Drinking "mate"

It is nothing quite like seeing a hot chick walking on the streets in the middle of the night carrying a mug with it's metal straw similar to the one I am holding and a flask of "mate" on the streets of Paraguay.

How could one not laugh when they are not used to the culture? :D

For those who are wondering... Mate is basically a tea brewed in hot water filled with other goodness like herbs and roots, before serving in a social setting with mates refilling and passing that mug around. It is also the national drink of Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina.

I must say, after getting my first taste of "mate" from friendly locals, I found it to taste similar to Chinese tea! They fill the flask up with cold or hot water depending on the climate. In my case I drank it cold and it was very refreshing in the 38 degree heat.

So I guess this culture and custom is not dissimilar to Chinese in China, carrying a bottle of thermal flask and a glass to ferry their precious tea back and forth from social to business gatherings!

For more info on mate check wiki.

Paraguay Recycling

Now if even a 3rd world country like Paraguay can offer something as clear cut as this in recycling, why can't we do the same back in NZ? Time to kick our government's ass on this issue me thinks!

How do I spend all that money?

That is exactly the dilemma I am having right now... I am only in Paraguay for 3 days, and have exchange a shit load of Brazilian Reals for Paraguay Guaranis. I have spent it on a lavish dinner, sight seeing and having my own room for the night. I have never been in this predicament before, and am hoping to be so when I get to my final week in Buenos Aires! :b

Also, Paraguay and Colombia can follow Venezuela's example in removing the last 3 zero's from their currency (though only started in January). It is nuts especially when South Americans refer to 3 zero's as millions. So 1 thousand in English is 1 million in Spanish. How confusing is that!

I also forgot to mention, that Paraguay is the second poorest country in South America after Bolivia. Which is why everything is dirt cheap here! :)

Jesuit Ruins of Trinidad & Jesus

So I am finally here! Term by LP as the "least visited UNESCO site in the world", so I was disappointed to find other people there. LOL!

Just kidding. But there weren't many tourist on a Sunday afternoon at both Trinidad and Jesus. I could count the local tourist with two hands. So that statement may be true! :)

I came here to visit these Jesuit ruins. The Jesuit are a bunch of missionaries whom came over to this part of the world in the 17th and 18th century. They left their mark in Paraguay and Argentina with some massive city ruins. However it is all left to rot now, as the missionaries were kicked out by the Spanish back in the 17th Century. They were kicked out because they did such a good job in protecting the local indigenous people from exploitation (ie slave trade) from the colonist.

These city ruins includes cathedrals, colleagues, houses for the indigenous people, houses for the priest, bell towers and cemeteries. All are missing roof and some walls, but I was quite impress with how well preserved it all is. As in most other 3rd world countries ruins like these without protection would have allowed the locals to reuse the materials for to construct their own houses.

Paraguay Border

Made it! I cross the Paraguay border this arvo from Brazil. It all went smoothly, until I was told that I need a VISA to enter Paraguay! Oh dear.... Luckily, the friendly Paraguay Custom officer told me I could get a 5 days transit visa for 30USD or 60 Reals. So I thank my lucky star and cough up the moolah!

The border town of Ciudad de Este is NUTS! It is a duty free town and is known for it`s electronic goods. So today being Saturday as well, there were a ton of Brazilians and Argentinians in town shopping for a deal. You see them all, crossing back to Brazil carrying various electronic goods like cameras, speaker systems and LCD screens.

So since I am not looking for nuthin, I took the bus south west to Encarnación, to check out what Lonelyplanet terms as the least visited UNESCO site in the world!

Also, I tucked into a delecious Jap dinner tonight. Eating maki and katsu chicken at a Japanese restaurant call Hiroshima. The last Jap outing for me was at Ken in La Paz 5 long months ago!!!