Aregua

Areguá
Areguá is a city in Paraguay; located 28 km away from the capital city Asunción. It is the capital of the Department of Central. Probably the best feature of this Paraguayan town is its geographical location; it lays between a group of rolling hills with a distinctive rock formation (found only in 3 places in the world) and a beautiful blue lake,Ypacaraí lake. The topography of thesurroundings gives this town a unique natural charm. The colonial architecture, largely preserved, along with its original cobble stone streets makes this small town a very quaint destination. Here, one can find magnificent mansions, which are laid out as surrounding corridors enclosing a central plaza (usually a beautiful flowered garden). It is also known as the "city of strawberries" because of thelarge production of strawberries, the best in Paraguay. The city of Areguá is also home to skilled artisans who showcase their works in expos held throughout the year. The History Museum of Crafts is located in this city. There's also many art galleries with a wide variety of antiques and works of art from the last century.


Toponymy

Areguá takes its name from the former settlers, the MbyáGuaraní, Indians who lived in this area before the Spanish colonization. This group was called "Ariguá", which means "those from above", because of their location in a quite high region.


Climate

The climate in this town is warm. In the summer the temperature are the highest, reaching the 40°C. The lower temperatures are in the winter, reaching 0°C. In relation to rains, the rainiest monthsare between January and April. The nice temperature makes Areguá a great tourist attraction, especially because of its privileged location on the Ypacarai Lake.



Demography

Areguá has 67.847 inhabitants in total, of which 33.977 are males and 33.870 females, according to the projections made by The General Direction in Statistics, Surveys and Census. (Projection 2008)


HistoryOriginally, this town was named "Tapaichuá", founded by Domingo Martínez de Irala in 1538 in the territory of an Indian people who lived in that land, on the banks of the Ypacarai Lake. Its inhabitants lived in the area surrounding the present church of Areguá.

At the beginning of the Spanish colonization, the town was a cattle raising farm of Mercedarian origin. At the end of the 19th century, itwas developed as a summer city where most of the writers, artists and intellectuals lived in the hot months.





The strawberry


Apart from being an important income resource, this fruit has its own history. In fact, the production of this fruit is a particular characteristic of Areguá. According to local people, back to 1920, in The Estanzuela Settling, a farmer put all his strength inthe strawberry growing.

He traveled to the town of Areguá to sell his crop in small baskets. Due to the great success, the strawberry plantation extended to all over the nearby farms, becoming, nowadays, the most important product of the zone. In the harvest months the traditional annual "Strawberry Festival" is celebrated. At the festival, you can taste delicious marmalades, jellies, juicesand pies.


Economy

The strawberry growing is one of the main activities of the inhabitants. Every August it is held the "Strawberry Festival" where the producers exhibit their natural production or their by-products elaborated from the fruit. This town is also known by its pottery crafts, activity which involves a very important part of the people. Its industrial index is emergent.Tourism


Areguá is a lovely town which preserves pretty colonial houses with wide corridors and a particular style. These buildings date from the time when Areguá was mainly a summer town where families from Asunción had their residences to spend the summer. This particular feature makes Areguá an ideal peaceful and warm city to receive visitors.

Undoubtedly, the "Avenida del Lago" (Lake...