I’ve been back in the states for nearly 2 months now. All this time I’ve had this video and these pictures ready and waiting to be posted. Why the wait? Sure, I’ve been busy, like every other American who puts too many plans into any given day. But that’s not why it’s taken me two months.
When I left Paraguay, I left 2 very important parts of my life there, Katherine and Ofelia. Being back here without them has been very difficult, and very lonely at times. I realized that by not posting these pictures and this video about our trip to the Jesuit Ruins, I was avoiding a piece of having left Paraguay, and my family there.
Things are going very well for me in my graduate program, but I deeply miss many things about Paraguay and my time there. I still drink terere every day (my colleagues have gotten accustomed to me and my termo) and I’m even studying Español every day– and still I miss Paraguay.
I’ll soon be going to Paraguay to bring my beautiful wife and daughter back to Cleveland. So now I can share this video and these pictures with all of you. We can all stop waiting for Jesus!
We shot these great photos and this video back in late June when Kate and my mom and Kamilah were visiting. We took a weekend road trip with Gladys, Roberta and Francisco to Encarnación. The video is from the Jesuit Ruins at the town of Jesus– about 12km off of the paved road, and about 45 minutes drive from Encarnación. Translation: the middle of nowhere, but unbelievably beautiful and impressive. Some of the photos are from another Jesuit ruin site also in the Encarnación area.
Wow, once again there has been a lapse in our posting. But, we have been busy. Here’s the run-down of what we’ve been up to: Starting in mid-June we had guests for a few weeks, friend Kate and Weylin’s mother and niece Kamilah. We packed in lots of sightseeing and experiences having here in Paraguay!
Kate came with us to a Paraguay vs. Brazil fútbol game (sold-out stadium and Paraguay won!) Paraguay Wins!
Kate and Weylin got an exclusive tour of the airport tower! You wouldn’t believe it! Silvio Pettirossi Airport in Asuncion.
We rode on the world’s oldest operational wood-fired steam engine! The train took us from Asuncion to Aregua and we were entertained by actors playing out a historical comedy– all in Spanish and Guarani, and a live chicken was one of the props!
Tourist shopping in Asuncion– great stuff at the train station!
We attended a Quince (15th birthday party) for a friend of Katherine. Great privledge to take part in such a special and significant family event– they put grand effort into these parties.
Bus ride to Tarumandy
Cooking traditional Paraguayan and Guarani food with teachers and parents at the Tarumandy school.
Local shopping at jewelry stores in Luque- know for silver jewelry and Filigree.
Fantastic trip to Encarnacion: there we saw Jesuit Ruins ,
Toured the Selecta (click HERE to see Selecta website) Yerba Mate factory,
And, we found the best Chipas ever at El Gordo.
Once again it was fantastic to be able to, first hand, share our Paraguayan and Luquenian lives with friends and family. Ofelia loved having all of the visitors and ate up all that attention. She’s constantly on the move these days and keeps us busy and entertained.
Katherine has been busy with her research, both doing field work and processing data here at home. I (Weylin) have been making increased efforts to interact with people in Español as much as possible. I buy herbs at the mercado and meet weekly with a new friend– I practice Español and he practices English. Its nice to finally feel like I can get some basic communication done– though the finer details of conversation still escape me (it is a process after all).
We’re headed off for a weekend trip to Concepción. When we get back we’ll get up some more pics from the ruins and our journies.
Thanks for joining us in our Process. We're back from the beyond and settling into Cleveland, 2 PhD efforts, a new house, and 1.5 children-- no boredom here! Our foreign adventure has passed but "domestic" adventures are emerging. Stay tuned for anecdotes and updates.
Trust the Process.
