Shopping for Glasses and Sneakers

When we were at Suzuki camp, right before we moved here, Abigail's glasses broke (one of the arms of the frames fell off).  I spent a good chunk of a morning when we were back in VA getting them repaired.  Her prescription was a little old so I didn't think we could go new glasses before we left the country.

Shortly after we arrived, the other arm of the frame bent in such a way that I was afraid to bend it back.  It was obvious that she needed a new pair.  So, one day she and I went over to the mall close to the hotel where we were staying to see what we could do.  My Spanish was even rustier then than it is now, but we were going to do our best.

We found out from the rather grumpy attendant at the information desk that there were two glasses stores at the mall.  So we found our way to the first one, where the salesperson showed us a few options.  Both of us were shocked to hear the price - around 2.5 million (Guarinies that is).  OK, so I had gotten used to big numbers for paying for things, but when we did the calculation it came out to roughly $500!  I also asked if there was any way to repair the glasses, and the answer was no.

Needless to say, we walked out of that store:).  I said to Abigail "I guess we should have gotten a new pair in the US!"  and suggested that maybe she'd have to switch to contacts (not a good suggestion in her opinion).  Anyway, we headed to the next store.

Thankfully, we were happy to find several options there that would be less than $100 - what a relief!  And on top of that, the salesperson was able to bend her frame back so that she could use it until the glasses were ready.  We took John back with us in the evening just to see if he liked the ones she picked out too (Arianna was sick that day and stayed in the hotel).  They were ready in less than a week and they're quite cute.  You can sort of see them in her first day of school photo below:

We did have another similar shopping experience when we were trying to get sneakers for Arianna before she started school.  At the mall they had quite a few options of imported brands: New Balance, Nike, Addidas, etc.  But Arianna wasn't thrilled with them and they all cost well over $50, some closer to $100 (I usually buy them sneakers at Target or Payless, so that's kind of high for me).  We went to a more local shop on the street right outside of the mall and found a really cute pair of sneakers for about $15.  Arianna hasn't worn sneakers in years and really doesn't like physical activities that require them (preferring gymnastics, dance, horse back riding, yoga, etc.), so I was pretty reluctant to invest in an expensive pair of sneakers.  Now, if her PE teacher talks her into joining the soccer team as he's trying to do, I'd be happy to reconsider:).

Fitting in

Well, I wouldn't have guessed it, but it turns out that we actually look like we belong here.  Last weekend when I was in the grocery store, a gentleman in the baking aisle asked me about which flour would be better for a diabetic - as if I belonged:) (in Spanish, of course).  That NEVER would have happened in Costa Rica.  But here there is such a large population of German descent (and I think also German ex-pats) that we actually look like we belong.  We've visited a few churches and today and last week we went to a Mennonite church (also in Spanish), where there were quite a few blond haired families.   There are apparently many more Germans here than there are Americans.

Besides the German population, there is a fairly large Asian population - mainly Korean, but other nationalities as well.  In Arianna's class of 16, 11 are Asian.  Most of them are TCK's (third culture kids) like she is, but I think that one of them is a Paraguaya of Asian descent.  Someone told John that at some point Korea was trying to lower it's population and Paraguay was trying to raise theirs and so they came to some favorable agreement for immigration.  But, most of the kids at Asuncion Christian Academy are just embassy kids like Arianna, or missionary kids like Abby's friend Ali who goes to school there too.

House photos

Now that I have a good internet connection, I thought I'd give you a little tour of the inside of our house:

Entrance hallway

Living Room area

Dining Room

Kitchen eating area

Kitchen cooking area

Back Patio

First floor powder room

Abigail's room

Arianna's room

That's all for now, but there's an office, a sitting area (family room) upstairs and our bedroom.  One of these days I'll take a photo of the pool out back.  They are working on it now (some tiles needed to be repaired), so hopefully it will be ready when it gets hot.  We certainly don't need it right now - brrrr!

Roads, driving, etc.

Yes, that's a tree, in the middle of the road. It is a frequent site here - great for the environment, but one of the many things that adds to the excitement of driving around here. Can you see the pavement in front of the tree? Here's a close up:

When you add the fact that there is seemingly no drainage system for the roads, it makes for some very interesting driving, both when it rains and after it rains (the pot holes are amazing). Our street is made out of this material, as are MANY others in Asuncion.

Then you add the other vehicles on the road:

Yes, these are a frequent site all over the area in which we live!

So, the other interesting aspects are the rules of the roads. In our neighborhood, there are many intersections where there are no stop signs. On the main roads, there are lights where you can turn left, but many others where you can't. At the later, the normal custom is to go past the intersection and make a U-turn. Not so fun when the car we've rented has no power steering! I've driven a few times, but I'll be glad when our car arrives so I can get a little more accustomed to the driving here (we've only been renting a car on the weekends and most of the time, John drives).

How do you say "Baby Shower" in Spanish?

Exactly the same way as you do in English, but with a Spanish accent! I had the pleasure of attending one a week ago last Friday, for the one of the wives of one of John's colleagues. It was a tea at 4 in the afternoon, at a place where people have teas for such occasions (or birthdays or other occasions). While quite a few of the women speak nearly perfect English, the event was all in Spanish (except the car ride there and back). It was good practice for me, though at times it was impossible to follow the conversation. The ladies were animated enough that they could make me laugh even when I couldn't follow the conversation!

Unfortunately, I was checking back in with John at around 6:30 only to find out that I had mistakenly taken both sets of keys with me! I was in a dead spot at the party place, so I hadn't received his phone calls. Fortunately another woman who was leaving the party early was able to give me a ride home because the plan had been that John and the girls were going out to a restaurant for dinner (at 7 since that's when the restaurants open for dinner) but they couldn't leave until I got home with the keys. So, I missed the gift opening, but probably had followed about as much Spanish as my brain could handle for an afternoon. I look forward to the day when I can understand more!