January 26, 2008 - Asuncion, Paraguay
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En-route to breakfast, I met Graciela at the front office. She owns the place and was the person with whom I had exchanged numerous e-mails before booking this hotel. She spoke good English. I requested her to call Intertours (tour company) to find out the possibility of doing the "Circuito de Oro" today. She dialled the number and handed me the receiver. I requested an English speaker to whoever was at the other end of the line. After being transferred half-a-dozen time to Spanish speakers (each of whom promised me to transfer to a English speaker next!), I finally got an English speaker. She told me that the tour was the day had already departed at 8 AM and that the next tour for the "Circuito de Oro" was on Monday!. As this is an 11-Hour tour (that returns at 7 PM) and since my flight on Monday is at 4:25 PM, Monday would definitely not work. Graciela offered to talk to a local driver about doing a private tour of the "Circuito de Oro" for me along with an English speaking guide.
The breakfast room was a nice, large ceilinged room. I had Orange Juice, a slice of Watermelon, toast, a piece of Chocolate cake and coffee. Perhaps the most decent breakfast since departing the Antarctica cruise ship!
Upon returning from breakfast, Graciela told me that the private tour with an air-conditioned car, a driver and an English speaking guide would cost me US$120. I decided to wander around town and explore other tour companies and options. I headed first to the TAM airlines office to confirm my reservation from Asuncion to Ciudad-del-Este. Until now I have been travelling on LAN Chile and Aerolineas Argentinas while traversing Chile and Argentina. Starting Monday (Jan 28), I will be travelling on TAM (Brazilian) airlines for an entire month (within Paraguay, Paraguay to Brazil, within Brazil and my flight from Brazil to Argentina). After a 30-minute wait at the office, I got my reservations confirmed. It is a pity as neither Aerolineas Argentinas or TAM Brazilian Airlines have a frequent flier programme with any American Airline. It looks like I may have to reconfirm my flight with TAM 72 hours prior to every upcoming flight! The office provided me with a handy leaflet containing the Phone Numbers and addresses of the TAM airlines offices in Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina.
I went in search of VIP tours. I found it after a 10-minute walk. The folks at the office spoke no English. I, however, managed to express my interest in doing the "Circuito de Oro" or "A Tour of the Jesuit Ruins" either today or tomorrow (Sunday). Although both tours can be done tomorrow (Sunday), they require a minimum of 2 persons to run a tour. I could instead pay double the price and they would run the tour for me alone. I was not that desperate to do that and I thanked them and headed out.
While at the tour office, I noticed a large leather basket and a small cup with a metal sipper attached to the basket. I found out later that the leather basket holds a tall flash filled with Hot water while the small cup (with the sipper) contains MATE leaves. Looks like Mate drinking is taken quite seriously and stylishly here!
My wanderings bought me to the Plaza de los Heroes and the adjacent Plaza Independencia. I took a few pictures at both places and headed towards Plaza Uruguaya. I was heeding to the advice given my Mr. Libster and his friends and not walking around with the camera hanging around my neck. I did see a large police presence all over the place especially in the central area where I was presently walking. At Plaza Uruguaya I took a few pictures.
On one side of the plaza was the old train station that is currently a museum. The oldest train in South America used to run from this Station to the resort of AREGUA. The station is all its Victorian Glory now serves as a museum with a couple of Old carriages and a locomotive from the 1860s. The train to AREGUA now starts its journey from the Botanical Garden. The tourist office was right. The train to AREGUA now runs once every 2 weeks and the next train was on February 3 (when I would be in RIO eager for my CARNIVAL experience!).
I spent over an hour at the Old railroad station (museum). In addition to the coaches and locomotive, antique bells, clocks, ledgers and the waiting room have all been preserved for display.
I walked next to the Cathedral which opens only on Sundays for Service. I took a few pictures of the exterior. A young kid asked me for money and I said no. The kid walked away. Despite the scarcity of people around this area, I did not feel insecure as there was a large police presence around.
I visited the Cabildo situated on the banks of River Paraguay. In addition to containing some historical artefacts, it houses a ballet museum as well as a hall chronicling the history of Paraguayan cinema. It also houses a lot of memorabilia from the careers of 2 Paraguayan musicians (one a western classical musician and the other a crooner).
I wanted to head next to the Governor's palace. The girl at the museum asked me to take a longer route to the palace as it was more secure. The shorter route would take me 8 minutes to reach the palace. I heeded the girl's advice and took the longer route. I wound up on the central street (called PALMA) and came across the Chinese Vegetarian Restaurant that was mentioned by the tourist office the previous evening. There was a Chinese lady who spoke Spanish and assured me that all the food was Vegetarian. I had a few potato cutlets and Vegetable rolls for Lunch. Food here is charged by the weight and my grand lunch along with a bottle of coca-cola cost me 10, 000 Guaranis (US$ 2.1 approx). The potato cutlets along with the hot sauce (provided on request) was terrific. Goes to show how starved for spice I have become. The restaurant is open ONLY for Lunch and will be closed on Sunday. Will probably come here on Monday afternoon for Lunch before I head to the Airport.
The Governor's palace was a magnificent edifice. Guards patrol the building grounds and I was not allowed to even set foot on the lawn. I had to settle for pictures from the road which was not bad at all. I also took external pictures of Casa Viola (It was a pink building).
I walked towards the Port area and customs house. I started heading back towards my hotel from here. One of the buildings had numerous stalls and shops selling native Paraguayan handicrafts. They were quite reasonably priced and I observed quite a few Guarani women making necklaces and other artefacts next to their stalls. I decided to return here on Monday and purchase a few artefacts. My way of helping the local artisans.
I got back to the Hotel and briefed Graciela on my activities this morning and she, in turn, recommended a few places I had missed seeing. As the temperature was in the mid 30s (Centigrade), I rested up a bit (in my suite!) and headed out at 3:30 to "Manzana de la Rivera". It was a good museum that showcased old Photos of Asuncion as well as Aboriginal artefacts. All the descriptions were ONLY in Spanish. I made the best of it. In addition to the Photo and artefacts gallery, the Manzana also houses 2 art galleries that house paintings from Contemporary Paraguayan Artists. The paintings were for sale and ranged from US$200 - US$ 1800. Manzana de la Rivera telescopes into 2 other buildings and the last of these buildings was Casa Viola (that I had Photographer from the outside earlier today). Casa Viola houses the Ballet Institute and the local office of UNESCO.
There is a cafe inside the Manzana and it provides terrific view of the Governor's palace. I had a soda and spent 30 minutes admiring the view. As the cafe is open until 3 AM, I may return here to take pictures of the Governor's palace by night (it is lit at night).
My next stop was Palacio Legislativo. It was a gleaming glass and steel structure located opposite a Shantytown. This was the street I was warned not to venture into earlier today. I spent 10-minutes here taking pictures. No one approached me. Being the legislative chamber, there was a good police presence here. I felt safe.
I headed next to the Teatro Municipal. There were no performances tomorrow, but there was a performance currently underway and the clerk at the box office allowed me to go in and take a look (free, of course). I caught the last 5 minutes of "Hansel and Gretel" in Spanish. There were lots of children in the audience and they appeared to be enjoying the performance thoroughly.
I visited the "Casa de la Independencia" next. This was the place where the plot for independence from Spain was hatched.
As tomorrow was appearing to be a free day, I headed to the tourist office to get directions to the town of San Lorenzo. It was 45-minutes by bus.
I got back to the Hotel, showered and headed out for dinner. I spent an hour in copying the pictures from my memory card to my portable hard drive. My dinner at Restaurant BOLSI consisted of Ravioli with Almonds (dipped in honey) and served with Arabiata Sauce followed by an Ice-Cream. The grand bill was 60,000 Guaranis (including tip) which worked out to US$12 and was the most expensive thing in Paraguay so far!
All of the museums in Asuncion are free. I encountered a light, steady drizzle on my return to the hotel (after dinner). I skipped the photo shoot of the Governor's palace by night. I sent out a few queries to future places of stay and checked cricket and tennis scores (Australian Open). I was happy with Obama's win in South Carolina.
I will probably visit San Lorenzo tomorrow.
January 27, 2008 - Asuncion, Paraguay
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I went to Breakfast at 9 AM. It was raining heavily outside. As the windows in my room are shutterred (wooden shutters) - to prevent outside noise from disturbing my sleep - I could neither see nor hear the downpour from my room. As the rain showed no signs of abating, I decided to use the Hotel's internet and blog for a few hours until the rain stopped. I was getting closer to being up to date with my blogs.
At Noon, it was still pouring and I did not want to spend the rest of the day in front of the computer (or) in my Hotel room. I asked the hotel if they had a spare umbrella I could borrow and they loaned me one. The Bus to San Lorenzo stops very near my hotel. I walked to the bus stop (50 metres away) and waited for the bus.
A bus came by in 5 minutes. I gave the driver 5000 Guaranis and he gave me back 3000 Guaranis and a ticket. No works were exchanges :) The bus system here operates on a flat fare from anywhere to anywhere (similar to New York's metro system). I took a seat and watched the streets go by. After 8-10 minutes of driving, we were outside my area of familiarity with Asuncion. As the tourist office had provided me with a pretty decent map of Asuncion, I was able to follow the bus route as the streets were clearly marked.
After 30 minutes of driving we appeared to be in the countryside. I requested a co-passenger to let me know when to get off for the San Lorenzo Cathedral (which I had come to see). He told me to get off a few minutes later and I did. The total journey was 45-minutes or so just as the tourist office had told me. It was pouring here as well. The cathedral was right in front of me and was closed. Maybe the services had ended (I assume they had services as today was a Sunday) and the cathedral had closed its doors. There was hardly any shelter from the rain for me to take out my camera and take pictures.
The streets were flooded. I had rolled up my trousers to my knees. I thanked my foresight in wearing sandals and not shoes! I waded in ankle to knee deep water and keep asking directions for Museo Boggiani (one of the other places, that is a must see in San Lorenzo). After 45 minutes of being told to do in different directions, I found the street and followed it to the door number as shown in my guidebook (888 Colonel Bogado). It was exactly as the guidebook said - 1 1/2 blocks from the cathedral and I spent 45 minutes walking around because the locals were clueless!
I rang the bell for the museum and waited. A door opened and an old lady told me to come back at 3 PM. It was 1:45 PM now. I went in search of food - Vegetarian food. As the umbrella given by the hotel was quite small, my backpack appears to be quite wet. I only hope that "Precious" inside, is dry! I found a restaurant close to the cathedral. I ordered CORN empanadas and a soda for a total of 7500 Guaranis ($1.6). I decide to follow my meagre lunch with 3 scoops of Ice-cream for 5000 Guaranis ($1.1). It was still raining heavily. I was getting tired of people watching. People coming in to order, maybe eating their food there and so on. I was getting bored as there were not many people around due to the heavy downpour. I saw the SECOND fattest person in all of Paraguay. The folks here are uniformly slim and healthy. Hence the rarity and oddity of seeing a fat person.
It was past 3 PM after all these musings and I decided to head to the Museo Boggiani. The elderly lady welcomes me. This is also a free museum! Boggiani was an Italian explorer who spent time with the Guarani people and over time documented their culture. The museum descriptions were all in Spanish. I once again made a conscious effort to read and comprehend the descriptions and was mostly successful. The museum exhibits included headdresses, weapons and tools used for hunting and fishing, utensils and musical instruments used, masks, talismans and even a few contemporary photos showing the Guarani people as they live today in their native areas.
The museum also has a shop selling handicrafts made by the natives. The shop is across the street from the museum and the lady leaves the museum unattended and walks across the street to open the museum shop for me. I buy a couple of wooden carvings for 30,000 Guaranis ($6.5). I thank the lady and head to the bus stop. The Bus to Asuncion stops at the end of the Museum street (Colonel Bogado). I wait for 10 minutes before one shows up. I give the driver 20,000 Guaranis and he returns 17,900 thereby charging me the correct fare of 2,100 Guaranis ($0.45) for the 45-minute ride.
It is still pouring here. I take a seat and watch Asuncion come up. The rain has now stopped. I get off a few stops earlier at Plaza Uruguaya as I feel like walking. During my walks in Asuncion and San Lorenzo and my travel in the local bus, I have not felt threatened at any point in time. Maybe the locals (read RICH people) are a bit paranoid here. Similar to folks living in the suburbs having fanciful visions of NYC where everyone is a mugger and everyone is mugged!
I get back to my hotel and dry the backpack and the contents therein. Fortunately, the camera and associated equipment is quite dry. I spend some time writing my diary. I head to yet another Italian place (recommended by the Asuncion visitors guidebook) for dinner. On reaching the place after a 15-minute walk, I find it closed!
A nearby Mall appears to be open. I walk in and wander around for a bit before hitting the food court on the 3rd floor. I spot a place with 'ARABE' in the title and head there. I see HUMMUS and BABBAGANOUSH on the menu and my eyes (and hopes) light up. I asked the manager for FALAFEL! He dashes my hopes my saying that they don't have it anymore :( I settle for a Spinach empanada as it is the sole vegetarian dish.
There is a multiplex within the mall and the Clive Owen flick "Shoot em up" is playing with ENGLISH Dialogues and SPANISH Sub-titles. The next show is at 10 PM. Perfect. I spent the next hour at an Internet cafe and get to the box-office around 9:40 PM. Apparently I am the ONLY customer (so far) for the 10 PM showing of this movie and they require at least 2 folks before showing the movie. I decide to hang around for a few minutes to see if anyone else will show up to see this film. Most folks who come by want to see Nicholas Cage in the "National Treasure" sequel (or is it a prequel?) as it has SPANISH Dialogues (No ENGLISH Subtitles). I could buy 2 tickets to the Clive Owen film (@20,000 Guaranis a ticket - US$ 4.8 approx) and they would run it for me. Somehow the thought does not go well with me. I give up and return to the hotel. I blog for 2 hours and my Antarctica experiences are up to date (I am still behind on the overall trip).
I receive a call from my brother and the hotel manager (whom I had told to expect a call where the only word from the caller would be "GOPAL") rushes to inform me. We chat (brother and I) for 10 minutes. All is well on both sides.
Asuncion is a dead place on Sunday with the exception of the Mall which I think must have opened late in the afternoon or early evening. Being a catholic country, I am sure opening the mall on Sunday morning would be severely frowned upon. Apart from News Kiosks and restaurants, there is nothing else that is open.
I go to bed around 1 AM. I hope to be up early to do a final round of Asuncion including a visit to Mr. Libster's store to update him of my visit and thank him for his advice.
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