Cultural and Tourist Attractions of the Caribbean and Latin America.

Lasalle CollegeTeacher: Carole Martin

Students: Rita Yue Angelica Ruiz

Colombia

Geography and ClimateCountry: Colombia

Located in South America

Borders:East: Venezuela and Brazil.South: Ecuador and Peru.North: Atlantic Ocean.West: Panama and the Pacific Ocean.

Capital: Bogota.

Population: 48.32 million (2013) The majority lives mainly in the cities of Bogota, Medellin and Cali.Climate: tropical and warm. -proximity to the equator

The most populated region in Colombia Location of the historic port cities of Santa Marta, Barranquilla and Cali. Distinguished by its high humidity. Rich in oil and sparsely populated. Mostly covered by tropical rainforest Wildlife.

Flag

Officially adopted by law in November 26, 1861.

Yellow: the new world, the independence of the former spanish colonies.

Blue : symbolizes the Atlantic Ocean.

Red: the spanish terror.

Coat of Arms of ColombiaThe arm was adopted in May 9, 1834

Ships: symbolize the maritime history of Colombia.

Middle: traditional symbol of freedom, the Phrygian cap.

Upper: both pomegranate and cornucopia symbolize agriculture.

Brief HistoryColombia is named after Christopher Columbus, even though, he never set foot on the land.

1499- One of the Columbus companions,Alonso de Ojeda, was the first european to set foot on the land.

Spanish conquer period: 1533- Pedro de Heredia founded Cartagena, that soon became the main center of trade.

1536- The general Sebastian de Belalcazar was conquering regions, among them Popayan and Cali, he reached Bogota in 1539.

-In a short period of time a large part of the colony was conquered and a number of towns were founded.

Colonial Period: 1564-The crown established a new system The Presidencia del Nuevo reino de Granada, the authority was in hands of the king of Spain.

Independence Wars: 1781- The first open rebellion against colonial rule was the Revolucion Comunera in Socorro.

1812- Simon Bolivar appeared on scene, he won six battles against spanish troops but was defeated by the next year.

Alonso de Ojeda

Pedro de Heredia

1817- The colonial rule was reestablished, “the pacifying” spanish troops reconquered the interior.

-Bolivar went back to Colombia after assembling an army from Venezuela.

1819- The decisive battle took place at Boyaca. Colombia’s independence was won.

Local Transportation and accessibility-Bogota system is called the TranMileno , they are buses that work as a subway. *a one way ticket is $1600 pesos or $0.75 USD.

-Cartagena is full of buses, most bus journeys cost 1200 pesos around 50 cents in euro.

- The metro in Medellin is the only rail line in Colombia, trains run on ground level for the most part of the city.

Taxi in Bogota

Bus in CartagenaTranMileno bus in Bogota

Attractions in Bogota

Plaza Bolivar

- It is a square in the heart of Bogota,where it stands a statue of simon Bolivar, the statue was created in 1846 by Italian Pietro Tenerani.

Places in the square

-Palace of Justice, the high council use it today.

- The Parliament of Colombia

-Cathedral of Bogota

-The Holy Chapel.

Monserrate Hill-It is a mountain of almost 3152 meter.

-It is an important symbol of Bogota in religious terms.

-Mr Juan de Borja former governor of Colombia gave in 1640 the order to built a church on the mountain.

-It is a work of local artists, and since they opened it, thousands of people go to Monserrate.

-You can come up on the mountain by a cable car,which take about 5 minutes to reach the top,a train or just by walking.

Simon Bolivar Park-This Park is slightly larger than New York’s Central Park, located in the middle of the city.

-It is a nice spot with public libraries,walkways,bike paths and stadiums and many events take place each year with entertainments of all kinds.

Centro Mayor-It is a shopping mall located in the South of Bogota.

-It is the biggest mall in Colombia and the third one in Latin america.

- It counts with 430 stores and they offer different activities and events.

93rd Street Park

-Public Park located in Bogota.

- It is a commercial and recreational Park, full of art, culture, gastronomy.

-Location of the most popular shoppings, restaurants and night clubs.

Attractions in other cities

Salt cathedral

- Located in a small town near Zipaquira

- Completed in 1995

- It is a underground Roman Catholic Church

- Carved out of a old abandoned mine

- Built under a Halite mountain which is 200 meters deep

- It is part of a larger complex which include Salt Park and Museum of Mining

Cocora valley- Located in Quindio

- Established in 1985

- A part of the Los Nevados National Park

- Wide variety of flora and fauna

- The valley is the location of the majority of the remaining populations of the wax palm

- Outdoor activities such as mountain biking, horse riding, hiking and swimming in the rivers

San Agustin Archaeological Park

- It is located in San Agustin, Huila

- It has been a UNESCO site since 1995

- It contains the largest collection of religious monuments and megalithic sculptures in Latin America

- Considered the world’s largest necropolis

- Over 3000 years old

Tayrona National Natural Park

- It is located in Magdalena and 34 kilometres from the city of

Santa Marta.

- The park has an area of 150 square kilometers

- One of the Colombia’s most famous and visited natural park

- Covers 12,000 hectares of land and 3000 hectares of sea.

- Has an extremely rich biodiversity( Lots of fauna and flora)

Parque Explora

- Located in Medllin

- Opened at 2008

- It is a interactive science museum

- Over 70,000 square feet of indoor space and 50,000 square feet of outdoor activities

- South America’s largest freshwater aquarium

- At the aquarium are more than 4000 fish from more than 400 different species

Gastronomy

- Colombia cuisine is influenced by the Spanish, Arab, African and a little Asian.

- Colombia’s coffee is renowned for its high quality

- Some of the most common ingredients are rice, corn, potatoes, beef, chicken and also seafood

- Also uses a lot of tropical fruits such as cape gooseberry, feijoa, araza, dragon fruit, guava etc…

Appetizers!

- Aborrajado (deep fried plantains stuffed with cheese)

- Arroz con coco (rice with coconut)- Butifarras soledeñas, Soledeña sausage

(sausage from Soledad, Atlántico)- Carimañola (yuca fritter stuffed with ground

meat, onion and seasonings)- Chunchullo (intestine)- etc...

Main courses

- Ajiaco

- Asado Bogotano

- Bandeja Paisa, a traditional dish from the Paisa region, consists of white rice, red beans, ground beef, plantain, chorizo, morcilla,chicharron, arepa, avocado and a fried egg.

- Changua, a milk soup with or without a poached egg, usually a breakfast dish.

- Cuchuco, a thick soup made of wheat, fava beans, potatoes, ribs, peas.

- Etc…

Desserts !

- Arequipe (Colombia's version of the

Dulce de Leche, a milk caramel.)

- Arroz con leche (Sweetened rice with milk).

- Brevas en dulce (candied figs in syrup or arequipe.)

- Cocadas -( baked coconut confection, similar to

macaroons.)

Arts- Colombian arts has over 3000

years of history

- Has a wide range of media and style, from spanish Baroque to contemporary art

- A lot of the paintings and sculptures are influenced by religions

- One of the most internationally known painter in Colombia is Fernando Botero

Quiz1- Colombia became Independent in:

a)_1781 b)_1817 c)_1819 d)_1812

2- What is Centro Mayor?

a)_a public park b)_gouvernment building c)_shopping mall d)_ square.

3- In which city is located the only rail line?

a)_Bogota b)_Medellin c)_Cartagena

4- The ships in the colombian Coat of Arms symbolizes:

a)_the freedom b)_maritime history of Colombia

c)_the battles d) _the conquer period

5-Where lives the majority of population in Colombia?

a)_ Santa Marta _ Cali _ Barranquilla b)_Cali _ Medellin _ Bogota

c)_ Medellin _ Barranquilla _ Bogota.

6- What makes the cathedral so special, because it is made of…?

a) Diamonds b) Salt c) Plastic d) Gold

7- In Cocora valley, there are a huge numbers of this kind of tree(considered as the national tree of Colombia), what is the name?

b) Maple tree b) Pine tree c) Wax palm tree d) Oak tree

8- When did San Agustin Archaeological Park became a UNESCO heritage site?

c) 1998 b)1993 c) 2000 d) 1995

9- True or False- Does the San Agustin Archaeological Park considered as the largest necropolis in the world?

10- Which one below is not a influence on Colombian cuisine?

d) Spanish b) Arabic c) African d) American

Answers to the Quiz

1- c) 2- c) 3- b) 4- b) 5- b)

6- b) 7- c) 8- d) 9- True 10- d)