Paraguay- Where Soccer (futbol) is a Way of Life

A lot of people ask me what it is like here in Paraguay. Most of the time, I don’t really even notice that big of a difference, especially after having lived here for almost 7 years. I have always said that life is life no matter where you are. However, living here during the world cup is a whole different story! Living in the US, if asked about the world cup, I would have had to admit that I didn’t know what sport that was associated with (Okay, so I just gave away the fact that I am not a big sports follower). But the truth is that the average US citizen is aware of the world cup, but probably does not own a US soccer team jersey or even follow the games. But when it comes to this aspect, Paraguay IS a whole different world!


There are very few streets in Asuncion that do not have a clothes line hanging in the middle of them with a huge variety of size and style of “albirroja” jerseys, flags, hats, horn blowers, etc.

There are very few Paraguayans who do not own a Paraguayan jersey.

Most cars in the street display the team flag hanging out their window.

T.V.’s have come out of the wood work- at all hours people can be seen gathered around a small TV, watching. The President declared a holiday for the first Paraguayan game and no one had to go to work!


Last Sunday morning Paraguay was playing. I was getting ready to go to the church building to watch the big game, but I was running late because I had three little ones, plus myself to get ready! I heard fireworks going off outside and I immediately knew that Paraguay had scored. No need to stop and turn on the TV. 8am fireworks on a Sunday morning were a clear giveaway!

Today, Paraguay played against Japan and won! Several of our members gathered at the church building to watch the big game. The room was tense as we went into overtime. When we got that last goal, the room went crazy! I was jumping up and down and screaming right along with the rest of the room! Someone turned around and Luis Fernando and Walker, both 3 years old, were hugging and jumping up and down and yelling “Paraguay!” The city exploded with fireworks and we could hear horns honking out in the street, nonstop.

We went outside to check things out and Emma summed it up perfectly, “Mom, is this a big parade?”

Our building is right at the corner of two main avenues and it was so fun to be right in the action. Cars were lined up, honking their horns, people hanging out of them, decked out in their albirroja, multiple flags flying and screaming their hearts out. It was amazing! And not only did it happen when we first went outside, it continued for hours! Most people seemed to be making their way to downtown, where there was an all-out street party. I can only imagine how proud the Paraguayans felt because I was bursting with pride for Paraguay! I am proud to be an American, but today I was also super proud to be a resident of Paraguay. It was a fun day!

Efficiency

If you are a very efficient, task-driven personality, my morning last Friday very likely would have driven you absolutely insane. Seven years ago, I would have been highly irritated by 10:30 that morning. But 7 years in Paraguay has taught me to deal with a slower-paced life. It has taught me to find humor in otherwise frustrating situations. It has even taught me to appreciate the fact that a documentation process that requires 17 different stops means that lots of people have jobs. Therefore, I quite enjoyed my morning.

My driver’s license expired in March of 2009. I didn’t realize that until around September of 2009, which was right before my third child was born. Needless to say, I have been rather busy and renewing my driver’s license kept getting bumped down from the top of my “to-do” list. I finally decided that I really should take care of it (I am not sure if that was more from feeling as if I was not a legitimate driver or if I just got tired of seeing it on my “to-do” list.) So around 9:30 that morning, I went to the "municipalidad de transportacion", aka- the transporation office. As soon as I walked in the door, it hit me that I had forgotten to take any form of entertainment along with me. All that I found in my purse was my wallet, my grocery list and my cell phone. I was so disappointed with myself because it would have been the perfect time to read! (lots of dead time, no children with me) I started at the desk that had a sign that said “lisencia de conducir”, or driver’s license. It seemed like a good place to start to me. (Stop #1) I was quickly told that I had to make my way to the desk near the entryway (Stop #2), where I had to show my expired license and wait for them to fill out the necessary paperwork. I was then sent to the “fotocopia”, or photocopy station (Stop #3) where I had to pay to get a copy of my Paraguayan identity document on a 1970’s photo copy machine. Then I was sent back to the entrance desk (Stop #4) to give them the copy. From there I was sent to “Venta de Valores” where I had to pay for the paperwork that I had just been issued (Stop #5). This moved me along to “Documentation and Foto”, where I handed over my paperwork and receipt of payment. (Stop #5) I was asked to wait in the waiting area (Stop #7). I was eventually called back to a room for hearing and vision tests. (Stop #8) The hearding test was fairly entertaining in and of itself. It existed of a lady making this metal thing hum in my ear and then asking me if I could hear it. I guess if I didn’t answer her question, she would have known I couldn’t hear? I am still not really sure what the metal thing was all about. I took my test results back to “Documentation and Foto” (Stop #9) and was sent directly back to “Venta de Valores” (Stop #10) to buy a stamp to put on my now “hearing and vision” approved documents. When I returned to “Doc and Foto” (Stop #11), I was hassled about not having a correct address. Apparently I need to call the owners of our condominium and tell them that they need to give our condo a street number. Despite my incorrect address, I was allowed to move on to “Liquidaciones”, the desk I originally started out at (Stop # 12), where I handed over my growing collection of papers. Thankfully they were having computer problems and I got to visit with the lady at that desk for a good amount of time. We talked about the weather, the slow computer system and the fact that I needed to pay for my license for 2009 and 2010 (oops). She finally sent me back to a desk near “Venta de Valores” where I paid all 3 of my bills (Stop #13). I made my way over to the “Fotografia” desk (Stop #14), where I was passed off to the person that would take me to the actual place where I got my picture made. The “photo studio” had a nifty little mirror nearby where I was encouraged to “freshen up” (Stop #15). I was then sent back to the waiting area (Stop #16). By this time, I was truly entertaining myself. I had turned me grocery list into a treasure hunt map, complete with drawings of the room, the desks involved and numbers explaining every destination that I had the privilege to visit. And then…..I was called to “Documentation and Foto” one last time (Stop 17), where I got my official Asuncion driver’s license!! And all of this only took an hour and 10 minutes. Not too bad for a Paraguayan document procedure. I actually got the document I went for in one day- and that is no small feat! Is this efficiency or what?