Information AboutCaracas |
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|+ style="margin-left: inherit; font-size: larger;" | Santiago de León de Caracas |- | align="center" colspan="2" | |- | align="center" colspan="2" | ''City : Hail Holiest Mary, conceived without sin, in the first instant of Your Natural Being)'' |- | align="center" colspan="2" | ''City : ''Branch of Heaven''), ''La Sultana del Avila'' (''The Avilas sultana'') |- | align="center" colspan="2" | Location of Caracas |- |Established |1507 |- | Municipalities | Libertador Chacao Baruta Sucre El Hatillo |- |Mayor | Juan Barreto (2004 – 2008) |- | style="white-space: ;" | Area –Land –Water | style="white-space: ;" | 1,930 Km&2 N/A Km&2 N/A Km&2 |- | style="white-space: ;" | Population –Total ( 2005 ) – Density | style="white-space: ;" | Metropolitan district 3,276,000 1,697/ Km&2 |- | style="white-space: ;" | Time Zone | style="white-space: ;" | UTC –4 |- | Latitude ''' Longitude ''' | 10º 30’ N 66º 55’ 70’’ W |- | align="center" colspan="2" | Official website: Alcaldía Mayor |} Caracas (. History The city was founded in 1567 as ''Santiago de León de Caracas'' by Spanish explorer Diego De Losada . The city of Caracas was the birthplace of two of Latin America's most important figures: Francisco De Miranda and "El Libertador" Simón Bolívar . An Earthquake destroyed Caracas on March 26 , 1812 and was portrayed by authorities as a divine punishment to people rebelling against the Spanish Crown. As the economy of oil-rich Venezuela grew steadily during the first part of the 20th century, Caracas became one of Latin America's economic centers, and was also known as the preferred hub between Europe and South America . On October 17 2004 , one of the Parque Central Torre towers caught fire. Flag The flag of Caracas consists of a burgundy red field with the version of the Coat of Arms of the City effective since the decade of 1980. The red field, remembrance of the predominant color in the royal pennants of Colonial Caracas, symbolizes the blood spilled by Caraquenian people in favor to the Independence and the highest Ideals of the Venezuelan Nation. The original design of the Caracas Flag appeared in the decade of 1980 and consisted of a burgundy red cloth with the version of the then adopted and still effective Coat of Arms located to the canton. Later, in 1994 , presumably as a result of the change of municipal authorities, it was decided to place the Caracas coat of arms slightly increased of size on the center of the field, configuration that maintains at the present time. Coat of arms The Coat Of Arms of the City of Caracas was adopted by the Libertador Municipality to identify itself and later the Metropolitan Mayor Office assumed the lion, the scallop and the St. James Cross for the same aim. Symbollogically speaking, this raised a conflict then that Caracas identifies the Coat of Arms of the Capital of the Republic. Places of interest Ciudad Universitaria See Also: Ciudad Universitaria de Caracas The main campus of the Central University Of Venezuela , designed by the renowned architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva and declared World Heritage by UNESCO in 2000 is considered to be a masterwork of Modern Architecture and Art. Over 28 artist from the Modern Avant-garde participated in the project. Among them Hans Arp , Alexander Calder , Fernand Léger , Victor Vasarely and the Venezuelans Francisco Narváez, Alejandro Otero, Oswaldo Vigas. Capitolio Nacional The National Capitol occupies an entire city block, and, with its golden domes and neoclassical pediments, can seem even bigger. The building was commissioned by Guzmán Blanco in the 1870s, and is most famous for its Salón Elíptico , an oval hall with a mural-covered dome and walls lined with portraits of the country's great and good. Visit on Independence Day and you'll catch a glimpse of the original Act of Independence of 1811, installed inside a pedestal topped by a bust of Bolívar and displayed only on this most auspicious of public days. The halls surrounding the salon are daubed with battle scenes commemorating Venezuela's fight for independence. Parque del Este A green paradise in the middle of the city, where diverse activities can be done. A park where typical animals can be seen in a little zoo. A replica of the famous ship led by Christopher Columbus, la Santa Maria, is in the southern part of the park. Casa Natal de Bolívar Skyscraper s may loom overhead, but there's more than a hint of original colonial flavour in this neatly proportioned reconstruction of the house where Simón Bolívar was born on July 24 , 1783 . The Museum 's exhibits include period Weapons , Banners and Uniforms . Much of the original colonial interior has been replaced by monumental paintings of battle scenes, but more personal Relic s can be seen in the nearby Museo Bolivariano . Pride of place goes to the coffin in which Bolívar's remains were brought from Colombia ; his ashes now rest in the National Pantheon . Bolívar's funeral was held 12 years after his death at the Iglesia De San Francisco , just a few blocks west, and it was also here that he was proclaimed ' El Libertador ' in 1813. The church dazzles the eye with its richly gilded Baroque altarpieces, and still retains much of its original colonial interior, despite being given a modernising once-over by Guzmán Blanco. Museo de Arte Colonial The gardens that surround this museum are almost as enticing as its interior. The museum is housed in a gorgeous colonial country mansion known as Quinta Anauco , which is surrounded by beautiful greenery. Inside the house you'll find meticulously restored rooms, filled with carefully selected works of art, furniture and period household and many other historical artifacts. Absolutely gorgeous! The quinta was well outside the historic town when it was built back in 1797, but today it's an --> Panteón Nacional Venezuela's most venerated building is five blocks north of --> Parque Central See Also: Parque Central Complex An short saunter east of Plaza Bolívar takes you from historic to futuristic Caracas. Rather than a welcome expanse of inner-city greenery, this park is a concrete complex of five high-rise residential slabs of somewhat apocalyptic-appearing architecture, crowned by two 53-storey octagonal towers while one of them is currently going under major repairs due to the fire which burned the building on October 17 , 2004 . Parque Central is Caracas' art and culture hub, loaded with Museum s, Cinema s, the Complejo Cultural Performing-arts Center and the Caracas Athenaeum , home to the esteemed Rajatabla theatre company. The Mirador De La Torre Oeste , on the 52nd floor, gives a 360° bird's-eye view of the city. Plaza Bolívar Leafy Plaza Bolívar is the focus of the old town with the inevitable monument to El Libertador , Simon Bolívar, at its heart. Modern high-rise buildings have overpowered much of the colonial flavour of Caracas' founding Neighborhood . But the lively area still boasts some important sites. The Museo Caracas on the ground floor highlights local history, and has some great models of the city as it appeared in the early 19th century and 1930s. To grasp just how much this city has grown, take a look at the map dating from 1578 in the building's central Courtyard . El Hatillo See Also: El Hatillo Municipality El Hatillo is a Colonial Town located at the south-east Suburbs of Caracas. It is one of Caracas' five Counties . This small town, which is one of Venezuela 's few preserved typical colonial areas, gives citizens a small window to what colonial Caracas was. Just like every town in Venezuela, El Hatillo has its own Plaza Bolívar with El Libertador statue in the middle . It also has a well preserved Catholic Church , and many colonial houses. Even the municipal government, banks, and bookshops in this neighborhood keep the colonial look, which have tall windows, floor-to-top wood doors, and red tile roofs. The actual colonial section of this county just represents a small part of the total county land size. Other areas in El Hatillo county are regular residential and commercial zones. La Boyera, Oripoto, and La Lagunita are just some of this county's neighborhoods. Culture Caracas is Venezuela's cultural capital boasting several , the Middle East , Germany , Portugal , China , and Latin American countries. Notable caraquenians Caracas has been the birthplace of many politicians and artists that notably shaped the country's history and culture:
Recreation The city has two main football stadiums: The Olympic Stadium (35,000) and the Brigido Iriarte Stadium with a capacity of 25,000 seats (home of the Caracas Football Club and Italchacao Club). Baseball teams Tiburones De La Guaira and Leones Del Caracas also play on their shared stadium Estadio Universitario (33,000 seats).
Transportation The Caracas Metro has been in operation since 1983 and is the safest and quickest way to travel in the city. Nearby Maiquetia has Maiquetia International Airport . Panorama References External links
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