Paraguay – Page 6

Paraguayan Dancing

Last week my son participated in his school’s Paraguayan dance celebration. The dancing is a Paraguayan form of folclorico, a traditional style of Latin American dance. He participated with his kindergarten class; each class from kindergarten to sixth grade performed different folclorico dances for their parents and faculty. The boys dressed in black slacks, white shirts, straw hats donned with Paraguayan tricolor bands, and waist sashes also sporting the tricolor (the Paraguayan tricolor, its national color scheme, was inspired by the French red-white-blue tricolor flag). I thought the students all performed very well; the bottle dancing sixth grader did a particularly splendid job.

My son did an excellent job dancing and wielding a broom. He’s ready to tear up the dance floor. I posted some photos of the dance — they tell a much better story than I.

After the dance

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The Chaco Experience

I just finished this article for our newsletter talking about our trip to the Chaco last weekend. If you ever have a chance to visit the Chaco, give it a try. It’s quite the trip (figuratively and literally).

Are you looking for an out-of-town get away? Head to the Chaco! We made the five-hour trek up to Filadelfia, home to Paraguay’s largest Mennonite colony, and spent the weekend touring Paraguay’s Chaco region. The Chaco is a great destination for those who enjoy driving in the countryside and exploring Paraguay’s scenic beauty. While not as obviously spectacular as Iguazu Falls or the Jesuit Missions, the Chaco features some hidden gems to discover with the help of a local guide. The Chaco is a fascinating mixture of wildlife, livestock and farmland, unspoiled terrain, and an intriguing melding of Mennonite and indigenous cultures.

We spent Saturday morning in Filadelfia exploring the town square, museum, and Mennonite school. The museum features relics from Filadelfia’s history, including Mennonite and indigenous artifacts, and a collection of preserved animals found in the Chaco. Our son enjoyed learning about armadillos, rheas, and cheetahs — up close and personal. In addition, we saw two interesting Mennonite monuments looming over each end of town. Filadelfia also has several large German-style supermarkets, and boutique stores that sell everything from wood furniture to ceramics. Locally made goods are reasonably priced.

At noon, we left Filadelfia and drove to Loma Plata, another Mennonite settlement. After visiting the Loma Plata’s museum dedicated to commemorating Mennonite history, we took a tour of Trebol’s dairy plant. Kids will enjoy seeing the big milk trucks and the flowing assembly lines that package their favorite dairy products. Afterwards, we drove to Isla Po’i, and toured an experimental agriculture farm as well as the former Paraguayan military’s staging area during the Chaco War. We continued on to Yakaré Sur, a large saltwater lagoon that provides sanctuary to flamingos and other birds in the heart of the semi-arid Chaco. The view from the observation tower is gorgeous – one of the few places where you can survey the Chaco for miles in all directions. We passed up visits to Fortin Boqueron, a Chaco-era historic site, and the Tagua Reserve, a reserve for the endangered tagua boar, and end the day with a short tour of Colonia Neuland. A day’s worth of travels through over 100 miles of Chaco left all of us exhausted.

If you plan to travel to the Chaco, plan ahead. You can make your trip more pleasant by following these suggestions. Spend some time in Filadelfia or other Mennonite communities such as Colonia Neuland when the stores are still open. Virtually everything closes at noon on Saturday and all day Sunday, so do your sightseeing and shopping during weekdays or on Saturday morning. Stay at the Hotel Florida in Filadelfia. It’s the nicest hotel in town, and the other hotel options in the area lack basic amenities such as hot water. The Hotel Florida is popular, so reserve your room early. Dine at the Hotel Florida Restaurant, which offers a variety of German and Paraguayan dishes. You can also dine at the Rincon Restaurant or Girasol Parrilla in Filadelfia; however, our guide told us that their food is not as tasty as what the Hotel Florida offers.

Hire a local guide for $90 (half day) to $150 (all day) who can show you what the Chaco has to offer. Most Chaco roads are unpaved and chock full of potholes. Consider using the guide’s vehicle (additional $150) to spare your own vehicle from wear and tear. If you drive in the Chaco, bring plenty of food and water, and be prepared for roadside emergencies. Your guide can help you navigate the myriad back roads that criss-cross the Chaco. If you want to learn more about the immense Mennonite cooperative that operates several meat and dairy plants in the area, contact the Fernheim Cooperative (http://www.fernheim.com.py/) well in advance to schedule a plant tour. The cooperative produces many popular Paraguayan food brands such as Co-op. Following these suggestions can make an adventure in the Paraguayan Chaco an even better experience!

Ethnic Cuisine in Buenos Aires, Argentina

We returned yesterday from a five-day trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina. We had a good time visiting what some call the “Paris of South America.” We were most impressed by the architecture and generally affordable and excellent quality of life we saw. Perhaps our perspectives have been influenced by living 11 months in nearby Paraguay, but it still struck me as a good place to live. I can see why Porteños (residents of Buenos Aires) are proud of their city.

Buenos Aires is a no doubt world-class city. However, I was struck by its lack of diversity. This city with approximately 12 million residents seemed overwhelmingly of European descent with a dearth of other races, including immigrants from Africa, Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Our difficulty finding ethnic cuisine confirmed this. There are no Greek, Indian, or Thai restaurants in Paraguay, and we searched from throughout Buenos Aires to find these cuisines. I finally found restaurants for each cuisine, but it was a bit of an undertaking. Each offered excellent food at moderately expensive prices (by Argentine standards). Here they are:

Mykonos Greek Restaurant, Olleros 1752, Buenos Aires. For reservations, call (54-11) 4779-9000 or visit http://www.mykonostaso.com.ar/

Kathmandu Indian Restaurant, Av. Cordoba 3547, Buenos Aires. For reservations, call (54-11) 4963-1122.

Empire Thai Restaurant, Tres Sargeantos 427, Retiro, Buenos Aires. For reservations, call (54-11) 4312-5706 or visit http://www.empirethai.net/

If we had had more time, we also would have liked to have eaten Japanese and American food. The good news is that as a large city, Buenos Aires has a wide variety of restaurants. In fact, Empire Thai restaurant owner Kevin Rodriguez — an American from New Jersey — told us that Empire Thai is one of the only Thai restaurants in Latin America. Amidst all of the “Parrilla (grill), pasta, and pizza” — as he put it — you can find a great selection of cuisine in Buenos Aires.

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