We are not exactly in the centre of the tourist trade here, as we are very much off the beaten track (14 hours to nearest airport), so when we have a visitor it really makes the news.
Recently we had two visitors.
Paudie Moloughney from Tipperary, is in the parish priest in the next parish north of us, Juruena (about 4 hours away - if the roads are good). Paudie's brother John and a friend Michael, called in to stay a night on the Journey up to Juruena. They had driven up from São Paulo. I am not sure how long it took them, but it took me 5 days in 2006 to drive up.
On the night they arrived our neighbours had invited us to their daughters 5th birthday party. Birthdays are a "big thing" here. So we brought our visitors along with us and John, being a piper, brought his bagpipes with him, and the little girl was speechless with "happy birthday" on the bag pipes. With the noise of them, I'm sure the neighbours were in speechless too.
L-R: John, Paudie and the birthday girl "Tamilly".
Happy Birthday on the bagpipes, she just stared at John, with her mouth open. I think bagpipes are only seen on TV here. That is Michael of the extreme left of the picture.
