washington DC, America's capital, is the murder capital of large cities in the United States and Europe? (BBC 1998 news link) -- murder only, not all violent crime, important distinction - but still shameful! ) I won't even go into detail about the Mercedes taxi, what's left of it anyway, that I got into on the way to my hotel. I know I'm sounding somewhat contradictory - not being advanced enough to have more modern cars, yet perhaps spending too much on cars.
Why are some cultures more advanced / cultured?
Perhaps this very brief explantion will help: I'm often fascinated by the ingenuity of people from countries that have small populations -- such as Switzerland or the Netherlands, and seeing how they live, then comparing it to a place like this. If people worked together to build a solid efficient transportation system for the masses (Like the train network in each of these countries) would that not free up resources / time / money to improve life in other ways? One could even have modern clean cars, you just wouldn't need as many of them. Less can be more. I hope this makes sense. A spirit of cooperation (not the only factor of course) doesn't just extend to building efficient transportation systems, but in every facet of life. Another example: if people shared and trusted each other more than they would spend less time and money on security (Alarms, guns, cameras, lighting, etc..) and more on some other way of improving society or making it more interesting. I hope I can talk about this concept more in the future by comparing and contrasting different countries more throughly. It gets at the heart of why some countries are more advanced / cultured than others - kilo for kilo, pound for pound of human brain matter.
Paraguay Impressions
I know some of the reasons why Paraguay is the way it is -- the history of government is a big clue. A city and regional tour the next few days will reveal more. Perhaps better weather will brighten my impressions. I'm sure I am being a little hasty in my judgements. I might have unreal expectations after traveling in nearby Brazil. Perhaps it is because I don't have a guidebook that I don't think there is much worth seeing. But, then again - I did cross nearly the whole country East - West to get to Asuncion. Regardless, these are my first impressions and thoughts.
Why am I in Paraguay? I'm here with no guidebook (Not many exist), no maps, and a command of the Spanish language that is lagging behind my knowledge of Brazilian Portugese now. Part of it is the mystery of the place. How many people can say they have been to Paraguay? (See link below) The other part is a challenge to myself. To see how I manage at exploring a place with no written detailed guide in my pack, in a place where I don't speak the language that well, and a place that is off the common tourist path. I think I can travel all over the USA without a guidebook and not "break a sweat." I did break a sweat today, however slight. If not physically, then in my mind.
How I got to Asuncion, Paraguay
Just getting to Paraguay started off interesting enough. In Brazil at Foz do Iguacu I learned that only recently - Aug 2002 - US citizens need a VISA in advance. All prior information I had read claimed I didn't need a visa. (At time of this writing - LonelyPlanet.com still claims no VISA is necessary) It cost me US $45! The tourist official at the airport told me it was US $65. Fortunately, I was able to get this in just a few hours yesterday. That was just the paperwork.
Shortly after the 7AM bus headed out towards Asuncion the driver stopped on the side of the road and proceeded to go to the back of the bus for some reason. An older scruffy gentleman sitting right behind the driver, grunted (one row in front and to the left of me). I just thought it was a strange sound from an old man.....until I realized what he was grunting about!! The bus was headed for a rear end collision with a small parked red truck! The driver didn't stop the bus properly! We both looked back, the driver had no idea. Without hesitating further, the scruffy man rose up, opened the door separating the driver compartment, and stopped the bus just a foot or two away from the truck! Phew! For a moment I felt like I was in the movie Speed (Speed movie review at mediacircus.net).
As if that wasn't enough, the bus stopped quite frequently at police stations along the road. There were many armed police / military along the route. A policeman / military man actually got on the bus and stood at the doorway for the final stretch into the city. Not exactly a welcome feeling in my book.
Of course, excitement is nothing without humor. This experience was tempered by the playing on the TV screens of the movie Rush Hour 2 (W) (Rush Hour 2 official site). Which coincidentally is the exact same movie that was being shown on my last 1 hour+ bus ride in Taiwan. What are the odds? Do all the bus companies use the same movie distributors? I have so many little coincidences in my life that for me now - I find them humorous. I used to think there was some divine reason behind them - there may yet be one. But, the outcome of these coincidences hasn't always been positive - that is why I laugh them off now. Or at least my interpratation....
Where is Paraguay?
In case you don't know where Paraguay is I've added a couple of handy links on the left hand side of this journal. Especially interesting is the UpsideDown World Map page. Yet another example of looking at the world through new eyes. I bought one of these maps in Australia during Sept 2001.
More Related Links
Paraguay Global (W)
Organization of American States - Paraguay Tourism Statistics (15k/yr from US in Mid 90s - like I said, not alot)
Latin American Press (W)
Pluma Bus Company - Brazilian (W) [Bus company I used from Foz do Iguacu to Asuncion, Paraguay (Fortunately - I didn't have to "feel" the safety of their buses which they advertise!)]
USA Today Opinion - You Probably Won't Be Shot to Death
CNN story on Ballou Senior High School in Washington DC
--- Ok...I still need to tell you about the sexual attitudes in Brazil, and the beautiful waterfalls in Foz do Iguacu! I'm working on em' ---
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