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About Asunción - Paraguay


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Fundation
15 March, 1811

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President

Fernando Lugo Méndez

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Economic

Agriculture and stockbreeding make up the main economic activities of Paraguay.  The most important crops include soybeans, wheat, sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco and the yerba mate herb, in addition to a large variety of tropical fruits and vegetables. 
On the livestock ranches, a variety of cattle breeds are raised, such as Brahma, Nelore and St. Gertrude, as well as exemplary specimens of sheep, horses and other bovine.
The country’s industry, still in the stages of development, is mainly dedicated to producing lumber, oils, yerba mate, tobacco, yucca derivatives, sugar, textiles, fresh meat, cement and lime.

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Climate
Located on the Tropic of Capricorn, Paraguay enjoys a climate that varies from temperate to hot during the majority of the year, with an average temperature of 75 degrees Fahrenheit.  The Eastern Region enjoys a more humid and rainy climate; the Western Region is arid and dry.
Summers are long, with temperatures that reach 105 degrees on peak days; winters are mild and short, albeit in the months of July and August, some days the temperature can dip down to 0 degrees centigrade.

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Culture
The different cultural aspects that bloom in Paraguay have their roots in the diversification of the different cultural backgrounds, like the traditional indigenous culture, and the popular culture, which was brought here by the Spanish during colonization periods.

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Tourism
Paraguay is a country that has endless possibilities for tourism, due to privileged conditions condensed into a varied geography, an inviting tropical climate and a history and folk art that adorn its towns with an identity that enchants any visitor.
Divided into two large regions that are markedly different due to the emblematic Paraguay River, the country offers to the traveler two geographically and culturally rich universes, rich in attractions: the Eastern Region, that includes rolling hills, with their green countryside bordered by mountain foothills, shady valleys dotted by streams and lakes, dense forests, along with the majority of the country’s cities and towns, whose architecture maintains strong colonial and pioneer traits; the Western Region, which represents the most vast and least populated territory in the country, including the great arid and dry Chaco, with extensive and valuable ecological and biological reserves, vast stretches of land dedicated to stockbreeding and prosperous foreign colonies. 
In present-day Paraguay, 17 indigenous ethnic groups survive, corresponding to various linguistic branches, the most important of which is Guaraní, which left modern Paraguayans one of the most admired American languages for its richness and flexibility, spoken today by 90% of the population. The indigenous peoples of the country, which number approximately some 100,000 inhabitants, add their unique effect to the diverse cultural spectrum along with German, Japanese, Brazilian, Argentine and Bolivian colonies and communities, among others.  All of this comprises a broad cultural spectrum that reflects the country in its literature, its art, its music, its dance and its traditional and modern expressions, which the visitor to Paraguay can appreciate. 
Located in the center of South America, with dimensions of 157,048 square miles, Paraguay has a small population of nearly 6,000,000 people well into the 21st Century, according to the latest statistical data.  This is reflected in its cities, with a more relaxed lifestyle, without the rush and bustle found in modern metropolises, which is an excellent characteristic for the enjoyment of the tourist. 
In recent years, authorities and the private citizenry have achieved notable successes in what Paraguayan tourism has to offer potential visitors.  Hotel infrastructures, as well as the new options for tourism at ranches, such as tours and specific packages that try to promote natural and cultural attractions that the country has to offer, all demonstrate a growing improvement.

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Cousine
The Paraguayan kitchen, as is the case in all cultural expressions, has a strong indigenous roots, although the eating habits of Paraguayans became much more open since colonization, and cooking standards now come European origins, as well as the rest of the countries of the world, in modern times.
The bases for Paraguayan gastronomy are found in two main staples of indigenous origin:  cassava (a tuber with generous roots, also known as mandioca or yuca) and corn (American grain), from which a variety of products are made for consumption in varying forms.
Cassava processing gives us fariña (a type of flour), typyraty and almidón, three very distinct products, used in different dishes. The presence of cassava at the Paraguayan dinner table spans a variety of presentations, from the root boiled in salt as a side dish, to the exquisite chipá, traditional bread kneaded with cassava starch, milk, cheese and eggs, which is the focal point of some festivities such as Holy Week.
Also, corn takes various shapes, from sweet kernels in the delicious chipá guasú to corn flour used in dishes as diverse as Paraguayan soup—the world’s only known solid soup—or borí borí, a thick broth to which balls of corn and cheese are added.
Other basic elements of the oldest Paraguayan kitchen are yams, beans, squash, peanuts and coconuts, as well as fowl and wild game.  In modern times, we can add to the list: beef, absolute king among Sunday barbeques; and in smaller quantities, pork, chicken and fish; and in even smaller amounts, meat from other animals, such as lamb.
Typical Paraguayan foods cover a wide variety which includes some old-fashioned dishes like mbeyú, a delicious omelet with cassava starch, drizzled with cheese, and puchero, a traditional stew, of obvious Spanish origin.  From the extensive list, we can extract dishes with such names as jopara, reviro, locro, arró quesú (Paraguayan-style rice with cheese), lambreado, pastel mandi’o, payaguá mascada, chicharö (cracklings), so’o yosopy, caldo avá, and the clearly Paraguayan-adapted bife koyguá, a succulent and juicy beef cut with onions and fried eggs.  Quesú paraguái, cheese made by Paraguayan artisans from the countryside, adds a special touch to many recipes.
Among the typical desserts we can mention kaguyjy (mazamorra, a traditional sweet dish made from crushed corn, sugar and honey), kivevé, sweet polenta made with corn flour and pumpkin; koserevá, a dessert prepared with citrus fruits such as the sour orange; ka’i ladrillo, a sweet made with peanuts, cut into small cubes that remind one of bricks; dulce de mamón, a dessert made from the genip; and arró kamby, a local version of European rice pudding.
Finally, mate cannot be forgotten, the infallible infusion and ritual that Paraguayans consume everyday, with its stimulating abilities which come from the gourd flask in which one puts the yerba mate (Ylex paraguayensis) and then adds hot water, then sucks through a metal straw.  The flavor and the goodness of the mate can improve one’s well-being with medicinal herbs. The variants of mate are mate cocido (boiled mate), that is drunk from a cup and can be mixed with milk, and teteré, which is consumed cold, and is a refreshing drink for long and hot Paraguayan summers.
Typical Paraguayan foods, which until recently were enjoyed almost exclusively in the home—restaurants offered only a few dishes such as Paraguayan soup and chipá guasú—, in the last few years inspired the opening of specialized stores, where one can enjoy a Paraguayan lunch or dinner from appetizers to dessert, in an accordingly decorated ambience, with the best artisanship in the country.

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Airport International
Silvio Pettirossi International Airport (IATA: ASU, ICAO: SGAS) is Paraguay's main national and international gateway, located at Luque, suburb of the capital Asunción. It is named after the Paraguayan aviator Silvio Pettirossi and was formerly known as Presidente Stroessner International Airport, after Paraguay's former head of state General Alfredo Stroessner.

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Fonte: http://country.paraguay.com/geografia/geografia_del_paraguay.php

 
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