Hacienda Nápoles

Hacienda Nápoles (Spanish for Naples Estate) is the luxurious estate built and owned by Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar in Puerto Triunfo, Antioquia (Template:Km to mi NW of Bogotá). The estate covers about Template:Km2 to mi2 of land.

History

It included a Spanish colonial house, and a complete zoo that included many kinds of animals from different continents such as giraffes, ostriches, elephants, hippopotomuses, ponies, rare antelopes and exotic birds. The ranch had a large collection of old and luxurious cars and bikes, a private airport and even a cart racing track.

Following Escobar's death in 1993, his family went into a legal struggle with the Colombian government over the property. The government prevailed and the neglected property is now managed by the Municipality of Puerto Triunfo.

The cost of maintenance for the zoo and the animals was too expensive for the government, so it was decided that most of the animals would be donated to Colombian and international zoos. Some of the last survivors are the hippopotamuses, which have become feral. There are plans to take them to a Costa Rican zoo. There still are buffalos, zebras, a rare goat and one ostrich.

Various features

Hacienda Nápoles private bullring.

Main entrance.

• The estate's entrance has Escobar's first plane, a Piper, mounted at the entrance. It is this plane which carried the first shipment of kilos of cocaine that Escobar delivered to the United States.
• There are some dinosaur statues built with bones in a section of the estate, along with pre-historic animals, such as the mammoth, that the children could climb and play on.

Recent years

In September 2006, there was a rumor about building an anti-crime museum about Pablo Escobar, a jail and a theme park. The jail is currently in construction and the dinosaur park has been restored.[1]

By November 2006, the property ownership passed to the Colombian government and was valued at 5 billion Colombian pesos (Approx $2.23 million U.S. dollars). [2]

External links

• El Colombiano article in Spanish with recent photos