Dieciséis

 This week seemed to go by so fast I didn’t have time to write. 

 

Sunday, January 21, 2021 Nobody was in a hurry to leave after church today because this was Erics last time in church. Last time seeing most of these people. I served the big circle terere until most people had had enough and then everybody started goodbyes. Oh and one bunch of bananas was ready to be picked and sent home with someone so there was a bit of a discussion who should get it..  We stopped for a delicious rotisserie chicken on the way home. At the place where we get them, there are probably a dozen automatically rotating over the fire in 2 rows. The one on the end gets taken off the stick and unceremoniously packed up, some mandioca gets put into a bag and there’s your lunch. It’s absolutely delicious, especially after church when your hungry and want to eat right aways instead of making lunch first. I think we’re spoiled.  Early afternoon we were booked to go see some friends who have twin girls Christina’s age and a little boy just older than Tiago. Everybody had a grand time playing together after the initial quiet what-are-we-going-to-do time and the rest of us drank terere and helped make hotdogs, which were served in a bun with a line of mayo drizzled beside. And coke/Guaraná. Which was our afternoon snack or early supper. You choose.  Perla came over in the evening to officially say goodbye.  

 

 Monday, January 22, 2021 A bunch of neighbor ladies who rarely came over before stopped in to chat with Rachelle this morning. And bring gifts. I worked on the escape room that we were setting up for Karlins and packed up for the month or so that I’ll be living with Karlin and Shayla in Campo Nueve. The ice had barely frozen over the room keys that were needed to open the escape room when Karlins arrived to first of all, escape and then to help with packing and cleaning and support and whatever needed to be done yet. Christina and I biked to the store at the cruce and stopped in at Julian’s fruit stand where we were given individual containers of fruit salad before biking back home. Which took us all of 2 minutes. Supper was going to be around 2000 but due to the many visitors who started arriving at 1930, it was around 2300 by the time we devoured our poutine and chorizos.    

 

Tuesday, January 23, 2021 Last minute preparations, cleaning up the yard, washing a huge stack of dishes to be put away at a later date. That’s what our morning consisted of and the heavily laden vehicles left the yard before noon. Stopped for Subway ish style sandwiches (which were even better than Subway) on the outskirts of Asuncion, drove thru a Covid testing station (the 5 tests all came back negative) and checked into Los Alpes hotel where we napped and swam and later headed to the shipping container out door food court where Eric’s friend Brett has a crepe restaurant. Several hours later, after trying tatakua pizza, hummus and of course crepes and waffles and milkshakes, we waffles back to our vehicles and into the hotel and went to bed to sleep off the supper.   

 

Wednesday, January 24, 2021 Walked around a park and tried to go over a bridge that wasn’t open and it started raining and we went to a mall and spent money and had lunch. Spent the afternoon at the hotel. Ate cheesecake that had been brought from home. Around 2230 we donned our tapabocas and set off for the airport. Once there we found out that we actually could go inside to see Eric’s off so we did that and eventually watched them walk thru the doors to security and as it didn’t really pay to say bye to the rest of the people there who we didn’t even know we walked out and drove back to Los Alpes on semi deserted streets, the time being after midnight.  

 

Thursday, January 25, 2021 We made the journey from Asuncion to Campo Nueve today. The van had to be ferried home with us so Shayla got to drive.. Stopped at a cool chicken barn turned restaurant for lunch before those of us who weren’t driving succumbed to sleepiness. 

 

 Friday, January 26, 2021 Well, I can discuss other people being sick in my letters so I guess I have to when it’s me, too. It’s a hard thing for me to do, tho, because I’ve prided myself in not being sick to the stomach for the last 5 years. Actually I don’t remember the last time I was sick. Anyways, I was in bed with some sort of virus til early afternoon today. Not a good feeling. Coke and homemade chocolate chip iced capps do a lot for a sick person and I got most of a dress cut out yet. 

 

 Saturday, January 27, 2021 Got ourselves chipa and cocido for breakfast and headed out. We stopped at some friends for terere in the morning and they served us delicious lunch of grilled chicken. There’s a conservative church close to ours in Florido that Karlins would have a bit to do with and these people were of the same church. Continued on to the forlorn Barrio San Pedro mission house where we were greeted with a stack of clean dishes (that may or may not have been full of little ants) and no power. Now I’ll switch tenses because I don’t know the future yet. But the plan is to pick up Perla and Sister Felicita (like usual) and go have Bible Study with Brother Juan (like usual.) Church tomorrow and then who knows what will happen after that.