Guatemala City

Guatemala City La Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción
National Palace of Culture
Nickname:  Guate
Country	Guatemala
Department	Guatemala
Municipality	Guatemala
Established	1620
Government
• Mayor	Álvaro Arzú
Population
• Total	2,541,581

Guatemala City (in full, La Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción; locally known as Guatemala or Guate) is the capital and largest city of the nation of Guatemala. It is also the largest city in Central America.

Population estimates for Guatemala City is 2,541,581. The city is located at 14°38′N 90°33′W, in a mountain valley in the south central part of the country. Temperatures in the city vary from 10 to 25 degrees celsius.

History

Within the confines of modern Guatemala City is the ancient Maya city of Kaminaljuyu. Kaminaljuyu dates back some 9,000 years and is one of the Americas' most notable archaeological sites. The center of Kaminaljuyu was located a short distance from the oldest part of Guatemala City. However, in the late 20th century, the city grew around the ruins, and, in some cases, over some of the outlying ruins before they were protected. Many of the several hundred temple mounds have been built over with freeways, shopping centers, commerce, luxury hotels and residential areas. The central ceremonial center of Kaminaljuyu was protected by the Guatemalan government and is now a park within the city.

In Spanish colonial times, Guatemala City was a small town. It had a monastery called 'El Carmen', founded in 1629. The capital of Spanish colonial Central America was moved here after an earthquake destroyed the old capital, Antigua Guatemala, in 1775. King Charles III of Spain authorized the moving of the capital on September 27, 1775. This resulted in a great expansion of the city.

The city was the scene of the declaration of independence of Central America from Spain, and became in 1821 the capital of the United Provinces of Central America.

Features

File:GuatCity2.JPG

National Post Office Building

Guatemala City is the economic, governmental and cultural capital of the Republic, and it functions as the main port of entry into the country, with the country's largest international airport, La Aurora International Airport. In addition to a wide variety of restaurants, hotels and shops, the city has a wide variety of art galleries and museums (including some fine collections of Pre-Columbian art) and continually offers an increasing amount of cultural activities. There are 10 universities, Universidad Mariano Gálvez, Universidad Panamericana, Universidad Mesoamericana, Universidad Rafael Landivar, Universidad Francisco Marroquin, Universidad del Valle, Universidad del Istmo, Universidad Galileo, Universidad Rural and Universidad de San Carlos, the only public one and third oldest university in the New World.

Guatemala City does not have an efficient public transportation service, despite the many proposals and projects for the construction of a mass transit system. Although the construction of freeways and underpasses by the municipal government, as well as the establishment of the Department of Metropolitan Transit Police, PMT, has helped traffic flow in the city, the Guatemalan metropolitan area faces a growing transportation problem. However, a new project called Transmetro, consisting of special-purpose lanes for high-capacity buses, began operating in 2007 and aims to improve traffic flow in the city.

Guatemala City is subdivided in 25 zones, each one with its own streets and avenues, resulting in very easy to find addresses in the city. However, the city has grown so fast in the past years that it has already absorbed into it most of its neighbor towns, including Villa Nueva, Santa Catarina Pinula, Mixco, and the suburban area of Carretera a El Salvador.

The Historic Center (Centro Histórico) of the city lies in the very heart of the city, and there is located many important buildings including the Palacio Nacional (National Palace), the Metropolitan Cathedral, the National Congress, and the Casa Presidencial (Presidential House).

Among the most popular areas for Pop Culture and Shopping as well as entertainment we find Majadas, 4° Norte, Pradera Concepción, the largest mall in Central America, and Zona Viva, where most of the hotels, restaurants, bars, discotheques, and other entertainment places in the city are located.

The city has been host of several sports events. In 1950 it hosted the VI Central American and Caribbean Games, and in 2000 the Futsal World Cup.

External links

• Guatemala Human Rights Commission, http://www.ghrc-usa.org , human rights conditions in Guatemala
• Template:Wikitravel
• http://www.visitguatemala.com