A Destination Worth Discovering
Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay, must be one of the least visited and most misrepresented cities of South America. It’s capital Asuncion boasts a working port which is frequented by barges, small container boats and ferries. Destination guides for Asuncion are sometimes hard to get. Even more difficult to find are destination guides for handicapped travel.
The location where Asuncion is situated today was most likely visited by the Spanish conqueror Juan de Ayolas n the 16th century. He disappeared without a trace and Juan de Salazar was sent to look for him. In August 1537 the latter stopped at a bay in the left bank of the Paraguay river and decided to establish fort there. He named it “Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion” (Our Lady of the Assumption).
A city soon began to take shape around the fort. From here many explorer in turn left to establish a number of other cities. These include Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina and Santa Cruz de Sierra in Bolivia. Asuncion is thus one of the oldest cities in South America and one that can rightly claim to be the “mother of cities”.
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.
It is a crumbling, atmospheric old city. When you walk down the main street (called Palma) you will meet pavement vendors selling the famous Nanduti embroidered lace, you will hear the sounds of harp music coming from various music stores and you will be approached by hawkers selling chipa – a delightful and very typical Paraguayan bread made with manioc or corn flour.
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.
At night the city comes alive. South Americans love music and there are a large number of locales where you can listen to live bands playing everything from traditional Paraguayan music to rock. The city has a wide variety of restaurants. While buffet restaurants are very popular, especially around lunchtime, there are a diversity of restaurants available to suit every culinary taste.
Make your way to the east of the town and you will be totally astounded at it’s modern buildings and opulent Villas. The two main arterials namely; Avenida Espana and Avenida Mariscal Lopez connect to this area which is known as Villa Morra. Here you’ll find glitzy shopping malls and upmarket coffee shops and restaurants. If it’s culinary delights you are after, then you need not look any further than Asuncion. The locals are excellent chefs and their food is prepared in such varieties that it’s truly a feast for the eye. You can also catch a movie at many of their multi-screen cinemas. If it’s orchestral music or a ballet you are after then the Paraguayan National Bank Theater offers concerts on a regular basis.
The city has a large number of hotels to suit all pockets. Budget hotels cluster around Plaza Uruguay, while near Plaza de los Heroes there are a number of four- and five star hotels.
Destination guides for Asuncion are difficult to find. We recommend that you print this page and keep it for reference purposes.