Palmira, Valle del Cauca
| Palmira | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
 Location of the municipality and city of Palmira in the Valle del Cauca Department. | ||
  Palmira Location of the municipality and city of Palmira in the Valle del Cauca Department. | ||
| Coordinates: 3°35′N 76°15′W / 3.583°N 76.250°WCoordinates: 3°35′N 76°15′W / 3.583°N 76.250°W | ||
| Country | Colombia | |
| Region | Pacific Region | |
| Department | Valle del Cauca* | |
| Founded | 1824 | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 1,123 km2 (434 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 1,001 m (3,284 ft) | |
| Population (2012) | ||
| • Total | 245,109 | |
| • Density | 220/km2 (570/sq mi) | |
| Demonym(s) | Palmirano | |
| Postal code | 76520000 | |
| Area code(s) | 57 + 2 | |
| Website | Official website (Spanish) | |
Palmira (pronounced pälmē'rä) is a city and municipality in southwestern Colombia in the Valle del Cauca Department, located about 17 miles (27 km) east from Cali, the department's capital and main city.
Geography
Palmira is located in southwestern Colombia, lying in the Cauca River valley. 3°31’48” north altitude and 76°81’13” longitude west of Greenwich. The city covers an area of 448 square miles (1,160 km2). The average temperature is 23°C (73°F) and its altitude is 1000 m (3284 ft) above sea level.
History
According to the historian William Mallama Lugo, the city of Palmira arises in 1813 when Don Pedro Simón Cárdenas gave the name of Villa de las Palmas. Its inhabitants are called "Palmireños" or "Palmiranos".
Industry and Recreation
Important agricultural products are sugar cane, coffee, rice, corn, and tobacco. Palmira is known as the agricultural capital of Colombia, its main source of income is agriculture and specially the sugarcane cultivation. Palmira is home of the most important sugar mills in the country like : Manuelita Sugar Mill, Providencia Sugar Mill, Del Cauca Sugar Mill and more. The burning of the waste cane is the main source of air pollution in the city. In 2005, Palmira opened its first large and post modern shopping mall Centro Comercial Llanogrande Plaza, popularly called "La Catorce", after the department store 'La 14' located in the mall. The indoor/outdoor shopping center has become very popular among Palmireños since its opening as there are no other large shopping malls in the city. Nevertheless, Palmiranos can still do their basic shopping in La Marden or any of its other stores located all throughout the city, specially in El Centro. Before the mall was built, Palmireños had to travel to Cali to many of its shopping centers such as La Catorce De Calima and Chipichape. Llanogrande has many restaurants, several outdoor bars, an indoor cinema, casino, and a small amusement park. It is located on the city's southwest side. Its address is Calle 31 No. 44-239. Palmira is also known for having many beautiful parks.
Transportation
Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport, which serves Cali, is located in Palmira. The citizens' most common method of transportation are the bicycle and motorcycle. There are so many of these in the city, that cars on the street have to drive slow and carefully in order to avoid hitting a pedestrian or a cyclist. In fact, the large numbers of motorcycles has become a new business since the past 5 years. Since there are a lot of motorcycles, their owners have started to offer transporting people from one place to other as if they were taxis. This caused a lot of friction between taxis and "mototaxis", as many people call them, because it has reduced the demand of people willing to pay for the cost of a taxi. Another method of transportation that is very common, but mostly used as attractive complement to the colonial architecture, are the white carriages which tourists can pay for to have a tour of the city. Also, another type of transport are the wagons without seats and with flatbeds. These are used carry materials for construction. These would play the role of dump trucks as mototaxis are to taxis.
Education
It is also famous for having many colleges, as it has been called "The University City". The Agromomy School of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia is located here. Also located near Palmira, is the headquarters of the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) founded in 1967.
Famous residents
- Claudia Palacios, a Colombian journalist and newscaster, lived in Palmira until she was 15 years old. She now works for CNN en Español in Atlanta, Georgia and resides there with her son Pablo.
- Santiago Eder, 19th century industrial pioneer and founder of Manuelita sugar mill.
- Elizabeth Eder de Zobel de Ayala wife of Filipino billionaire Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala Miranda whose cousin is Inigo Zobel de Ayala Urquijo, owner of Sotogrande in Andalucia, Spain and grandson of Juan Urquijo, former owner of Banco Urquijo
References and notes
External links
- Centro Comercial Llanogrande Plaza Palmira's largest mall
- City of Palmira website (Spanish)
- Universidad Nacional de Colombia - Palmira (Spanish)
- Universidad del Valle - Palmira (Spanish)
- Manuelita - one of the municipality's largest employers (Spanish)
