Paraguay
Capital: Asuncion
Size: About 157,048 square miles (406,752 sq km).
Language: Spanish and Guarani (both are official, and most people speak Guarani)
Currency: Paraguayan guarani
Capital population: Asuncion has about 520,000 people (over 3 million in the metro area).
Population: About 7 million people.See the biggest cities →National animal: Pampas fox (a small wild fox of the grasslands)
National flower: Mburucuya (the passion flower)
Climate
Warm and humid most of the year, with hot summers and mild winters. Average highs are around 82F to 95F (28C to 35C).
Main industries
Hydroelectric power, soybeans and cotton, cattle ranching, and yerba mate for tea.
Top places for tourists
The huge Itaipu Dam, one of the biggest in the world, and the old Jesuit mission ruins.
Places of interest
Paraguay is one of the few countries where nearly everyone speaks an Indigenous language, Guarani, in daily life.
A little history
Home to the Guarani people, Paraguay was a Spanish colony and won its independence in 1811, one of the first in South America.
Fun fact
People love a cold tea called terere, sipped from a shared cup through a metal straw to stay cool in the heat.