<>a>p>Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay, must be one of the least visited and most misrepresented cities of South America. There aren’t even many destination guides available for the city, it is sometimes hard to get your hands on one, and it’s even more difficult to find a destination guide for gay men or women.
It is said that a certain Senor Juan de Ayolas sailed the Paraguay river for many months searching for a way to get to the silver mines of Bolivia. He was eventually killed by the aborigines on one of his return trips. Later, a Senor Juan de Salazar was dispatched to search for his lost countrymen, but alas this was in vein. It was the year 1537 when Senor De Salazar visited the present day location and decided to build a fort. He called it Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion.
A city soon developed around the fort from where explorers went on to found other cities in the region, including Buenos Aires, Santa Cruz (in Bolivia) and Santa Fe. Asuncion is therefore one of the oldest cities in Latin America and is also the area in the river Plate Basin that has been continually inhabited for a longer period than any other.
Asuncion is located next to the river Paraguay. The old part of the city, including the harbor, looks out over the Bay of Asuncion. A natural bay permits small vessels to come and go to their various destinations, one of which is Brazil.
The old city around the harbor, including the main street (Avenida Palma), is a decaying old place with lots of charm and character. As you stroll past the many quaint artisan’s shops you start to feel it’s heartbeat and very quickly you will be intoxicated by the smells and sounds of Asuncion. Soon you will be offered chipa bread – which is famous in this part of the world. You will want to stop and explore the beautiful lace articles on display, like Nanduti spiderweb lace for which Paraguay is well known.
If you stay at the characterful old Hotel Armele, you will be able to watch the sun go down over the Bay of Asuncion and the Chaco stretching far, far away into the distance.
Because of it’s heat in the summer months, the locals tend to frequent its many restaurants, bars, night clubs and open air festivals at night. Paraguayans love music and sing spontaneously in the streets. It’s not strange to hear a group of people walking and singing their favorite songs.
In the eastern part of Asuncion you will find Villa Morra – an upmarket neighborhood with fancy shopping malls and large Spanish villas. All the malls have food courts with a variety of local and international food available. Multi-screen cinemas are the order of the day. This is also where you will find the modern concert hall established by the Paraguayan National Bank with regular classical music concerts.
The city is also dotted with many parks and plazas, all boasting huge trees that offer a reprieve from the sun. Strategically placed Asuncion has a large number of hotels which will suit all pockets. You can find budget accommodation around Plaza Uruguay, where the Lapache trees are transformed with spectacular purple blossoms at the beginning of Spring. The Plaza de los Heroes offers a few four and five star hotels.
Next time you are looking for a place to explore and be intrigued by, look for Destination guides: Asuncion. If she doesn’t do it for you, then nothing will.