Asunción

Nuestra Señora Santa María de la Asunción is the capitol of Paraguay. The residents of Acunsion(Asuncenos)have the distinction of consuming more mate´ than anyone else in South America. They consume so much mate that they carry it around in a special fashion accessory. Nearly everyone walking the street in Asuncion carries a "guampa" which is a leather container with a handle or shoulder strap that holds the thermos of water. Many of these guampas are real works of art, dark leathers and beautiful etchings. They also have a compartment to hold the mate cup as well. The mate here is called terere´ however and is enjoyed cold since most of the year Paraguay bakes under the torrid sun.

Architecturaly it is a curious place. What isn´t faded colonial glory from the 16th or 17th century is brutalist architecture from the 1960´s and 70´s - large blocks of plain but imposing concrete edificios. Heat seems to be the only design conceit of the non-colonial structures, many have lateral blinds attached outside of the windows. It wouldn´t be incorrect to call Asuncion ugly but I also think that this strange dichotomy is what gives it its' charm.

Paraguay was once the most advanced country in South America. In addition to having the first telegraph network and iron foundry they also built the first passenger railway on the continent. This fact was brought to my attention by a taxi driver every time we passed the old station in the Plaza Uruguay and the following litany would invariably take place: "This was the first passenger train in all of South America", the driver would proudly intone. "Where does it go to?" I would ask. "Nowhere, it doesn't run anymore, not for a long time now." would come the response. Rather than make investments in the thousands of miles of existing track someone came up with a cheaper solution - simply turn the station into a museum.

It was with a certain pleasure that I took photos of the Palacio de Gobierno since during El Supremo´s(José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia)time the dictator forbid citizens to look at his house and anyone caught doing so was shot on site. Sure this seems a little extreme but perhaps if you were a dictator living in a palace that resembled a wedding cake you could probably understand employing such a policy.

Pantheon of Heroes in the Plaza de Independencia is similar to Invalides in Paris. The most impressive coffin in not one of the seminal players in Paraguayan history like the Lopez dictators but rather the kid sized casket dedicated to the children between ages 10-15 who fought in one of the bloodiest wars in Latin American History, The War of the Triple Alliance. This was the war that pitted Paraguay against Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. During the war Paraguay lost close to 60% of its population. The Paraguay casualties swelled so much that kids were put on the front line to fight against the Brazillian cabalry. It was common for the children to have beards and moustaches painted on their faces to appear older from a distance.

Bar Lido is a lunch time institution in Asuncion. A large scalloped lunch counter snakes throuought the interior. There is often a wait to gain a seat at the counter. The lunch special is a cold surubi´fish soup. It is somewhere between a bisque and a chowder. This comes with a panchito and a refresco of your choosing. Savory, satisfying and cheap. This was the only place I had lunch during my time in the city.

I have some picture of Asuncion's funky aesthetic HERE


Flying over Paraguay from Asuncion to Brazil I am struck at how little there is below me. Large tracts of farmland, miles of uninterupted greenery and nothing that resembles a city. In a country the size of California with a population of only 6 million surely makes Paraguay one of the least populated places here. Oddly it seems to still be a victim of its' once isolationist policies. I don't if this is a place for everybody. I could see some thinking 'there was no "there" here' but I think that is the whole point. I think it is a close as you can get to seeing how places in South America looked when the Spanish arrived. Paraguay don't go changing.

C