Hotel Guaraní

Stroessner ruled Paraguay as a dictator from 1954 until 1989. Chesterton argues that in the wake of new infrastructural links, Paraguay embraced a Brazilian model of modernity and consumption. Argentina borders Paraguay to the west and south, and was long Paraguay’s most important partner. But in the 1960s, the construction of the Acaray Dam and a bridge over the Paraná River ushered a cultural and economic shift to eastern Paraguay and Brazil. This shift was encouraged by Stroessner and resulted in environmental and urban changes throughout Paraguay. Economic growth resulting from the bridge and the dam dramatically altered the capital of Asunción, which grew and modernized quickly. Focusing on the shift from the traditional, colonial-era, southern trade on the Paraguay River to a new, modern, eastern-focused highway, Chesterton demonstrates how Paraguayans began to consume Brazilian commodities and adopt Brazilian cultural norms.