German
Paraguay: Churches, Museums, Mattress & Gas Adapter
May 2024
Madre Del Buen Consejo
Near Caacupé, a church has been under construction for 10 years by around 40 monks.
The interior with its leaded Gothic windows, magnificent marble floors and special color scheme is finished. There is still scaffolding outside, and work is still being done on the towers.
We were overwhelmed by the craftsmanship and creative skills of this religious community. The monks work from Monday to Friday. On Saturday and Sunday, visitors are shown around, and mass is celebrated twice.
We were given a private guided tour in German by a young, friendly Colombian monk. He was visibly pleased that I knew the decoration techniques from my background and was enthusiastic. Finally, he gave us a gift - home-brewed beer.
Pequena Baviera - Campground
Beautifully situated campsite, 800 meters from the main road to Caacupé. Pool, clean WC and showers. Good infrastructure overall. Christian, the owner, was very nice and gave us some good tips on where to visit.
Restaurant Nacionsushi in Asuncion
An original, very specially designed restaurant. We were the only guests the whole evening. Good, friendly service.
Contrary to the many good ratings for the food, which is why we were there, the food on offer was poor. Bad luck, I guess!
Museo del Barro in Asuncion
The collection is varied and interesting and includes modern ceramics and art, traditional local costumes, and old religious relics. Some of the modern art took a little getting used to for us. Much of it was rather strange. But the museum was well worth a visit. We learned a lot again.
Mattress replacement for our Tranquility
At the headquarters of the Impacto furniture factory in San Lorenzo near Asuncion, we received a new mattress tailored to the dimensions of our Sprinter in just one hour. Incredible, this very inexpensive service.
Adapter for filling our fixed gas tank
In Argentina, we were able to have our gas tank filled directly from gas delivery trucks without an adapter.
However, Paraguay gas connections have a different system, which is not suitable for us for direct filling. Our gas tank capacity last for 4 months. So we were not under pressure to find an suitable adapter.
We already had a fitting for the connection on the Sprinter side. However, we were missing the counterpart that would fit the Paraguayan gas pistol.
We asked at several gas stations and in over a dozen hardware stores. To no avail, the thing was simply not to be found or was not sold to private individuals.
We were lucky in the village Hohenau. A nice gas truck driver explained that he had the right part and would bring it to us at the campsite after work. In the evening, he brought the much-awaited part. However, a double-sided threaded piece was still missing for a direct connection. No problem, he organized this for us.
We were very grateful. There was no question that it was a win-win situation for both sides. Especially as he predicted that Brazil would also have the same connections on the gas nozzles; let's see!
Temple de San Burnaventura in Yaguarón
The Temple of San Buenaventura was built in 1586-1587 by Brother Luis de Bolaños with the participation of indigenous people from Acahay, Paraguay.
It became one of the most important missionary centers due to its important craft workshops. The main element of the traditional Franciscan village is the street network of five by five blocks with a central church. The church continues to be an important part of the history of Yaguarón and Paraguay and is now a popular tourist destination.
The design of the church is undoubtedly the most important example of Franciscan architecture from the colonial period in Paraguay. The altarpiece, undoubtedly the highlight of the entire complex, was originally used by missionaries to familiarize the Guarani with the principles of the Catholic religion. It is made of wood with elaborate polychrome paintings.
“Reducing” indigenous peoples to religious and civic life was mainly practiced by the Franciscans and the Jesuits, but each order had its own strategies to impose a new way of life on the Guarani in religion, economic system, language, etc. https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6614/
Railroad Museum in Sapucai
The yellow, dilapidated houses are reminiscent of the former English railroad repair workshop. Up to 700 people worked there for a hundred years from 1894.
A wide variety of equipment such as tin snips, drills, lathes etc. were driven by a central steam engine via transmission belts. A few locomotives can still be seen outside. Nowadays, however, there are no longer any railroads in Paraguay.
