One of the two phrases I have heard over and over these past couple weeks is "And now you know why we drink tetere in Paraguay." (the other is "Wow, you're almost as dark as me now!") Another name for tetere is "Paraguay tea". This is tetere:

It is drank cold through a "bombilla". This sourt of straw:

The reason they drink tetere in Paraguay is because it gets so hot in the summer. These past two weeks have been a foretaste of what the December and January (and probably part of February) are going to be like. Hot and humid. The highs get up to 38 or 39 celcius (around 100F) and the heat index will be a constant of 45C with peaks possibly up to 50C (113-122F) and humidity around 60-70%. Tetere is one of the people's answers to the heat, everyone carries a thermos of ice water and most have a "guampa" for the tea along as well.

Another thing about summer here - another responce to the heat, is that everything slows down. The midday siesta gets longer, people relax, and no one cares so much if things get done "on time".

So even though I am not looking forward to feeling that I can't go out in the sun for 2-3 months, I am going to enjoy the slower pace of life that comes with it.

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Today's picture is a mango tree.

This is a mango tree that is out in our back yard. You may be able to see that the mangos on it right now are beginning to rippen. This is one of around 7 or 8 trees immediately around our house. This one is a cross between mango and peach which makes the mangos less stringy and easier to eat. Mango trees make great shade trees and we sit under this one a lot to talk and drink tetere.