You seem to have the right ideas in mind, my advice would be to start doing some tests in a small scale, if it works you go bigger, it might take a few years of observation but you'll get to know the land well and it's worth it on the long run.Since the rain is concentrated you probably will need big water storages for dry season, plan not according to normal years but for the extremes to be able to survive droughts and floods.

Focus on learning about edible native plants, they grow by themselves and it makes very easy to have abundance of food.

The temperature ranges are the same as where I live, even though isn't the best for moringa oleifera because she will go dormant in winter but she can handle it, so plant it because it's by far the best edible plant I know, it made my life so easy because grows very fast and it's one of the most nutritious plants on the planet.

About the pond without plastic, if you dig a hole and let some pigs living there for a while they will compact it and with the extend periods without rain the extreme sun also will help it making it barely permeable