Whe doesn’t know it, the children’s story by Janosch, with the little tiger and the little bear, who declare Panama to be their dream country and set off there blindly? What Panama is for the two friends, Paraguay seems to be for many opponents of vaccination and “lateral thinkers” from Germany and other countries. Last year, more than 1,000 people emigrated to the South American country from Germany alone, three times as many as the year before. How many tourists are in Paraguay and want to stay longer is unclear. But there must be many. Some hotels in the capital Asunción have been occupied almost exclusively by Europeans in recent months. The demand for housing has increased.
The ethnic German communities in Paraguay, in which German traditions are still cultivated today, seem to be particularly attractive. Most of them there have a German surname, and you can buy rye bread, white sausage and sauerkraut. Communities like Hohenau, founded more than 100 years ago by German settlers from Brazil, report many new arrivals. Apartment buildings, apartments and building land are in demand and prices have risen. Hauliers report that more moving containers are being shipped to Paraguay. Some of the containers will be converted into improvised dwellings for emigrants.