Getting to Know Paraguay!

By Maya M., Claire P., Genevieve S, and Sophia S.,

Hello, Stoneleigh! We are currently in Asuncion, Paraguay and have walked 2226 miles!! Great job!

Our club is learning about a country called Paraguay. It's sometimes called "an island surrounded by land." It is located deep in the heart of South America. Not one of it's borders touches an ocean. People have lived in Paraguay for thousands of years. They lived in the lush forests of the eastern part of the country.

Early Spanish and Portuguese explorers arrived in South America in the beginning of the 16th Century. At first they had no interest in this part of the world, because it was also a land of extremes and finding food was difficult. They were very wrong because South America is a very beautiful continent!

At our club, Miss Trish L. came to talk to us about her experience living there as a Peace Corps Volunteer. One of the traditions she saw every day was drinking Yerba Mate. Yerba Mate is a tea produced from the leaves and stem of an evergreen plant. To make the drink, the plant leaves and small stems are picked and dried. They leaves are then crushed and placed in the bottom of traditional gourd cup or cow horn. The leaves are steeped in hot water.

Paraguayans drink the tea through a bombilla or straw made of metal or wood. The bombilla has a filter on the end which prevents the crushed leaves and stems from being sucked into the drinkers mouth. Yerba mate is a refreshing drink served hot in cold weather and cold in hot weather. The indians believe that it cleared their blood, gave them stamina, and made them mentally alert.

Help Name Our Millipede Mascot

Good Morning Stoneleigh Walkers!  Did you forget to turn in your Walking Wednesday calendar before Thanksgiving?  You can still turn it in today or tomorrow to help your class win a visit from our millipede mascot.  The mascot will be living in the Walking Wednesday bulletin board display case until Wednesday morning.  Take a look during lunch an think of a good name for him/her and write it on your calendar!  Keep walking Stoneleigh!