spending time away

On February 1st, Danny Kotula stepped into a new country, a new life, and a new world, feverishly excited and fighting off a hint of fear.

He didn’t know what the next stage of his life would hold, and he wasn’t even fully sure how long he’d spend there, but what he thought he knew for sure was that he couldn’t stay beyond three months’ time.

Well, things changed. So now, that same yet developed Danny Kotula spent his 90th day in Bolivia on a week-long vacation rather than saying goodbye to some of the people he loves most.

A flight to Buenos Aires I had to buy as a return ticket upon entry to Bolivia became a great excuse to take some time off of work and explore a new country. And as ambitious of a planner as I tend to be, I managed to pack another country into my travel plans.

Today, I’ll try and blend a couple of topics that mesh well together, in my opinion. Or at least, the one always brings the other up in my own thoughts.

One is my trip itself; I’ll describe how it went and of course, I’ll share some pictures.

The other is the way I’m feeling now that I’m coming back. I’ll arrive back home soon and officially receive my identity card. I’ve successfully traveled out and back into Bolivia on my new year-long visa. It’s real now that I get to stay.

And that’s got me feeling some kind of way, let me tell you.

But first, here’s how my travels turned out.

how it went: paraguay

Paraguay is perfectly paradoxical, a blend of beautiful scenery, surprising simplicity, and a general atmosphere that reminded me very much of my home in Bolivia.

Of course, I say all this only being able to speak on Asunción, the largest city and capital. There’s so much more to Paraguay as a country despite its small size.

But despite that, I almost expected Asunción to feel more significant, or bigger in size at the very least.

It’s very wooded and even major city neighborhoods have a hint of a rural feel to them. The cost of living is absurdly low, even compared with the Bolivian standard I’ve been living with for months now.

Change seems slow to arrive here, for lack of both necessity and desire. Sure, there are advanced technologies here and there, but as a whole, Asunción isn’t modern like your average capital is.

Anyway, what I enjoyed most was the truly brilliant buildings around the city. Entire neighborhoods are known for their pastel-colored outside walls, and it was nothing short of a pleasure to walk through and document some of them.

Another great aspect of the city was its culture, which also felt very much like my new home country just a bit northwest. Guaraní is an indigenous language and ethnicity that’s still well-represented across Paraguay, even if it’s not common within the city limits of Asunción.

Local museums here highlight this culture quite well, and none does so better than Museo del Barro.

This was an expansive collection that seemed to go on for as many ages as the cultures it highlights. It was special to see so many impressive works of art and reflect on exactly how old some of those traditions are.

One other major highlight I can’t leave out is Parque de la Salud, an incredible initiative from the Paraguayan government promoting mental health via a public park with free mental health resources.

There are so many cool things offered at the park, and the place itself is just fun to walk around and spend time in, but the coolest part about Parque de la Salud is by far its Biblioparque. This is a loaning library concept where visitors “check out” books for free, but the books never leave the park.

People come and read while they sit in the park and bring the book back when they’re done, even bringing bookmarks to leave so they remember their place when they come back the next time.

There are some absolute treasures in there, as the park relies solely on donations for their content. The books are piled high and hardly fit in the shipping container of a building, creating a cozy feel and a never-ending treasure trove of information and interest.

I’d never seen anything quite like it, and it’s absolutely a place I’d frequent if I lived in Asunción. A very cool idea that seems to be doing good for lots of people!

As far as the food goes, Paraguay actually left me a bit disappointed. Most South American cuisines have spoiled me with their exciting flavors, variety of ingredients, heavy use of spices, and creativity, none of which was present in the Paraguayan food I found.

First, there’s a general lack of innately Paraguayan food; staples like empanadas, croquetas, and asado are borrowed from other nearby countries.

One winner for me was chipa, a savory ring pastry with great spices baked in. It’s hard on the outside and ideally a little chewy inside, which makes for a great combination.

Another famous Paraguayan food is sopa paraguaya, although it’s not a “sopa” (soup) at all. Instead, it’s another pastry, but in the form of squares this time and heavily featuring egg.

The texture and flavor were strange in my opinion, but it was cool to try something new!

Before I left, I got to catch two soccer matches at levels I’d never seen, and they couldn’t have been more different.

One was held at the national team’s stadium, Estadio Defensores del Chaco, but that was about all the excitement it carried.

About 250 people showed up to the biggest venue in the country to watch two teams who probably shouldn’t be in an international competition in the first place.

The local team, known as Tacuary, did come away with a 3-1 win despite only drawing about 50 friends and family wearing their colors in the venue and a further 200 coming from Bolivia to support the other side.

A day later, though, Cerro Porteño had a big home match at their home venue. One of the two most popular teams in the country, Cerro had a date with an equally-important club called Bolívar (and coincidentally, also from Bolivia) on the docket, with lots of implications for their Copa Libertadores group.

45,000 people fit into “La Nueva Olla” (The New Boiler) at its capacity, and easily over 30,000 were present on this occasion.

They also happened to be some of the rowdiest 30,000 “cerristas”, it appeared, and their fiery disposition was displayed quickly as the team disappointed on the pitch.

Bolívar got out to a quick start via a goalkeeper error, and inside of thirty minutes, they’d capitalized on more Cerro errors to go ahead 3-0.

They took that lead into halftime, and a foreboding fistfight broke out in the stands near me as well.

A fourth goal was quick in coming in the second period, and so were more boiled-over frustrations from the fans.

Thankfully, the contingent Bolívar brought was kept well away from the home side’s supporters section, but that didn’t keep fellow Cerro fans from fighting on a few occasions.

At full time, police intervened a few times and there were a pair of crowd-crush scares, but as far as I could tell, everything ended safely.

It was easily the most frightening soccer match I’ve been to, although it was probably worth a few dicey moments for the atmosphere those same fans created before things went wrong on the pitch.

Cerro Porteño is also the former home of ex-Atlanta United star Miguel Almirón, the best player in my favorite soccer club’s history and a member of our title-winning team in 2018, so it was worth the experience just for that fact alone.

As far as the Paraguayan people are concerned, they were all quite nice but absolutely impossible to understand.

I expected the Argentinian accent to be a challenge, and it was, but Paraguayan Spanish is hardly even a language to my ears. It was wild how much better I felt about my Spanish skills when I got back into Bolivia; the accent really does make a big difference.

I did find the people I encountered to be a little less talkative or outgoing than the Bolivians I know back home or people I got to know in Costa Rica or Ecuador, perhaps.

summarizing paraguay:

As a whole, Paraguay was quite different from most other places I’ve been in the past, and Asunción was a beautiful place to spend a few days.

I’m very glad I ended up going, and I now know so much more about the culture here than I would have without making the trip. It was also cheap to eat, live, and experience life well, too, so a good experience all around.

how it went: argentina

Buenos Aires was absolutely stunning.

Everyone had told me it was a beautiful and engaging city, and they were completely right. I stayed in a neighborhood called Palermo, a quiet area with nice coffee shops and some excellent parks to walk through and enjoy.

I spent the morning exploring that area of town and got to try medialunas and alfajores, two foods on my list of ones I wanted to try.

That left downtown Buenos Aires to the afternoon, which was incredible. I took an underground transport system from Palermo to Plaza de Mayo, one of the central locations of the city.

It was a perfect jumping-off point to see Puente de la Mujer, Paseo de la Gloria (where one of my childhood idols is honored!), some great downtown museums, and other awesome sights in the city.

Puente de la Mujer (Women’s Bridge)

Plaque honoring San Antonio Spurs star Manu Ginóbili at Paseo de la Gloria (Walk of Fame)

After a few hours, it was time to make my way over to the south side of town, which people had generally told me wasn’t a great area to visit as a tourist.

But for the love of fútbol, I couldn’t help it.

That evening, a Sunday, there was only one match on offer in Buenos Aires, and the home team was a club called CA Independiente. They’re rich with history and were known as “The King of Cups” due to their knack for showing up in big moments and winning lots of trophies as a result.

In recent years, though, the boys in red and white have struggled mightily to reach their former heights. When I arrived, they sat 25th out of 28 teams in the Argentinian league table, in very real danger of being relegated at the end of the season.

They were set to face a team in the top five, so I had a feeling it wouldn’t be a particularly pretty matchup. That combined with the area of town made me a little apprehensive about whether the price of admission would be worth it, but I was blown away.

First, in a literal sense. The weather was purely dreadful for this one, as a downpour of rain met the 45-degree temperature and gusty winds to create the worst possible setting for an outdoor soccer match.

Worse still, security confiscated my umbrella at the gate, so I was left defenseless to the elements as I walked in.

However, the gloomy weather was no match for the heart-racing atmosphere Independiente’s fans created from the moment they entered the building.

What I didn’t realize was that Independiente is a blue-collar club which fits its neighborhood perfectly, and the fan base had stuck stubbornly by its side despite the disappointing seasons sitting in their collective memory.

So on a night where there was every reason for people to stay home, 85% of a 40,000-capacity stadium jumped around, chanted, and watched eagerly as their team took home an improbable 2-0 win, a rare moment of bliss in the midst of a bitterly disappointing season.

There are two things I especially love about the game of soccer. One is the way beautiful soccer looks and feels as you’re taking it in. The fluidity of great passes, runs off the ball, tricky dribbling, and a well-taken finish in front of goal give me a sense of excitement little else can.

The other is being a part of a truly rowdy group of fans, tens of thousands of people giving their time and energy to supporting something that everyone there is collectively getting behind.

That night, Independiente gave me both in larger quantities than I’d ever encountered before.

What I saw on the pitch was stellar, a flowing fountain of fluid football. I found myself oohing and ahhing along with the others clad in red as we watched our team dismantle their opposition, freezing them with pass after pass and deft touches at every opportunity.

And on the two occasions when we scored and every moment in between, the whole stadium served as the supporter’s section. It was loud, energetic, and absolutely lovely from the first whistle to the last.

I was absolutely soaked and colder than I’d been for quite some while, but I was almost sad when the final whistle did sound. Those 90 minutes were an epitome of the reasons I love the game, and it was a treat to be a part of such a special match.

Afterwards, I had a treat of another kind—I found a place nearby my apartment for some world-famous Argentinian steak.

I opted for asado, perhaps the most popular cut in the country, and I was not made to regret that choice.

It was an excellent, exorbitant meal fit for a king, and I added a glass of wine and a decadent chocolate volcano to make it a dinner I won’t soon forget.

From there, I flirted with checking out the well-known nightlife in my neighborhood, but thought better of it given my early flight out the next morning.

Then, when I got another day in the city on my way back, I made it a point to see a few more places downtown I hadn’t been able to hit on Sunday.

I went to another great museum, followed by another ride in the Subte transportation system. A few more great parks and a visit to the legendary Bombonera Stadium later, my time was up in Buenos Aires for the second time, and I headed home, tired but happy.

summarizing argentina:

Buenos Aires felt like all the beautiful architecture and culture of a top-tier European city mixed with the flair and flavor I’ve always loved about Latin America.

There’s a stereotype out there that I’ve often bought into which says that Argentinians are snoddy, a bit rude, and aren’t truly South American like the rest of the continent is.

I’m pleased to say that I found the opposite to be true; Argentinians were friendly and talkative and made me feel welcome, and their country is one of the most beautiful that I’ve ever encountered.

I still can’t vouch for their strange accent, though ;)

coming back home

And now, I’m home again.

Home.

I just recently went through customs and showed my new one-year visa, and something about it letting me back into Bolivia is a really cool feeling.

I also just had my identity card delivered, so I get to see my face and name on a piece of plastic that proves I legally belong here.

It makes me think of ways my life might be different if that Buenos Aires trip had been a last hurrah here instead of a quick break.

All my friends I’ve made here, the plans I have to continue using public relations to benefit local populations here, the familiarity I feel with this neighborhood, this city, this country a little more every day.

It would have all been gone about a week ago. It should have happened that way.

But because of reasons ranging from a bit of good luck to over a month of hard work, my reality is one I much prefer—I get to keep growing in the place where I’ve seen the most exponential personal growth in my life thus far.

I wouldn’t trade it for anything, and now I don’t have to.

That realization means a few things for how I carry myself in the months to come.

Primarily, it’s a reminder to enjoy it and take time to do the things I love doing here.

It’s also a big responsibility I feel to be as effective and beneficial to those around me as possible.

And in general, it’s a reminder I’ve been hearing and trying to give myself for a while now: life is measured by living. It’s not about numbers or positive reviews. It’s about looking back and being able to say you lived fully and freely.

Looking back on my first three months in Bolivia, I can say that with certainty. It’s even more vividly true in the concentrated week of adventure I just had abroad.

And here’s to hoping and expecting it to be even more true of my seven months that remain.

Until next time!

Danny