Paraguay

Who says Paraguay is a small country?

Dear Reader, I’m not sure why my blog titles lately have been exclamatory or rhetorical–I must be asking a lot of questions.  Actually, I’ve had a habit lately of finding instant answers to questions that pop into my head.  For example, today I wondered what the suffix "-stan" means.  I don’t mean the name "Stan," ala the dude featured in the tragic Eminem song.  I mean the suffix attached to scores of countries and provinces ranging from Pakistan to Kurdistan.  I went online tonight and found out that "-stan" is an old Persian root referring to "the place where one stays."  Interestingly, modern Persia is named Iran, not Iranstan or Irstan or Perstan.  How many "stans" can you name?  How about Tajikistan, or Kyrgyzstan?  Or Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan (of Borat fame), Hindustan, Kurdistan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Dagestan, or Waziristan?  Yes, those are real places.  Can you find all of them on a map?  If you know a "-stan" I missed, please feel free to post a comment.  It would be fun to be feature the ultimate collection of "-stans" from around the world.
 
I digress.  Yes, the Internet is a wonderful information resource, but it doesn’t have the answer to everything.  Today I found a map in a musty book on Paraguay (what else?) that depicts what I’ve heard time and again–that Paraguay is about the size of California.  The book has a map showing Paraguay superimposed over California.  Sure enough, it is about 1/8th smaller than California by land mass.  Paraguay, with a population of about 5.7 million, has a far smaller population than California, but it is by no means small.  It just seems small because it is wedged between Brazil and Argentina, two countries that are far larger in both size and population.  Some call Paraguay a "buffer" state between those rival nations.  Perhaps.  Imagine if Texas were still independent (Texas was an independent nation during 1836-1845, a fact Texans will proudly tell you).  If it were, Texas would surely be a buffer state between the United States of America and the United States of Mexico (some would argue that it in fact a buffer state).  Calling Texas a buffer state though would diminish its stature as an large country.  The same goes for Paraguay.
 
I posted the map of Paraguay superimposed over California for your viewing pleasure.  Now it’s available on the Internet.  Just one more trivial fact that you might enjoy.

Your very own cattle ranch

I searched for photos of the Paraguayan countryside, and I came upon this most unusual advertisement.  An aged farmer in Paraguay wants to sell his 28,247 acre cattle ranch affectionately known as "Estancia El Dorado."  The ranch is about 44 square miles, with one square mile equal to about 640 acres.
Sooner or later this ad will be taken offline after a buyer has been found, so here is the original ad:
Estancia El Dorado in Paraguay is for sale by owner
Estancia Eldorado is a 15 year old private farming property in Paraguay.
At first, a challenge set by a French Legendary Pilot to start a cattle farm, this Estancia continues today
to work it’s great potencial and has rightfully become one of the biggest farms in this region.
Unfortunately, it’s owner is now retiring and this property is for sale.
 
Estancia area details:
• Total surface: 11,436 hectares (28,247 Acres).
• Workable pasture area and potreros divisions:
– 32 parcs of 150 Has: 4,800 has.
– 19 parcs of 75 Has : 1,425 has.
– 01 parc of 55 Has : 55 has.
– 01 parc of 100 Has : 100 has.
Total : 6,380 has
NB: 400 of the 6,380 has of pasture are ready for agricultural activity. A further 3,000 need very little work and investment to reach this state.
  • Standard fencing, 1 post every 6m
with 4 smooth steel wires over 130Kilometers.
• Electrified fences: 1 post every 50 meters.et 1 fil de fer lisse: 20 kilometers.
• Gates for parc accesses:
There are 50 – 4m wide wooden gates on the property.
They are all made from quality solid wood.
NB : 100 % of fences are in perfect condition.
 
Water capacities and supply:
• 3 X 160m deep semi-artesian wells.
• 3 X 15m high, 35.000 l. capacity water towers.
• 7 X 35,000 l. water tanks.
• 10 X 13,000 l. water tanks.
• 20 km of 1.5 to 2 in. diameter high pressure pipes  Current Livestock count:
1,700- full adult cows.
400 cows under 16 months old.
700 -female calves
700 -male calves
52 -bulls
Total: 3.552 heads
 
For more information, please fill in this short form. Thank you
Pour plus d’informations, veuillez remplir ce court questionnaire. Merci!
Para recibir mas informaciones mándenos estas informaciones. ¡Gracias!
So, how much would you pay to own your very own cattle ranch?  Well, the ad doesn’t say, so I guessimated the price.  A 49-acre ranch for sale in Paraguay is now on the market for just 500,000 euros, or 10,204 euros per acre (http://www.viviun.com/Real_Estate/Paraguay/).  At the current exchange rate, the price would be $13,931 per acre.  Assuming that the price per acre doesn’t fluctuate significantly and not taking into account the cattle and other fixtures on the property, the purchase price of Estancia El Dorado would is about $393,508,957.  Realistically, though, you might be able to buy the ranch at a slight discount for $300-$350 million.  Or maybe the owner is desperate to sell and would settle for $250 million.  I don’t have that kind of money.  Do you?  One silver lining–$600,000 will buy you a 50 acre ranch in rural Paraguay.  Not a bad deal at all.  If you could make a living from it.

Paraguayan music

We had a very busy weekend.  The sun was shining (finally) and we were out and about.  On Saturday we went to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (a.k.a. Amish Country) for a day of shopping and sightseeing, and on Sunday I went to a friend’s wedding.  I have some new photos to post (finally), but they’ll have to wait for another day. 
 
I was trying to update the music on this site tonight.  I found some great Paraguayan music to stream on this blog, but Spaces made some changes and won’t let me update the link.  I’m not sure why it didn’t work, but I’ll try to update it over the next couple of days.  In the meantime, feel free to check out the Paraguayan music web site I found with some great music clips.  Here’s the URL: 
Paraguayan music features a special harp that gives it a unique sound of its own.  It’s very beautiful.  At times, the clip I chose actually reminds me of traditional Korean music, which is also relies heavily on stringed instruments.  More on this topic later–I spent too much time already tonight trying to update that darn link.  I’ll try again tomorrow.