Pilgrimage to Caacupé

before anything, take a look at me and this man.

this happens to be Presdidente Ramirez, my papi's mission president. WOW right? i feel so lucky to have been able to meet him. first time i ran into him, he greeted me with a big hug - which is not a common paraguayan greeting. he told me that is how we will greet each other in heaven. we are attending the same ward, Barrio Moroni, Asunción.

Presidente Ramirez just celebrated his 83rd birthday last sunday and recovering from a heart attack but he stands strong!
ps. i hate pictures with flash. does anyone like pictures with flash?

and then after church we decided to make the world famous PILGRIMAGE TO CA'ACUPÉ. and on our way we saw this united family:


a CA'ACUPE tidbit: people make pilgrimages to Ca'acupe to see their lady of miracles, la Virgen de Ca'acupe. they go to this enormous basilica in the center of town. the town is known for it's chipa and some other artisan works.

children were running around selling little rosaries. one little girl went up to Wess and handed him one saying it was a present that he could give his girlfriend. he made the mistake of taking it and was then obligated to buy one. a little funny because we don't use the cross as a symbol in our church. so he bought the rosary and is now wearing it. it looks nice.



and we paid our way to get to the top of the basilica and look at the town. rolling green hills all around with terra-cotta roof tops.


i think i'm getting sick.
every time i eat my stomach feels strange. i have self-diagnosed myself with three illnesses.
1. benign stomach syndrome (runs in the family)
2. becoming lactose intolerant (i've had SO much dairy. chipa, yogurt, liquados, ice cream, cheese... yep.)
3. overeating every meal (also runs in the family)

and here is the:
"chipa chipa rica chipa dos mill chipa chipa rica"
its a cheesy bread made with a flour made with mandioca. they can make some pretty intricate shapes with them. they also make one called chipa so'o (so'o means meat).



and lots of meatsies.



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