Victor and Maria, from Hidalgo State in Mexico, were on the Laguna Capitan tour today, and I really enjoyed meeting them. What an inspiring couple they are! Paraguay is their 120th country, and their last one in Latin America.
Another night tour last night, this time joining a lovely French couple, and we were rewarded with some great sightings. We saw a Chaco mara, which looks like a rather unusual cross between a large rabbit and a guinea pig. We also spotted two different foxes — the crab-eating fox and the pampas fox. The…
The garden here is bursting with fresh vegetables, and I’ve now been asked to help out in the garden as well. Things just keep getting better! Well, that’s what I thought as I sat down for our family lunch and saw some beautifully cooked schnitzels waiting for me. They looked delicious, and I was quite…
Another rather unexpected problem here at the ranch — vampire bats! Every year, the ranch has quite a few lambs that require bottle-feeding, and apparently the vampire bats are part of the reason. They make a small cut in the ewe’s skin and lap up the blood. Their saliva contains an anticoagulant, so the wound…
Yesterday was another fantastic day. Kirsten and I headed into town for lunch with Jerome, who I met for the first time yesterday. Jerome had been a Workaway volunteer at Iparoma Ranch for about six months before I arrived and now lives in Filadelfia. The two are planning something exciting too — on Halloween they…
Well, you learn something new every day in Paraguay! One thing I’ve noticed here in Filadelfia is the extraordinary number of mosquitoes. They seem to have appointed themselves as my personal welcoming committee. They swarm around my face, buzz around my ears and investigate my hands with great enthusiasm. But here’s the strange part… they…
Well, today brought another collection of surprises — although by now I am beginning to realise that this is probably just life at the ranch! The daily routine is settling in nicely. First, feed Pancho, then get on with the sewing and help out wherever I can. Today that included preparing the dehydrator with marigolds.…
Yesterday was a fantastic day! After feeding Pancho at 7am, then I settled into a large pile of mending. Everything from mosquito-net doors and towels to making covers for the tops of freezers. Then, over lunch of delicious local piranha fish, Marilyn casually asked if I’d like to join her on one of her tours…
Finally… we made it to the ranch! What a journey. The roads were more mud than road, and along the way we shared the adventure with three enormous double-trailer trucks heading off to the abattoirs, a family of five capybaras, one very dead snake, and plenty of friendly Paraguayan chatter. And then there was Hotel…