Paraguay is a little-known
landlocked country, which has found itself somewhat
isolated from even its neighbors in the past by geography and politics. It is one of the continent’s least densely populated countries, made up of mostly
mestizos (people of mixed Spanish and Native American descent) but there is also a Japanese community, created by post-WWII migration.
Since 1811, when it became
independent, Paraguay has been governed mainly by dictatorships and has endured a number of costly wars against neighboring countries.
However, Paraguay
has taken a number of steps to overcome its political, economic and geographic situation and is building a more welcoming image. The country can boast many attractions:
grassy plains and an
untamed wilderness of marshes, lagoons, dense forests,
jungles,
national parks, Jesuit missions and the Chaco, one of South America’s great wilderness areas.
The country will particularly appeal to travelers who have already been to larger, more varied South American destinations, but who are now ready to experience the more
subtle attractions of the continent such as learning about the
Guarani Indians, watching
Nanduti lace being made or seeing a
jaguar or
alligator. In addition, Paraguay boasts
breathtaking waterfalls where the borders of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina come together. For all these reasons, Paraguay is definitely a country worth discovering.
GeographyParaguay is a landlocked country surrounded by Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil, lying some 1,440km (900 miles) up the River Paraná from the Atlantic. The River Paraguay, a tributary of the Paraná, divides the country into two sharply contrasting regions. The Oriental zone, which covers 159,800 sq km (61,700 sq miles), consists of undulating country intersected by chains of hills rising to about 600m (2,000ft), merging into the Mato Grosso Plateau in the north; the Paraná crosses the area in the east and south.
East and southeast of Asunción lie the oldest centers of settlement inhabited by the greater part of the population. This area is bordered to the west by rolling pastures, and to the south by thick primeval forests. The Occidental zone, or Paraguayan Chaco, covers 246,827 sq km (95,300 sq miles). It is a flat alluvial plain, composed mainly of grey clay, which is marked by large areas of permanent swamp in the southern and eastern regions. Apart from a few small settlements, it is sparsely populated.
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