Yes Virginia, There is a Paraguay...

Honestly, where should I begin? How do you describe a week anywhere, let alone a new country, climate and culture, with any kind of justice in a few sentences or even paragraphs without it turning into the War and Peace of blog entries?

I could go into detail about the physical aspects of the experience. The fact that landscape and infrastructure of the suburb of Mariano Roque Alonso reminds me of some kind of cross between Florida and rural Guatemala. Or the oppressive mid-day heat that already exists here in spring. Or yes, even the new smells while packed into the bus on the way downtown.

Then there are the experiential things to discuss, the warm reception of the church that first night, that nearly violent encounter Nestor and I had with the old drunk while walking home with our wives from Maria’s, or the adventure that became of the simple task of exchanging a 20 liter bottle of water in another language.

But these will all take thirty pages to describe, so I will simply end by saying that, yes Virginia, there is a Paraguay, and Krista and I are experiencing it. That and, most importantly, I have already had the chance to play soccer with some pretty stiff competition. I held my own, and could have left proud if I hadn’t played one game too many for my out of shape body.