There and Back Again...

Tuesday evening as I was heading towards bed, my mom informed me she'd be going to Asunción the next day and wondered if I'd like to accompany her. The only details I was really given is that it was for work, we wouldn't stay long and...oh yeah, we'd be leaving about 3:30 AM! Nevertheless, it was something to do and I'm always up for spending time with my mom. So bright and early (actually it was still dark out...) the next morning we headed out, accompanied by my mom's secretary Millie and her body-guard-like coworker Paez. I snoozed off and on as light began to fill the sky, awaking only for a little while in order to consume my beloved chipa and customary cocido from a stand on the side of the road. Before arriving in Asunción we made a quick stop to show me the Virgin Mary's Cathedral in Caacupe. The height of the ceiling as I walked in certainly took me by surprise and the glass windows were, of course beautiful. We even payed the 25 cents per person to climb to the top and look out over what I was told were mountains (certainly not by Sitka standards). I may or may not have scribbled my name next to hundreds of others at the top of the cathedral...:)

As we entered into Asunción I discovered that the true reason for coming was to talk to some man...turns out he was sick and the 10 hours of driving we did were in vain. However, we spent a few short hours rushing around the city while my mom acted as a tour guide. We managed to hit all three branches of government and I even took my "Paraguayan style" White House photo in front of el Palacio de Gobierno. Something I immediately noted while gazing up at the newly constructed Legislative Building were the houses on the other side of the street which were falling apart and strewn with garbage. It's amazing how often I see similar sights all over the country.

After hitting a few other historical sites and a name brand shoe store (for my mother's sake) we embarked on our 5 hour return trip. However, right outside of the capitol we made a stop in a small town where there is literally an entire street FILLED with hand-made goods. And when I say hand-made...I mean ceramics! I was in heaven, except for the fact that it was 85 degrees out and I didn't have shorts with me. My mom didn't buy anything, but did do a bit of bartering with one of the saleswomen. We ended up getting home around 4:30 PM, but all the car riding had tired me out and I didn't really amount to much. I'm glad I looked past the early wake-up call and went on the trip because it really was quite fun, and informative!