Asunción

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Asunción

For the municipality in the Philippines, see Asuncion, Davao del Norte.

Asunción, population 1,639,000 (2002), is the capital of Paraguay. Its metropolitan area, named Gran Asunción, includes the cities of San Lorenzo, Fernando de la Mora, Lambaré, Luque, Mariano Roque Alonso, Ñemby and Villa Elisa; having more than 1.5 million inhabitants. Asunción is located at (-25.2667, -57.6667).

It is the seat of government, principal port and chief industrial and cultural centre of the country. Main outputs of the manufacturing industries include footwear, textiles, and tobacco products.

History

Asunción is one of the oldest cities in South America, being known as "Mother of Cities". It was from here that the colonial expeditions departed to found other cities, including the second foundation of Buenos Aires and of other important cities such as Corrientes and Santa Cruz de la Sierra. The site of the city may have been first visited by Juan de Ayolas, but the town, called Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Our Lady of the Assumption), was founded on the feast day of the Assumption August 15, 1537, by Juan de Salazar and Gonzalo de Mendoza, brother of Pedro de Mendoza. Thus, the city became the center of a Spanish colonial province.

In 1731 an uprising under José de Antequera y Castro was one of the first rebellions against Spanish colonial rule. The uprising failed but it was the first sign of the independent spirit that was growing among the criollos, mestizos and natives of Paraguay. The event influenced the independence of Paraguay, which then materialized in 1811. The secret reunions between the independence leaders to plan an ambush against the Spanish Governor in Paraguay Juan de Velasco were held at the home of Juana María de Lara, in downtown Asunción. On the night of May 14 and May 15 the rebels succeeded and were able to force the governor Velasco to surrender. Today, Lara's home is known as Casa de la Independencia (House of the Independence) and serves as a museum and historical building.

After Paraguay became independent, there was signifcant change in Asunción. Under the presidency of Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia roads were made throughout the city and the streets were named. However, it was during the presidency of Carlos Antonio López that Asunción (and Paraguay) progressed, as the new president implemented new economic policies. More than 400 schools, metallurgic factories and the first railroad service in South America were built during the López presidency. After López died, his son Francisco Solano López became the new president and led the country to the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance that lasted for five years. After the War of the Triple Alliance (1865-70), Asunción was occupied by Brazilian troops until 1876.

It took several years for Asunción to recover from the war but the city saw fast development in the following years, especially in the 1970s and 1980s during Alfredo Stroessner's presidency.

Population

Asunción's current population is approximately 539,000 people. The population has increased greatly during the last few decades as a consequence of internal immigration of people from other Departments of Paraguay due to the economic instability. The adjacent cities in the Gran Asunción area like Luque, Lambaré and Mariano Roque Alonso seem to be the ones attracting more people from other areas of Paraguay due to the low cost of the land. Sixty-five percent of the total population in the city are under the age of 30. The downtown area of the city near the port and centred on the Plaza de los Heroes, and the Plaza Uruguaya was largely developed during the 1970s and 1980s, leaving little of the colonial city. However it has become somewhat dangerous at night. Because of that, the economically dominant sector of the population are moving to the suburbs towards Avenida San Martin, where the Paraguayan elite live.

Geography

Asunción is located right next to the Paraguay River whose banks offers a beautiful landscape. Places like Cerro Lambaré (a hill) located in Lambaré offer a spectacular show in the spring because of the lapacho trees in the area. Parks like Parque Caballero and Parque Carlos Antonio López offer big areas of typical Paraguayan nature and are often frequented by tourists.

Education

The main universities in the city are the Universidad Católica (private Catholic University) and the Universidad Nacional de Asunción (state-run). The Católica has a site in the centre, next to the cathedral and a larger campus in the adjoining city of Lambaré, while the Universidad Nacional has its main campus near the adjoining city of San Lorenzo. There are also a number of smaller privately run universities such as Universidad Americana and Universidad Autónoma de Asunción (both private universities).

Tourist attractions

The city is home to the Godoy Museum and the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes (which contains old paintings from the XIX century), the Church of La Encarnación and the Cathedral, and the Panteón Nacional de los Héroes, a smaller version of Les Invalides in Paris, where many of the nation's heroes are entombed. Other landmarks include the Palacio de López (presidential palace), the old Senate building (a modern building opened to house Congress in 2003), the Catedral Metropolitana and the Casa de la Independencia (one of the few examples of colonial architecture remaining in the city).

Calle Palma is the main street in downtown where several historical building, plazas, shops, restaurants and cafes are located. The "Manzana de la Rivera", located in front of the presidential palace, is a series of old traditional homes that have been restaured that act as a museum and showcases the architectural evolution of the city. The old railroad station still maintains the old trains that now are used in tourist trips to the cities of Luque and Areguá (see Rail transport in Paraguay).

Asunción also has luxurious malls that contain shops of the most well-known brands in the world. The biggest shopping malls are Shopping del Sol, which includes a Macys-style department store: Unicentro, Mariscal Lopez Shopping and the downtown-located Mall Excelsior.

Transportation

Because the Paraguay River runs right next to Asunción the city is served by a river terminal in the downtown area. Public transportation is used heavily and is served through buses that reach in all the regions of the city. The main long-distance bus terminal is on Avenida Republica Argentina. Asunción is served by the Silvio Pettirossi International Airport located in the city of Luque.

Sports

Football is the main sport in Paraguay, and Asunción is home to some of the most important and traditional football teams like Olimpia Asunción, Cerro Porteño and Club Libertad, which have their own stadiums and sport facilities for affiliated members. The Defensores del Chaco stadium is the main football stadium of the country and is located in the neighbourhood of Sajonia, just a few minutes away from downtown Asunción. Since it is a national stadium sometimes is used for other activities.

External links

Senatur Asunción Info (in Spanish)
Asunción Events Guide
Satellite picture by Google Maps
Asunción and its attractions (Spanish) with a list of sights, map of downtown and a downloadable map (part 1 , part 2, part 3).

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Cities in Paraguay | Capitals in South America | 1537 establishments

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