This is our group outside the CIRD building in Asuncion. CIRD stands for Centro de Informacion y Recursos para el Desarrollo. (Information Center and Resources for Development.) They are an organization funded by the U.S. to help development in Paraguay by providing information, surveys, resources, support, etc.
The most fun thing to do in Paraguay is to shop! The exchange rate is approx. 5,100 guarani to $1.00. You can buy all kinds of handmade items at great prices. Paraguay is known especially for its beautiful lacework, leather work, and silver. The indigenous (natives - Lamanite tribes) make beautiful jewelry out of seeds and weave purses and bags and make all sorts of other neat things. They sell their wares on the street and you can bargain with them for a good price.
This the mall, which serves the upper class in Asuncion. Can you find the golden arches?
You definitely don't want to drink the water!
Here we are shopping in a little market in the mall. We were buying bottled water. Maria is pulling the little cart - the green basket had wheels on the bottom and you could pull it along with it's flip up handle. I thought it was cool enough to take a picture of it.
We had the most fun at the National University. Here the library students entertained us and they were amazing. They played the harps, guitar, and danced. Then the dancers grabbed a few of us from the audience to dance with them. I got to dance with a very cute Paraguayan guy, and he was impressed that I knew how to dance so well. (A plug for the great stuff I learned in Mutual as a teenager, and at dance classes at BYU). It was a blast!!!
The famous Bottle Dance!
What a trip! I enjoyed it soooo much. The people of Paraguay are very friendly and humble. The food was good too. Most of our time was spent touring libraries all over Asuncion and the Chaco, and learning about the information infrastructure of the country. They are dealing with many problems, but they have so many wonderful qualities as a people.
This is our group outside the CIRD building in Asuncion. CIRD stands for Centro de Informacion y Recursos para el Desarrollo. (Information Center and Resources for Development.) They are an organization funded by the U.S. to help development in Paraguay by providing information, surveys, resources, support, etc.
The most fun thing to do in Paraguay is to shop! The exchange rate is approx. 5,100 guarani to $1.00. You can buy all kinds of handmade items at great prices. Paraguay is known especially for its beautiful lacework, leather work, and silver. The indigenous (natives - Lamanite tribes) make beautiful jewelry out of seeds and weave purses and bags and make all sorts of other neat things. They sell their wares on the street and you can bargain with them for a good price. 
You definitely don't want to drink the water!
Here we are shopping in a little market in the mall. We were buying bottled water. Maria is pulling the little cart - the green basket had wheels on the bottom and you could pull it along with it's flip up handle. I thought it was cool enough to take a picture of it.
We had the most fun at the National University. Here the library students entertained us and they were amazing. They played the harps, guitar, and danced. Then the dancers grabbed a few of us from the audience to dance with them. I got to dance with a very cute Paraguayan guy, and he was impressed that I knew how to dance so well. (A plug for the great stuff I learned in Mutual as a teenager, and at dance classes at BYU). It was a blast!!!
What a trip! I enjoyed it soooo much. The people of Paraguay are very friendly and humble. The food was good too. Most of our time was spent touring libraries all over Asuncion and the Chaco, and learning about the information infrastructure of the country. They are dealing with many problems, but they have so many wonderful qualities as a people.
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