After a brief thunderstorm, which left the streets running with grimy water mixed with litter, I took a walk to get some air… The air I smelt made me long for my air-conditioned hotel room after just a few blocks…
I covered a grid of six city blocks around my hotel, to see if there was anything interesting to look at or take photos of…
View from my hotel balcony in Asuncion... Paradise, it is not...!!
I found what I believe to be the downtown city square, which was encased in more concrete than grass… It is part of the “Plaza de los Heroes”, and on one corner sits an impressive building, guarded by soldiers in white dress uniforms…
When I went closer to take a photo of the building and it’s guards, they waved me away and indicated that I was not to take any pictures…!!
I still managed to take the one below when I was a good distance away, and could get a running start if they came after me…!!
I found this interesting building on the Plaza de los Heroes... It is known as the Pantheon of the Hero's, where many of the nations famous are entombed...
Asuncion is supposedly one of the cheapest cities to live in, and more than 30 % of the country’s population of six million, live and work in it’s environs…
A massive influx of people, fleeing from the tough economic conditions in the countryside, have seen the city grow larger with each passing year…
It is also one of the oldest cities in South America, and was used by the Spanish as a base to start expeditions into the interior, to look for gold and other minerals. It is also an inland port, and ships have sailed up the Rio Paraguay for centuries…
It is by no means a tourist destination though, and during my walk, I saw only two young guys changing money with one of the hundreds of black-marketeers out on the streets…
And most them going about their business in full view of the police, who seem to be standing watch on almost every street corner…Many of them are raw, young recruits, fresh-faced and looking more fearful than fearsome…!!
These two Indian women were selling beaded bracelets and small leather items... In the ten minutes I stood watching them, not a single person stopped to look at their wares...
I handed an old Indian woman a 10 000 Guarani note (about $2.00) and indicated that I wanted to take her photo… She was happy to oblige and then tried hard to make me buy some of her trinkets…
While I was talking to her, if that’s what you can call hand gestures and a smattering of Spanglish, a middle aged guy came up to me and warned me about my camera…
“Senhor…!!” he said pointing to the camera, “Be careful…!!” And made a gesture which showed it being taken from me…!!
I nodded and walked away, annoyed that I had to be reminded that this city is renowned for petty thievery… Why bother visiting a country where you cannot take photos without wondering when you are going to be robbed…!!
Some walls, mercifully free of graffitti, have colourful murals of Paraguay's distant past...
The streets of the capital are in dire need of overhauling… There are no painted lines anywhere, so you can imagine the chaos…!! Potholes go unfilled, and storm water drains are clogged with rubbish…
And don’t for a minute think that pedestrians have the right of way…!! Drivers seem to take a special amount of pleasure in watching people leap back onto the sidewalk to avoid being run over…!!
These colourful buses belch diesel fumes that clog the air...
I did come across one particular street that seemed as if it was in another town altogether… It had a very busy McDonald’s, and four or five boutiques, one that even specialised in lingerie, and another in perfumes…!!
I searched everywhere for a postcard to see if there was something worth taking the trouble to visit, but all in vain… There were many street vendors selling magazines and newspapers, but no postcards…!!
Which reminds me of an old Mark Knopfler favourite…!! Click the link to listen…!!
Another Fanta flavour to savor...!!
I retired to my hotel room after an hour of walking through the now hot and humid streets, which the recent downpour had made much worse, and settled in to do some work on the blog…
Back into my usual lunchtime fare of biscuits and a brand new flavour of Fanta, which mimics a berry that is only grown in Brazil as far as I know…!! So don’t be holding your breath waiting for it to reach your shores any time soon…!!
With my old diet restored, I fully expect to recover from the flu that I am struggling with, in next to no time…!!
But I have supplemented the above with a few tablets I found in my first aid kit… Two yellow ones and a few white ones… And a charcoal tablet for good measure…!! I have no idea what these tablets are for and can’t be bothered to Google the names to check…!!
I figure that if I am carrying them, they must be good for something…!! Right…??
If you do not hear from me again, please call the Presidente Hotel in Asuncion, and ask them to check on Room 503…!!
©GBWT 2012
A bit of a dump I’d say. Hope you are feeling better soon.
Get out of there, quick!!!! Get some meds for that flu.
The Mark Knopfler song makes me want to get on my bike and ride.All the best for your trip and I hope you enjoy every day.