Fight with the administration

20.2.22 to 10.3.22

In Paraguay we again met wonderful, open and hospitable people. In the short time we were there we only travelled the southern part of the country. A lasting experience remains the customs clearance of the tires for Globi.

The police your guardian and supporter

As in every state capital, traffic in Asuncion is chaotic. It’s better we keep our eyes open on all sides, because people are overtaking and jostling around the truck. Gabi directs me through the streets and is informed accordingly by her GPSers. The routes indicated do not always comply with traffic regulations. Normally we, and also the other road users, handle it generously. In Asuncion, however, this led us to the centre of the old town, which has truck ban and is somehow really too narrow. A young policeman stopped us and wanted me to pull over and show my ID. To be on the safe side, I didn’t do either because I didn’t want to stand next to the intersection for a few hours. Although he always shouted the same instructions out loud, I just couldn’t understand his accent and told him that he should please show me the way out of the old town because I didn’t know the area. After a lot of back and forth, his experienced boss came over and asked me where I was going and the explained us how I could get out of this mess. In return, he stopped all traffic at the intersection, and we were able to make a wrong turn and continue driving. In the years in South America, we have only had very good and friendly experiences with the police officers, thank you very much.

Happy moment

On Route 1 south, we had to stop, rest and rush to the toilet at the roadside due to the extreme heat and after enjoying some super yummie local ice cream. After a short rest, we drove on to the next gas station, where we could stand properly. About a quarter of an hour later, a young, attractive farmer’s wife appeared with her little son and spoke to us in German. If we are fine, if she can do anything for us and if we need help. She had seen us on the side of the road, turned around and when we were no longer there, she had looked for us. We are overwhelmed by so much care for complete strangers and say thank you very much. Unfortunately, she drove away immediately, and we didn’t have the opportunity to get to know her better.

Encounters

Thanks to a mutual contact in Switzerland, we enjoyed the hospitality of Ines and Hans. They emigrated to Paraguay more than 20 years ago and were able to buy the old bishop’s house here in the middle of the city. They have expanded and adapted the property according to their needs and are living their dream here.

When looking for a suitable gomeria to change our tires, Gabi found Waldemar. Waldemar is the owner of a truck tire workshop and drove trucks internationally himself when he was young. He accepted us almost as friends, drove me to customs for over three hours and housed us until we received the tires. He helped us to find a customs agent through his connections and organized the appropriate meetings. He took an awful lot of time and in the end didn’t charge anything. Of course, we found a way to compensate him anyway, but the generosity towards foreigners is beautiful.

Technology pitfalls

During a shunting manoeuvre, Gabi heard some strange sounds out of the quad garage. We weren’t sure if Ernstli was suddenly no longer alone in there, so we decided to check. When we let Ernstli down, the chaos revealed itself immediately. For seven years we have always travelled the world with a replacement air filter for Globi. This filter is so big that it actually only fits in the quad garage. There we mounted it in a dustproof plastic bin on the ceiling. The inox suspensions broke due to all the shaking on the dirt roads and the bin fell on Ernstli. Of course, he resisted and Gabi heard this tussle from the outside. We immediately freed Ernstli and the air filter from the bin and gave it away. The air filter can now travel peacefully on Ernstli without a bin until Globi has to go to the next service.

The shaking of the unpaved roads also broke the original MAN spare wheel suspension of both wheels. Before we lost both wheels, we had the suspensions welded again for the second time.

For a smile

Since I can buy the tires for Globi in Europe for a quarter of the price in South America, I bought them in Europe and had them sent to Paraguay because the customs costs in Paraguay are bearable. The transport took more than three months, but I expected that. The agencies involved were all very nice and everything worked out perfectly. Since I didn’t know an address in Paraguay, I had the tires stored in the bonded warehouse. – There’s no way I would do that again. – The local agency confirmed that everything was ready for three weeks and the tires were ready for collection. So, I drove to the bonded warehouse with Waldemar, the nice tire specialist, and his trailer to receive the tires. After many hours of discussions, in a mixture of Spanish and Guarani that I didn’t understand, with all sorts of customs officials, we left without tires. As far as I understood, one paper was missing.

On day two, I got in touch with a well-known dispatch specialist in Asuncion who was recommended to me by several colleagues. However, the person was so arrogant, naughty, uninformative and dismissive on the phone that I decided to continue taking matters into my own hands. So, I went to my Paraguayan agency and picked up the original BL (Bill of Lading). They could not email me this form because the authorities only accept the original. Waldemar organized a customs declarant for me who could take the necessary steps at customs.

On day three I met the customs declarant, Dani, and he immediately demanded 8 million PYG in cash. I was a bit overwhelmed with that, after all it’s over CHF 1,000.00. So I got that amount of cash from WU (Western Union) and was ready and armed together with the BL for the next day.

On day four, early in the morning, I drove back to the bonded warehouse with Dani and his wife. I gave Dani the money and got registered as a recipient of cargo with customs. From now on I was allowed to receive goods in Paraguay. After that I had to present myself to various officials and sign some forms that I couldn’t understand. In the afternoon, Dani’s wife drove me back into town to Gabi and Globi. Dani paid customs with my money in the afternoon without my presence and probably optimized the system and kept a part for his services. In the evening I received the message that the tires would be released tomorrow.

On day five I drove to customs with Dani again in the morning and signed new release forms at various places. By noon we had gone through all the places and Waldemar’s employee drove up with a pick-up. After a complicated procedure, he was allowed to drive into the duty-free warehouse without Dani and me, we had to walk! After further incomprehensible formalities I was able to go to my tires with a rental helmet, after all they were really mine. With another form, the fork stack was released, and the tires were transported next to the pick-up. I drove out of the camp in the pick-up without permission. Luckily. I didn’t want to queue behind the more than 20 trucks and ordered the driver straight to the front, which the customs officer approved and waved us through. This procedure also worked at the gate. Now we were actually in Paraguay with my tires!

My learning: only have it delivered to a physical address in the country. At least I know now that I am still capable of learning even in old age.