Maracay

Maracay is a Venezuelan city, capital of Aragua state and Girardot municipality. It is located in the central region of Venezuela, at the foot of the Coastal Range, and is located 109 km southwest of the city of Caracas. The city is frequently nicknamed "Garden City" and to a lesser extent as "the Cradle of Venezuelan Aviation" or "The Cradle of Great Bullfighters".

Its political-territorial denomination has suffered over the years, which is why in the historical pages Maracay is mentioned as a town in the province of Caracas, later in the province of Aragua, in the state of Aragua, later part of of the Guzmán Blanco state, to remain definitively as the capital of the Aragua state.

During the presidency of General Juan Vicente Gómez, a transformation was evident due to the influence of the general —who for economic and political interests— promoted a series of political-administrative transformations in civil and military urbanism to turn it into a city « modern" for the time. In the 1950s an important process of industrialization took place in the city and in the 1960s there were strong movements of immigration and land invasions.

With a population of over 407,109 (2011), it is the eighth most populous city in Venezuela. The Maracay metropolitan area has a population of 1,212,981 (2011) inhabitants. This area is comprised of the municipalities of Girardot, Mario Briceño Iragorry, Santiago Mariño, Francisco Linares Alcántara, Libertador, Sucre and Bolívar.

It is known as «The cradle of Venezuelan aviation» —both civilian and military— because the country's first airline —Aeropostal— was born there in 1929, whose home airport was the Mariscal Sucre Base —also the heart of the original aviation school. the National Armed Forces. The city is recognized for its industrial zone and for being a cultural center due to the number of museums, theaters and libraries.

Toponymy

The origin of the name of Maracay is unknown, although there are various theories that try to explain it. One of them is that it owes its name to the maracayá -a Caribbean language word that designates a feline that lives on the outskirts of present-day Maracay. Another theory is that Maracay owes its name to the chieftain Maracay, who took his name precisely from the feline that inhabited those territories. However, Oldman Botello —official chronicler of the city— in his work “Maracay: Noticias del Viejo Valle” (1980), points to Rafael Bolívar Coronado from Villa Curaçao as the first to use the indigenous Maracayo —whose existence, not to say uncertain, has not been established until now. In another of his works “Ancient Toponymy of Maracay” (2007), he mentions the indigenous Maracaya as a literary creation of Bolívar Coronado, and refers to the “Glossary of indigenous voices of Venezuela” (1953) by Lisandro Alvarado to affirm that the name of Maracay comes from the Caribbean “Maracaya” —name by which the cunaguaro (Felis pardalis) was known and not the passion fruit (Leopardus wiedii) as it has become popular.

Identity elements

Capital

The capital, with its spatial, functional and physiognomic effects, constitutes the differentiation factor of Maracay with respect to the rest of the Aragonese cities. Being the capital favored the demographic increase and the economic and cultural prosperity of the town. Despite the fact that the headquarters of Francisco de Miranda was based in the town during the struggle for independence of Venezuela against the Spanish Empire, the legal recognition of the capital function had to wait longer. The capital of Venezuela was previously located in Coro (1527-1545) and El Tocuyo (1545-1577). Caracas was designated the official capital in 1577. Maracay (1812), Valencia (1812, 1830 and 1858), and Angostura (1819-1821) —today Ciudad Bolívar— were also provisionally designated as capitals. Specifically, it was not until 1814 that "the Liberator" Simón Bolívar would give the town of Maracay the status of city, and later in 1898 the city was elevated for the first time as the capital —in this opportunity of the Great Miranda State.

With the dissolution of the Great Miranda State, Maracay lost its status as capital. However, during the presidency of General Juan Vicente Gómez, in 1908 it was declared the political capital of Venezuela. Gómez later moved his official residence from Caracas to Maracay. That is why with the Federal Constitution of 1909, ministers, diplomats, and all government employees had to go to Maracay weekly to render accounts. Also during this period the city replaced the city of La Victoria as the capital of the state of Aragua on March 12, 1917.

Symbols

The coat of arms of Maracay is based on a Spanish coat of arms, which was created on November 4, 1952 by decree of the municipal council of the then Girardot district. Its original description was as follows:

[...] square in the head and semicircular at the tip: in the right headquarters of the boss, in the field of gold, is the figure of a warrior wearing armor, with scamed boot, shoulders and armoured bracelets, and with the raised visor and plume of feathers on the chimera. At the head's sinister barracks, in the blue field, five cocoa decks in Sotuer. At the campaign barracks in tip, in the gules field, the head of an American jaguar or tiger. On the boss a gold ribbon undulating with the word MARACAYA. The colors of the barracks refer to those of the national pavilion.

Municipal Council of Girardot District, 1952.

On September 13, 1979, the municipal chamber approved the modification of the shield, which consisted of adding a wavy ribbon with the phrase "January 22, 1814" —date on which Simón Bolívar established Maracay as a city by decree— to the center. On the left side it reads "March 5, 1701" —date of elevation of Maracay to an ecclesiastical parish—, and on the right side "March 12, 1917" —date on which the then president Juan Vicente Gómez decreed the city as capital of the Aragua state. The armored warrior represents the founder of Maracay, Andrés Pérez Almarza —on which it should be noted that the city had no founder, according to several scholars such as Manuel Pinto, brother Nectario María, Godofredo González and Oldman Botello. Therefore, March 5 has been established as the anniversary date of Maracay, in commemoration of the day it was elevated to an ecclesiastical parish.

The city flag was used officially for the first time in Bolívar Square on March 5, 2001. Its creator was Pedro Francisco Martínez Chacón, after a contest called by the Girardot Municipal Council on January 17 of that same year. It is made up of a green field, crossed in its lower middle part by a white stripe and this in turn is sectioned by an indigo blue stripe. In the center it has the coat of arms of the municipality. Each of these colors has a specific symbolism: the green color represents hope as a virtue and the qualities of perseverance, intrepidity and friendship, in addition to the motto of the Garden City. White represents faith as a virtue, as well as the qualities of purity and integrity. Blue symbolizes justice and the qualities of mercy and loyalty; it also represents the clear sky of the municipality and the marine, fluvial and lake waters that bathe its soil.

History

Background

Originally, the area where the city is located was inhabited by the Tacariguas and Guayamures, the name of the aboriginal tribes that settled on the shores of Lake Tacarigua during the pre-Hispanic period that dates between 1000 and 1500 AD. C. Its shores were a center of a very important indigenous culture in Venezuela.

From the center to the east, the Carib ethnic groups of the Meregotos and the Caracas were distinguished, among others, in the area from the Aragua Valley to the Tuy Valley.

Colonial Period

The land where the city of Maracay is located today was originally granted to the Spanish conquistador Sebastián Díaz Alfaro in the 16th century; and on his death it passed to his son Mateo. His population began to settle spontaneously around the Maracay River, in the valley of Tucupido and Tapatapa. Most of its inhabitants were Spaniards who were dedicated to the cultivation of cocoa, corn and cotton. There were also Arawak settlements controlled by the cacique Terepaima, successor of Guaicaipuro.

In 1777, the añil was first planted in the city, a crop that would give noticeable importance to the valleys of Aragua.

At the end of the 17th century approximately forty-eight families met in a meeting and appointed the Marquis of Mijares and Don Andrés Cuadras to ask Bishop Diego de Baños y Sotomayor for permission to build a church —today Maracay Cathedral — in honor of Saint Joseph. The bishop granted such religious status on March 5, 1701, after which the temple of San José de Maracay was erected as a vice parishioner. The date of this event is taken as the date of its foundation —noting that Maracay was declared an ecclesiastical parish, not a city, or a town, or a town—.

The first years of the town passed modestly with planting in conucos, until a new crop changed the economic life of the region: indigo —used to dye fabrics blue— which took second place as a national export product Due to the shortage of slaves, more than five thousand men arrived from the Llanos, which suddenly increased the population of Maracay. This is how agriculture was the main spur to the flourishing of the city, especially the cultivation of indigo; of that plant used to dye fabrics, they were exported in large quantities to Europe and provided profits to the Crown, owners and laborers. In 1789 some 300,000 pounds of indigo were exported to the Kingdom of Spain.

At the La Trinidad hacienda, Francisco de Miranda would establish his headquarters in 1812.

By 1798 there are more than 7,000 inhabitants, including 3,000 whites, a similar number of free blacks, and almost 600 slaves. With the indigo era and the increase in guests, Maracay became a hectic place.

The bishop of the diocese of Venezuela, Mariano Martí, in one of his detailed pastoral visits, described Maracay as "a happy and flourishing town".

In 1800, the German naturalist and geographer Alexander von Humboldt visited Maracay, which he called "Garden City", staying in the house of La Glorieta, owned by Alejandro González from the Canary Islands —now Bolívar Avenue intersects with Junín—. The population already exceeded 7,000 inhabitants and the cultivation of indigo was at its peak. During his visit, the biologist was very impressed with the town and its people, he also saw the Saman de Güere and, amazed at its size, at first believed that it was a cluster of trees —by then the saman would already have been approximately 600 years old.

The city played an important role in the Venezuelan independence struggle against the Spanish Empire, being the provisional capital of what would be Venezuela, at the time when Francisco de Miranda established his headquarters in the "La Trinidad" hacienda, which belonged to the Marquis of Casa León, in 1812. In 1813 Simón Bolívar arrived in Maracay with the funeral procession carrying the heart of the New Granadan officer Atanasio Girardot, killed in the Battle of Bárbula. On January 22, 1814, "el Libertador" elevated Maracay —together with La Victoria and Turmero— to the category of city, twenty days after the Venezuelan Congress granted him absolute powers.

Post-independence

In October 1821, Salvador Michelena was appointed the first mayor of free Maracay, after the battle of Carabobo, a decisive victory in the liberation of Venezuelan territory after the final expulsion of the Spanish troops.

Once independence was won, Maracay suffered the rigors of a battered economy that halted its development. On March 12, 1879, the government of Antonio Guzmán Blanco erected the city with the name of Maracay federal territory. Similarly, on July 25, 1888, the break in friendship between Generals Antonio Guzmán Blanco and Joaquín Crespo took place at the "San Jacinto" hacienda.

In the last decade of the 19th century, things began to change in the region when President Joaquín Crespo reinforced the status of the city as a strategic point when the Great Railway of Venezuela installed one of its most important stations along the entire length of the the valleys of Aragua on February 1, 1894. On July 5, 1897, a monument with a pedestal with a bronze eagle was inaugurated in the Plaza Mayor, honoring the Americans who were executed in the city of Puerto Cabello for collaborate with Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda, in 1806.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Maracay was a town of barely five thousand inhabitants and approximately 1,800 houses. Its economic activity was based on agriculture and cattle raising. The main families of the time had residence in the town and it had few streets. Likewise, Maracay was called indistinctly as town, village, hamlet, villa, among others.

In 1898 the city was elevated for the first time as the capital, this time of the Great Miranda State, but for a short time. A year later, Cipriano Castro came from Los Andes at the head of the Restoring Liberal Revolution to seize power together with his compadre Juan Vicente Gómez. On the way to Caracas, Gómez visits Maracay and is fascinated by its climate and landscape, reminiscent of his hometown of San Antonio del Táchira. The then vice president of Venezuela Juan Vicente Gómez promoted the first josefina fair in Maracay in 1905 with three bullfights in an improvised circus in the center of the city, near Girardot square and the cathedral. In 1908, while he was president of Venezuela, Gómez declared Maracay the political capital of Venezuela and in 1909 he moved to the city.

Gomecismo

The years of tranquility offered by the first stage of the government of General Juan Vicente Gómez, who was nicknamed el Benemérito, motivated the relocation of enterprising merchants regularly established in Caracas. This is how a growing interest in the Aragonese region is born, which offers the possibility of setting up businesses linked to land and cattle. In July 1910, Gómez ordered the creation in each state of the Republic of a central highway for the movement of exports of fruits and commercial imports. With this, the construction of the road from Maracay to Ocumare de la Costa began. Likewise, on April 15, 1912, the School of Agriculture, Breeding and Veterinary Medicine was created, locating it in buildings and land on the property called La Trinidad.

Lactuario de Maracay (c. 1913).

Main Market (c. 1921).

Mausoleo Gómez.

In 1915, the facilities of the Maracay Paper factory were inaugurated, whose main shareholders are General Juan Vicente Gómez, General Félix Galavis, Pius Schlageter and Mauricio Sosa Báez. By that same year, Maracay already had a zoological garden, a hippodrome (founded in January 1911), a circus-theater (founded in January 1912), a bank and more companies that have been opened. During this period, investment in public works in the state of Aragua exceeded that of the Federal District, and the construction of the highway to Ocumare de la Costa (inaugurated by Gómez on May 9, 1916) makes Maracay have a port under its control., being the reason why Gómez officially proposed the designation of Maracay as the capital of the Aragua state, replacing the city of La Victoria on June 21, 1916, being approved on March 12, 1917.

1918 flu hits Venezuela; In the state capital Aragua, one of the victims is Ali, son of General Gómez. In his honor, Gómez ordered the construction of a Moorish-style mausoleum, designed by Antonio Malausena, in 1919, and located next to the La Primavera cemetery.

Years after the flu hit Maracay, the city returns to calm, cockfighting and bullfighting are reinforced with other disciplines that are gaining attention among the inhabitants, such as cycling. Thanks to the sponsorship of Florencio and Juan Vicente Gómez, sons of General Gómez, baseball became another of the favorite sports for the maracayeros, with Maracay Baseball Club being the first team in the city.

In the mid-1920s, Venezuela began to see another type of fruit coming from the earth. In Maracay, oil income allows the national budget to rise enough to undertake the construction of public works and the creation of more industries. By 1926, thanks to companies such as Telares de Maracay (Founded that same year by Gómez) the construction of the first three urbanizations in the city began, designed to house Catalan technicians and workers. In addition, the livestock tradition ventures into new paths, when on July 24, 1928 the Maracay slaughterhouse was inaugurated, whose construction began in 1927, under the direction of the French engineer André Potel. This in response to the importance of livestock in the region since not only was the cattle raised in the valleys, but the valleys of Aragua became the feedlot and depository region for thousands of heads of cattle from the Llanos of Venezuela. Later, in 1934, the Industrial Livestock of Venezuela was founded in the city, with the purpose of contributing to the economic improvement of breeders and feeders, in addition to achieving an increase in internal consumption and exports. Juan Vicente Gómez was one of the main shareholders, so the company received all the financial support from the government to develop its infrastructure and pay for the purchase of machinery and equipment. Also in 1929 the main market of Maracay began to operate.

It should be noted that during this period, on December 10, 1920, the Military Aviation School was installed on the land of the San Jacobo hacienda, this being the beginning of aviation in Venezuela. Four months later, the pilot Manuel Ríos became the first Venezuelan to fly over Maracay with the title of Military Aviator. In 1928 the pilot Charles Lindbergh, famous for crossing the Atlantic Ocean on a solo non-stop flight, visited Maracay, where he was awaited by a delegation headed by President Juan Vicente Gómez. By 1929 with the seaplane terminal, the German company Junkers in Lake Tacarigua, a path to business is opened when the Aeropostal company starts its national route flights.

Garden City

Current view of the old Garden Hotel.

View of the Bolivar Square of Maracay, for the moment of its construction, the largest square in South America.

By 1929, investment in public works in the state of Aragua was three times higher than that of the Federal District, and Maracay began its expansion to the east. Coordinated by the French engineer André Potel, the Venezuelan architects Ricardo Razetti, Carlos Raúl Villanueva, Carlos Guinand Sandoz and Luis Malaussena, among others, carry out a set of works under the concept Garden City, where nature It is rigorously protected. These works that contrast in an environment of modest dimensions are for its main inspirer and manager, General Gómez, the way to exalt the commemoration of the centenary of the death of the Liberator Simón Bolívar.

When the decade of the 1930s was just beginning, so was the era of cinema in Maracay. At the Teatro de Maracay and at the Girardot, Central and Miranda cinemas, the maracayeros lined up to see the movies of the moment. The national cinema also takes one of its most important steps when the headquarters of the national laboratories and Maracay Films are installed under the direction of Efraín Gómez, responsible for an abundant film production that makes Maracay and the country known on movie screens. favorite character in his filming, his uncle General Juan Vicente Gómez. This is how the city witnessed the innovation that transformed the cinematographic spectacle. In this laboratory, The Miracle of the Lake is filmed, the first color documentary made in Venezuela and Latin America.

In 1930 the inhabitants saw their quality of life improve due to oil income, at which time General Juan Vicente Gómez announced that the State had paid all its foreign debt. On December 19, 1930, thousands of people attended the inauguration of Plaza Bolívar, at that time the largest square in the country and in South America, and on the same day the civil hospital was inaugurated. In addition to the inauguration from Plaza Bolívar, in December of the same year the Hotel Jardín, designed by Carlos Raúl Villanueva, was inaugurated, being the most anticipated tourist event in recent years.

To cover the need to enjoy the bullfighting festival in Maracay and within the framework of the Maracay Fair, the Calicanto bullring was inaugurated on January 20, 1933 at the initiative of Gómez's children. This inspired construction in the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla, it becomes one of the most important architectural works in the country and receives famous matadors of the time.

Last years of gomecismo

The Toro de Las Delicias was one of the last gifts received by Juan Vicente Gómez. To the dessert would become an icon of the city.

In 1935 General Gómez consumed the last months of his life, a gift from his grandson Marcos became the reference point of the city, the Toro de Las Delicias. The monument became one of the most emblematic icons of the city, a symbol of the old livestock emporium of the state of Aragua. In addition, the city and its politicians of the time were very fond of bullfights, adding to the mystical touch of the monument.. Several companies, including the Maracay Lactuary (f. 1908), and the former Banco Obrero, carry a caricature of the statue as a symbol.

Gómez would also receive as a gift the arrival of the tango artist Carlos Gardel in the month of May at the Hotel Jardín. That same month, Gómez entrusted the architect Luis Raimundo Malaussena with the design of the Maracay Opera House, projected as the largest in Venezuela. With Gómez's death, construction was halted until 1973, when it was finally completed.

During the period of General Juan Vicente Gómez (1908-1935), Maracay underwent a strong urban and economic transformation. Gómez felt a very special attachment to the city of Maracay, where he practically dispatched his presidency, in this city he built the largest Plaza Bolívar in the world, in Parisian style, he also ordered the construction of an Arc de Triomphe, a plaza bullring (a replica of the one in Seville, Spain), an opera house, a zoo, and the Hotel Jardín, an attractive and majestic construction for its time, with large tourist gardens. At this time the city of Maracay takes the nickname Garden City of Venezuela, due to its exuberant gardens.

Post-Gomechism

After the death of Juan Vicente Gómez, the transition begins in Venezuela, a country without political prisoners and that receives those who fled the dictatorship. In 1936 there was talk of political parties and unions. President Eleazar López Contreras undertakes a government of democratic learning. In addition, Gomez's properties become part of the nation.

Far from what was thought, in Maracay the momentum of the institutions continues, and social programs such as “La gota de leche” offer benefits for the numerous Aragonese families that were growing at an accelerated rate. The inaugurations in Maracay did not stop, in 1943 the Civil Aviation School was inaugurated. On this date, the mechanic Manuel Murillo became the first Venezuelan paratrooper to jump onto Venezuelan soil.

In 1937, the decree creating the Rancho Grande National Park was issued to protect the fauna and flora that inhabit the coastal mountain range, to the north of the city. The park was renamed in 1953 with the name of Henri Pittier, a distinguished Swiss geographer, botanist, and ethnologist who arrived in Venezuela in 1917, classified more than 30,000 plants in the country, and dedicated himself for many years to the study of flora and fauna. existing fauna in the park.

Maracay becomes the bulwark against a disease that has decimated the Venezuelan population, malaria. The disease was controlled thanks to Dr. Arnoldo Gabaldón, who executes a health doctrine that goes down in history and changes the destination of thousands of Venezuelans. In 1943 the Malariology Headquarters Complex (current Arnoldo Gabaldón Institute of Advanced Studies) was built, one of the emblems of the city, designed by Luis Malaussena.

In 1945, Maracay was shaken by the events that led to the overthrow of President Isaías Medina Angarita. It is precisely the Maracay barracks and the aviation in insurgent hands that decide the final fate of the regime. Likewise, the president of the state of Aragua, Aníbal Paradisi, is killed at the headquarters of the garrison.

On January 1, 1958, the uprising of various military units took place in the city that began the civic-military movement that would overthrow the government of General Marcos Pérez Jiménez. This movement would influence the coup d'état that same year, through which the government of General Marcos Pérez Jiménez was put to an end, who was forced to leave the country for the Dominican Republic aboard the presidential plane “La Vaca Sagrada”.

Recent Years

John F. Kennedy was received in Maracay by President Rómulo Betancourt, during the first official visit of a president of the United States to Venezuela in December 1961.

Local industrialization began in the 1950s, with the installation of industrial parks of various kinds, and old agricultural and livestock lands began to be reused. At the same time, immigration especially began from the Andes and the Llanos, which was attracted by the benefits of setting up industries that require labor. This renewed industrial movement brings with it the founding of new companies, as well as university activity. The agronomy and veterinary schools of the Central University of Venezuela have given Maracay a new academic profile since 1951.

Among the notable dates is that on December 10, 1955, the ecclesiastical parish of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal of El Limón was created by decree of Archbishop Monsignor Rafael Arias Blanco, which later became a parish foreign civil on January 23, 1962. Likewise, in 1959 the diocese of Maracay was created, whose first holder was Monsignor José Alí Lebrún Moratinos.

In 1961, under the mandate of Rómulo Betancourt, the President of the United States John F. Kennedy visited Maracay one year after his election to inaugurate the La Morita Campesino Settlement, which was part of the Alliance for Progress. By 1965, Maracay began to change its agricultural vocation for the planting of industries. However, the lack of housing makes Maracay develop in an anarchic way that changes the harmonious features of the city.

In the 1970s, the Santos Michelena Cultural Center was inaugurated, giving new venues to the Art Museum and the Aragua Hall. In turn, on March 19, 1973, the day of San José, patron saint of the city, the Opera House was inaugurated, which had remained unfinished as a result of the death of General Juan Vicente Gómez.

In the 1990s, transformed by its own merit into a decentralization leader, in 1993 it obtained control of a large part of the Regional Center highway, a functional monument of great importance that serves for the development of the entire area.

Political-administrative organization

Administration

The Mayor's Office is the executive body of both Maracay and the Girardot municipality and is headquartered in the Girardot municipal palace, located to the north of the city's historic center.

It is responsible for designing, executing, regulating and supervising public management policies. While the Legislative Power corresponds to the Municipal Council, made up of councilors elected by the people every four years. Previously, with the 1961 Constitution, mayors were elected by the Municipal Council, that is, indirectly.

The city is also home to other important institutions, such as the Aragua state government, the Aragua state Legislative Council, the courthouse, the Venezuelan mint, among others.

Territorial organization

Maracay is the capital of the Girardot municipality, which in turn is divided into eight urban parishes and one extra-urban parish (Choroní), but due to its great growth during the last twenty-five years, the limits of the metropolitan area of the city exceeded their own of the Girardot municipality, covering spaces in the Francisco Linares Alcántara municipality, Mario Briceño Iragorry municipality, and Santiago Mariño municipality.

In other countries the figure of "municipality" does not exist, being the so-called "cities" the ones that substitute as a political-administrative division governed by a mayor. On the other hand, it is noteworthy that in Venezuela both concepts coexist, but for different purposes: while cities are taken as urban units for statistical, historical, cultural, and urban planning purposes, municipalities (in this case, Girardot) are the political unit. -Primary administrative organization in the country.

Geography

Location

Geographically, the city is located in the north-central part of Aragua state, with an area of 311.57 km², which represents 4.32% of the regional territory; it borders on the north with the Caribbean Sea from Punta from Mosquito to Punta de Guayamuré. To the south with Lake Valencia from the mouth of Caño Colorado to Portachuelo de la Cabrera. To the east it limits with the municipalities of Santiago Mariño and Linares Alcántara. To the west it borders the state of Carabobo from Portachuelo de la Cabrera to Punta de Mosquito.

Relief

Satellite photo of the city.

The city lies mostly on the eastern plain of Lake Valencia, with an average altitude of 445 m a.s.l. no. m., which increases as you go north and decreases to the south. To the north, the city is limited by the southern edge of the Henri Pittier National Park located in the Coastal Range, where the highest altitude urban areas are found, with the El Castaño sector being the highest point (894 m a.s.l.) of the city. The lowest point of the city (412 m a.s.l.) is located in the southeastern part of the city, on the coast of Lake Valencia, at the level of the Mata Redonda urbanization.

It has a relief that can be classified from north to south into three regions, each of them very characteristic. To the north is the coast, very abrupt, with bays such as Turiamo and Cata and also, further east, Choroní. Further south, in the center, is the Coastal Range, which in this state corresponds almost entirely to Henry Pittier National Park. Finally, to the south, the depression of Lake Valencia, with its plains that descend until reaching the limits with the state of Guárico.

Vegetation

Green areas of Carlos Raúl Villanueva Park.

Maracay has abundant jungle. On the north coast there are beaches with low vegetation, rocks covered with seaweed, hills protected by cardon and thorn bushes. In the forest, mountains covered with giant banks of bamboos and higher up a semi-deciduous or entirely green jungle; crowned with the solemn cloud forest. Meanwhile, it goes down towards Maracay, it repeats itself, with floristic differences, semi-deciduous forests and gallery alternated with savannahs and mountains, until reaching the Valles de Aragua on the shores of Lake Valencia. Maracay is located in a valley made up of three ramifications mountains, which in turn give rise to four small valleys: Guey, Tapatapa, Onoto and Tucupido or Tocopio. The vegetation ranges from trees with abundant foliage, present in the cloud forests of the Henri Pittier National Park, on the coastal mountains, to thorny scrub in the coastal area. In the areas of valleys and savannas, grasses predominate accompanied by trees such as the ceiba, the cedar and the saman, which is the emblematic tree of the Aragua state.

Hydrography

As the largest hydrographic basin, we can mention the endorheic tip of Lake Valencia where the Limón rivers discharge their waters, including the Güey river, the Castaño rivers in the Las Delicias parish and, above all, the Aragua river, the tributary most important of said lake. These surface courses have been considerably reduced, since the water coming from them cannot be used for human consumption, currently converted into the main collectors of sewage discharges, both for urban, industrial and agricultural use.

Wildlife

Cunaguaro is a feline that can sometimes be seen in the city. In addition, it is commonly associated as a symbol of this.

Due to the great variety of trees in the city, several animal species have been identified, including terrestrial vertebrates and a wide variety of mammals, including large species such as tapirs, to smaller ones such as insectivorous bats. It is possible to see maracayás and cunaguaros in urban areas of the city, this is due to the fact that occasionally the cats come down from the mountains of the Henry Pittier National Park towards the nearest populated areas in search of food.

Birds also make up a large part of the fauna, using Henry Pittier National Park as a migration route. Snakes abound, especially snakes. With regard to amphibians, there is great diversity, where salamanders stand out.

The species rescued in operations against wildlife trafficking are generally released or sent to the Las Delicias zoo.

Climate

The climate in Maracay is tropical, modified further north by the increase in altitude, with few seasonal changes in temperature, but with daily differences of up to 15 °C between day and night. The precipitations, in general, begin between the months of May and October are of the order of approximately 900 - 1000 mm on an annual basis.

In Maracay there is an average annual temperature of 25 °C and an annual rainfall of 910 mm, with a well-defined dry season.

Average climate parameters of Maracay
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Temp. max. abs. (°C)	33	36	37	36	35	35	32	32	33	33	35	33	37
Average temperature (°C)	31	32	32	32	31	30	30	30	31	31	32	31	31
Average temperature (°C)	24	24	24	26	26	25	25	25	25	25	25	24	25
Temp. medium (°C)	17	17	17	21	21	21	20	20	20	20	18	17	19
Temp. min. abs. (°C)	10	12	12	15	17	17	17	17	17	17	13	13	10
Total precipitation (mm)	0	10	0	20	100	140	130	200	130	80	40	20	910
Days of rain (≥)	1	1	0	2	6	10	9	12	7	5	3	2	61
Hours of sun	175	188	177	171	194	164	161	154	168	191	178	144	2065
Relative humidity (%)	70	66	62	66	74	77	79	81	80	78	76	74	74
Source: Weatherbase 2010

Demographics

Venezuela's urban history has been written since the 16th century, after the arrival of Europeans. In total, between 24 and 35 cities were established in the 16th century and during the 17th century between 117 and 124, one of these It was Maracay (1697). Around 1784, fourteen cities exceeded five thousand inhabitants, including Caracas, Maracaibo, Barquisimeto, Valencia and Maracay (5,558 inhabitants). By the end of the 19th century, according to the results of the second official census study of the population in 1881, a considerable decrease was seen in Maracay, which, despite continuing to be the fifth most populous city in the country, registered a total of 3,833 inhabitants..

Population

For the 2011 census, the Girardot municipality, whose capital is Maracay, ranked first, concentrating 25% of the total population of Aragua state (407,109 inhabitants out of 1,630,308). This means that almost 1 out of every 4 inhabitants of the state of Aragua are habitual residents of Maracay. It can be noted that the parishes with the largest number of population are located in the city, standing out the urban parishes Los Tacarigua, José Casanova Godoy and Pedro José Ovalles, all with a population of more than sixty thousand inhabitants.

By 2011, there were seven metropolises in Venezuela, that is, cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants, including Maracay if its metropolitan area is taken into account. Despite the fact that Caracas, Maracaibo, Valencia, Barquisimeto and Maracay have been typified as large cities, these in turn are not metropolises in the Latin American context.

Maracay has reduced the rate at which its population grows between 1950 and 2011; without this meaning a decapitalization in population terms. The city has concentrated population due to manufacturing industries and support for agricultural and tourist activities that have been developed in the state of Aragua itself and in neighboring entities, among other reasons. As a regional center of the first order, it has links with subregional centers such as Calabozo, San Fernando de Apure, San Juan de los Morros, and even Puerto Ayacucho. It has presented an average growth rate of 4.1% per year between 1950 and 2011. While in 2001-2011, its rate of decline has been the highest among the metropolis along with Barquisimeto, 1.8% per year.

Bartity

Between 2000 and 2011, of the five cities with the highest population in Venezuela, Maracay exhibited the lowest; 18 births per thousand people. In Caracas, Valencia and Barquisimeto, on average, between 20 and 21 children have been born per thousand inhabitants.

Mortality

Maracay has had the lowest death rate among the five metropolises (2000-2011); 4 deaths per thousand people. The gap between Caracas and the rest of the metropolitan areas is greater than 2 deaths per thousand people.

Growth rate

The natural or vegetative growth of the population is the amount of population that increases or decreases as a result of the compensation between births and deaths.

Maracay, like Caracas, are also metropolises located in federal entities that are in advanced demographic transition. Both cities average a TCV of 14 per 1000, the lowest value. However, in Maracay total growth has always exceeded natural growth; it is a metropolis that attracts population.

Metropolitan Area

The metropolitan area of Maracay is made up, according to article 3 of the land management plan of the state of Aragua, published in Gaceta Extraordinaria no. 610 of November 21, 1997, by all the parishes of the Girardot municipality, together with the cities of Turmero (Santiago Mariño municipality), El Limón (Mario Briceño Iragorry municipality), Cagua (Sucre municipality), Palo Negro (Libertador municipality), San Mateo (Bolívar municipality), Santa Rita (Francisco Linares Alcántara municipality) and Santa Cruz (José Ángel Lamas municipality).

Due to the growth that the city has experienced for years, Maracay has expanded beyond its municipal limits, encompassing parts of the municipalities Francisco Linares Alcántara, Mario Briceño Iragorry, Santiago Mariño, among others, functioning as dormitory towns for the capital aragueña thanks to the great movement of inhabitants that it exerts in these localities.

The evolution of this area and the great mobilization of people have gained strength and importance thanks to the industries that are concentrated in all its locations, the great commercial activity that it has been experiencing and the population growth that has been increasing for years, making it one of the main conurbations in all of Venezuela.

Gentilic

The name of the inhabitants of Maracay is "maracayero/a".

Infrastructure

Education

Bolivarian Military Aviation Academy.

Education in Maracay, as in the rest of the country, is divided into different levels. Initial education corresponds to the period between zero and five years of age, and is in charge of nurseries and preschools that have the purpose of providing children with the stimulations required for their integral development and gardens that offer technical activities. pedagogical Primary education, whose entry age for children is six years, is made up of first and sixth grade. Secondary education consists of five years, from the first to the fifth year, which can be a general average and a technical average. Then comes higher education that can be technical or university. The system of public and private schools is dependent on the Educational Zone of Aragua, and whose headquarters are located in the Caña de Azúcar urbanization.

Schools

According to data from the School Management System (SIGE), by 2015 the city had around 371 schools — primary education and secondary education are unified in Venezuela, simply called schools. In addition, there are night schools for adults and specialized technical schools.

College Education

Public universities play an important role in teaching and research, such as the National Open University (f. 1977), the National Experimental Polytechnic University of the Bolivarian Armed Forces, the Simón Rodríguez National Experimental University, the Libertador Experimental Pedagogical University (d. 1971), among others. There are also other private universities, such as the Santiago Mariño Polytechnic University Institute (d. 1991). There are also military educational institutions such as the Bolivarian Aviation Military Academy (d. 1920), the Bolivarian Military Technical Academy (d. 2009), as well as the development of public security officials, such as the National Experimental Security University.

In the metropolitan area of Maracay are the faculties of Agronomy and Veterinary Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela, the faculties of Health Sciences and Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Carabobo, the Bicentennial University of Aragua, among others.

Libraries

Virtual Library Headquarters.

Although the city does not have many libraries, some stand out as academic libraries and scientific information centers. Among them are the headquarters of the Virtual Libraries, the "Agustín Codazzi" Central Public Library, the "Juan González Baquero" Public Library, the CRAM Specialized Public Library (Regional Teacher Support Center), the "Escuela de Dramatic Arts", the Specialized Public Library "Colegio de Periodistas", the Specialized Public Library "Escuela de Artes Visuales", the reading rooms "Aquiles Nazoa", "José Antonio Maitin", and "Rómulo Gallegos", among others.

Health

Front view of the Maracay Civil Hospital.

The city has several hospitals and private clinics. Among the most important is the Civil Hospital of Maracay, built in 1930 and care center for more than 1,500 patients with HIV; the Ambulatorio del Norte, inaugurated in 2004 and designed to meet the needs of the population and alleviate the services of the Central Hospital of Maracay; the Central Hospital of Maracay, a type IV public medical care establishment with 552 budgeted beds; the Insurance of San José, attached to the Venezuelan Institute of Social Security, which has 200 beds and cares for more than 10,000 people per month in the services of hospital, gynecological and obstetric consultations, emergencies for adults and children in separate rooms, as well as radiology and clinical laboratory; the Los Samanes Hospital inaugurated in 1989 under the figure of a private foundation, which as of 2009 is public; the Maracay Psychiatric Clinic, dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric or mental illnesses, among others.

The city is also home to the Arnoldo Gabaldón Institute of Advanced Studies, a government institution in charge of training professionals and technicians and creating lines of research in the area of public health in Venezuela. He specializes in what malariology is. Its building was declared a national monument.

Transportation

Due to its location in the center of the country, Maracay is one of the junction points of the country's main highways. Maracay communicates to a large extent with the cities of the center and surroundings through the Regional del Centro highway, being the El Avión vial its access point.

Ground transportation

The urban bus network is supervised by the municipality of Girardot, and they are operated by bus and van cooperatives that travel from the neighborhoods and urbanizations almost always to the city center and to the Maracay passenger terminal.

The San Jacinto redoma is one of the city's most popular road arteries.

TransMaracay, is the name given to a mass transportation system located on Constitución avenue. It was formally inaugurated in April 2015 with an initial stretch of 8.1 kilometers and eleven stations that run through some of the most important sectors of Maracay as part of the program that seeks to improve passenger mobilization in the Maracay Metropolitan Area. The city also has the TransAragua bus system, whose public service covers five urban and suburban routes in the Maracay metropolitan area.

Among the most important roads are the Maracay-Choroní highway, Las Delicias avenue, Sucre avenue, among others.

Air transportation

Los Tacariguas Airport is the main and only air terminal in the city. It is located at the Mariscal Sucre air base. Its headquarters serve as a national commercial airport, as well as a military base. It was opened to the civilian population in November 2010 to provide an air alternative to the inhabitants of the state of Aragua, who previously had to resort to the cities of Valencia or Caracas to take air links.

Military

Vista del Cuartel Sucre.

Since the early 1920s, the city began to fill up with barracks, military bases, arsenals, and barracks due to its strategic advantages: it is an hour from the coast, it is halfway between Caracas and Valencia, and connects the northern valleys with the central plains and the east with the west. It also houses a large number of battalions of these corps, as well as many others.

Urbanism

With the arrival of Juan Vicente Gómez to power, Maracay underwent a strong urban and economic transformation, but it was not until the second half of the century XX, when a rapid industrialization of the city took place, where ten industrial zones were developed. In the 1940s the city saw the rise of urbanizations such as Calicanto, El Hipódromo, in the 1950s Piñonal and La Barraca. In the 1953 Banco Obrero report, the construction of 54 houses in the La Barraca urbanization for the middle class was recorded, while in the 1954 reports: 52 houses for the working class and 76 apartments for the middle class. Although these developments could not be considered significant, they did represent the beginning of the urbanization process of some sectors in the city that would be consolidated with the construction of the Regional del Centro highway. Subsequently, urbanizations such as the Mendoza Foundation would be built.

The 1980s were a time of strong growth for Maracay, which made it expand its borders beyond the central area of the city, including the land that was once owned by General Juan Vicente Gómez, building areas residential (such as the San Jacinto urbanization), with wide avenues and buildings.

By 1981, of the city's 9,648 urbanized hectares, 539 corresponded to a permitted industrial area. However, the balance between industrialization, excessive population growth, the balance of housing, and the supply of land They weren't even. Therefore, the invasion of old properties of a certain size began and ranches were installed without minimal sanitation and other public services. Later, official agencies gave it legality to legitimize its formation, and in many cases no compensation was provided to the legal owners of the invaded lands.

In the last twenty years the mountains of the Tocopio valley have seen the increase of urbanism in that valley with the urbanization Mountain Fresca.

Economy

Maracay is one of the most important cities in Venezuela, as well as being a large industrial and commercial center. The city produces paper, textiles, chemical products, food derived from livestock (such as milk or canned meat), as well as soap and perfumes. Currently, Maracay serves as the establishment of large industries in the metal-mechanic, food, paper, pharmaceutical, and textile sectors. After Valencia, Maracay is the second industrial zone in Venezuela.

In the metropolitan area of Maracay, the industrial and service jobs generated in it stand out, such as important metal-mechanic, pharmaceutical, chemical, textile, agro-industrial and food processing industries. Of significance are the activities of carriers and merchants.

Although it is an industrial center, the surroundings of Maracay live on intensive agriculture, where sugar cane, tobacco, coffee and cocoa stand out as the main products. Livestock and forestry are also present to a lesser extent.

Industry

View of the main building of Telares de Maracay—today C.C. Central Station—in 1925.

The industrialization process in Maracay began with the founding of the Lactuario de Maracay in 1908, and Papeles Maracay in 1912, as well as with the opening of a series of industries founded by Juan Vicente Gómez at the end of the 1920s, which later they would be confiscated by the State, and they were attached to the Venezuelan Development Corporation in May 1946. Among these industries were Telares de Maracay, the Lactuary of Maracay, and Fábrica de Aceites Maracay. These industries only received support for their modernization and consolidation until 1952, since with the coming to power of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, these industries were no longer considered a priority, so the State decided to put them up for sale, as in the case of Telares. and the Lactuary, and in liquidation, as in the case of the Oil Factory. Another of the companies from the time of Gómez that was attached to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, and which was sold to Banco Agrícola y Pecuario, was Ganadera Industrial Venezolana, also known as Matadero Industrial La Ganadera.

In the early fifties, the first industrial zone, called San Miguel, was built in Maracay with the aim of attracting direct foreign investment that settled in the country within the development policy known as Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI). North American chemical, metal-mechanic, and textile companies, as well as small investors, arrived in the city. Also in 1951, the company Electricidad de Maracay was created, whose La Cabrera thermoelectric plant was built for that year, whose purpose was to promote industry in the central region and supply electricity at affordable prices to the population.

Another milestone in this industrialization process was the establishment in 1948 of the North American company SUDAMTEX, whose raw material was processed by the Celanese industry that also settled in Maracay.

Tourism

View of the Costa Cordillera in Choroní being bathed by the waters of the Caribbean Sea.

During the government of Juan Vicente Gómez, Maracay had become the center of the incipient tourist activity that was beginning to develop in Venezuela, promoted by the state of Aragua, where Gómez had decided to make his main place of residence. Two main hotels were built during this period, in 1919 the small Hotel Maracay on López Aveledo street and in 1929 the Hotel Jardín. The Hotel Jardín was located in the center of the city and considered the jewel in the crown of the Gomez hotel industry. However, at the beginning of the 1950s, the construction of a new Hotel Maracay, north of the city, was approved, adapting it to the demands of international tourism at the time. Thus, the Hotel Maracay, the work of the architect Luis Malaussena, became the last link in the privileged architectural era of Maracay.

The city has various options to offer, one of its most notable forms is ecological tourism, since it is home to the main natural historical monument, which is the Henri Pittier National Park, which was promulgated on 13 February 1937, making it the country's first national park. This park covers 107,800 hectares and is located between the states of Aragua and Carabobo. There is also the Guamita park that leads to Ocumare de la Costa and Las Cocuizas park, these lead to the biological stations of Choroní and Rancho Grande, where there is a bird museum.

The beaches are also a popular tourist destination. Located in the Choroní parish (which offers a tour of Venezuela's colonial past), these, and the beaches adjacent to Puerto Colombia, offer a coastal strip almost a kilometer long, bathed by the Caribbean Sea. The beach, oceanic and with an extensive forest of coconut palms, is limited by the mountains of the Coastal Range that fall directly into the sea.

The city also has parks of various kinds, such as the Metropolitan water park, or complexes such as the Las Delicias sports center. Another site of interest is the Las Delicias zoo, founded by Juan Vicente Gómez on land he owned. The museums in turn are an important part of this activity, it is home to the Museum of Anthropology and History, the Aeronautical Museum attached to the Bolivarian Military Aviation.

Among other iconic sites in the city are the Maestranza César Girón, the work of Carlos Raúl Villanueva; the Opera House, and the Mario Abreu Museum of Contemporary Art.

Media

Written press

The printing press was introduced in Maracay at the end of 1879 by Vicente Gordill. The first example of written press in the city, titled La Escuela Liberal, was published on January 7, 1880 in said printing press. However, the first newspaper in the city was Paz and Labor, founded as a weekly and then converted to a daily format on October 4, 1926.

Later, El Paréntesis circulated, directed by Colonel Gregorio Vega, a weekly that would later circulate as a daily in 1933 until the death of General Juan Vicente Gómez. It was followed by some important weeklies such as Última Hora, Aragua, Brújula, Justicia, Cartel i>, Tacarigua, El Pueblo, Opinion, Avance, among others. El Imparcial began as a seminar on November 5, 1960, and began as a newspaper on December 13, 1963. Opinión and Impacto wanted to be newspapers, but they circulated very little time.

In January 1972, El Aragüeño began to be published, founded by Martín Villarroel and today owned by Grupo Sindoni. In March of that same year, El Siglo was published, which to date remains the newspaper with the largest circulation in the city. Later, the newspaper El Comercio was published, leaving to circulate in 1982 due to financial problems. On May 2, 1986, El Periódico came out, changing its name to El Periodiquito in 1988.

Radius

Dozens of AM and FM stations broadcast from Maracay with local, national and international coverage. Among the radio stations from Maracay is Radio Maracay, a pioneer in the state of Aragua, Radiovisión (650 AM), Radio Universal (1,080 AM), Unión Radio Noticias (1,430 AM), Radio Nacional de Venezuela (89.3 FM), Éxitos (93.1 FM), Rumbera Network (93.9 FM), La Mega (96.5 FM), La Romántica (98.1 FM), La X (102.7 FM), Rumba FM (105.1 FM), Capital FM (105.5 FM), Fiesta (106.1 FM), among other.

Television

Currently, Maracay is home to only two television channels: TVS (founded in 1994) and TeleAragua (founded in 2013).

The city also has numerous subscription television and satellite television providers such as: Inter, Movistar TV, Netuno, SuperCable, among others.

Culture and society

Foreign Affairs of the Cultural Complex Santos Michelena, headquarters of the House of Culture.

In the city it has been implanted since urban development, without leaving behind cultural experiences. The most important folkloric events are the bullfights in the Maestranza César Girón, where bullfights, bullfights, etc. take place. The San José Fair is another important festivity for being the Patron Saint of Maracay in which concerts of different musical genres are held, the election of the queen of San José through a beauty contest, and sometimes parades are held. Additionally, much of the city's cultural activity stems from the activities carried out in the Santos Michelena Cultural Complex located on Avenida 19 de Abril with Junín street, being the House of Culture, where the activities of the School of Music take place. Federico Villena, the core classes of the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela and is also the headquarters of the Rafael Monasterios School of Visual Arts. In turn, the city has a music conservatory that offers studies in said art.

On the other hand, the presence of communities of Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and German emigrants, among others, have been contributing to the city with different types of cultural activities that are carried out in their respective facilities, such as the Hispanic Center, the Casa Italia (d. 1969), the Casa Portuguesa, the German Club —where events in the style of Oktoberfest have been held since the 1990s—, the Mount Lebanon, among others. In 2013, a headquarters of the French Alliance was inaugurated in Maracay, which also provides regular activities to disseminate French culture and language throughout the year.

Most of the state-sponsored cultural events that take place in the city take place at the Teatro Ateneo and the Teatro de la Ópera, as well as at the different university centers that are based in the city.

Architecture

The architectural continuity between two icons of the city, Bolivar Square and the Sindoni Tower, the highest skyscraper in the interior of the country, can be seen.

Maracayera architecture is characterized by having a mixture of styles as reflected in the changes between trends throughout various periods of the city's history. Examples of colonial architecture include structures such as the Maracay Cathedral.

After the independence of Venezuela, a gradual shift towards neoclassical and art deco styles took place in the city. Many of these constructions were influenced by the French architectural style. Some government buildings as well as major cultural institutions were built in this architectural time period. The 20th century has seen the construction of the Sindoni Tower, the tallest skyscraper in the interior of the country, and in turn, smaller buildings have been built in the urban areas of the city.

Plazas, parks and gardens

Currently, Maracay has parks that are part of the heritage of the city and the country. Santos Michelena Park, located between Ramón Narváez and Bolívar avenues, is one of the oldest parks in the city, as well as being closely linked to sports due to its number of sports spaces distributed within its 8 ha. At the other end of the city, at the end of Avenida Constitución, is the metropolitan water park, which with its 26 ha is the largest park, and the only water park in Maracay. Carlos Raúl Villanueva recreational park, former Country Club, located along Las Delicias avenue, is also one of the most visited parks by the population, as is El Ejército park, also known as Las Ballenas, on Sucre avenue, for its soda fountain, exercise facilities and food spaces.

Another important park is the San Jacinto Fair Park, provided with green areas, an equestrian stable, a mechanical amusement park and fast food services, as well as sports spaces. In turn, the Las Delicias zoo is the only zoo in the city. In 2015, an expansion of said zoo was projected, as well as the inclusion of an aquarium.

Likewise, the city of Maracay is provided with important squares, such as Plaza Bolívar, in its time considered the largest square in South America. Girardot Square is the longest-lived square in the city, since it accompanied the city even before its foundation, when at that time it was called Plaza Mayor. The Bicentennial Square, located in the historic center of Maracay, is also another of the most important squares.

Other smaller squares such as El Ancla square, Felipe Guevara Rojas square, La Soledad square, among others, can be visited any day of the year.

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  Metropolitan water park.

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  Plaza Bicentenaria.

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  Plaza Felipe Guevara Rojas.

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  Santos Michelena Park.

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  Plaza La Soledad.

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  Las Ballenas Park.

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  Virtual Square.

Skyscrapers

Although Maracay has never been a city that stands out for its skyscrapers, at the end of the 20th century, the first ones were built that, although they could not be considered skyscrapers, were outstanding buildings, such as the Torre Cantaclaro Plaza, a building 110 m residential building that at the time of its construction in 1986, was the tallest building outside the capital. It was not until 1999 when the first skyscraper was built in Maracay, the Torre Sindoni for office use, 125 meters high.

Maracay is home to the two tallest buildings in the interior of the country, the Torre Sindoni and the Torre Cantaclaro Plaza.

Churches

Maracay has a good number of churches, most of them Catholic.

Gastronomy

Maracayera gastronomy has few native dishes, this is because the city was always described as “a city of passage”, until it was erected as the state capital in 1917. that date, there are records about the stuffed auyama as a typical autochthonous dish.

Although there is no compilation of local or state gastronomic memory, the city of Maracay has been influenced by various cuisines, both national and international. Located in the Aragua valleys, the city has access to the coastal towns, which have a gastronomy based on the use of grains, fish and cocoa, typical of the Afro-Venezuelan culinary tradition. Likewise, the valley has an enclave with Colonia Tovar, a settlement founded by German settlers.

Among the typical dishes of the city are the meatballs that are prepared with ground beef and a sauce made from tomato, onion, garlic and pepper, to be served with white rice, white cheese, and roasted ripe plantain or fried green; the cachapa which is a kind of corn tortilla that is accompanied with cheese or meat. Another of the typical dishes is the sancocho or boiled, which is a kind of soup or broth based on beef, chicken or chicken that is accompanied with potatoes, cassava, corn, green plantains, etc. This dish is accompanied with casabe, a tortilla made from cassava flour, or with arepas, which in themselves represent a separate typical dish. Additionally, like the rest of the country, the Creole pavilion, chicha, roast beef, empanadas, among others, are very popular.

Museums and theaters

The city concentrates a good number of museums of different types, among which the Museum of Anthropology and History stands out, which mainly exhibits motifs related to the art and culture of Venezuela and contemporary Latin America and pre-Columbian America, and that among its most important collections houses the Venus de Tacarigua, a Venezuelan pre-Columbian figure; the Aeronautical Museum, being the only museum in Venezuela dedicated to aviation, and the third most important in Latin America; and the Mario Abreu Museum of Contemporary Art, specialized in visual arts. The Casa de la Cultura, formerly the Contemporary Museum of Art, also houses an art collection.

As for theaters, the city is home to the Ateneo Theater, the first theater in the city built in 1926 as the Circo Maracay Theater by the then president of Venezuela Juan Vicente Gómez. The theater was closed since Gómez's death in 1935, and it was not until 1995 that it was recovered after its visible deterioration. While the Ateneo Theater was closed, in 1935 construction began on the Opera Theater, initially inspired by the Opera Garnier in Paris, but with the death of Gómez the project came to a standstill. In 1971 work began to finish the building and it was inaugurated in 1973. Currently, it is the most important theater with the largest capacity in the city.

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  Opera House.

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  Museum of Contemporary Art Mario Abreu.

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  Museum of Anthropology and History.

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  Aeronautical Museum.

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  Ateneo Theatre.

Bullfighting

View of "La Girondina" on the exteriors of the Cesar Girón Masters.

As for the "fiesta brava", the city has the Maestranza César Girón which was inaugurated in 1933 with the name of "Plaza de Toros de Calicanto" and later renamed with the name of the bullfighter César Girón. Located on Avenida 19 de Abril, it was designed by the architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva, who merges aspects of the Maestranza in Seville and the Bellver Castle in Mallorca, Spain. It was inaugurated on January 20, 1933, during the government of Juan Vicente Gómez. It is one of the most important bullfighting arenas in the country. It was declared a National Historic Monument on April 15, 1994 according to Gaceta no. 35441.

With a capacity of 7,000 seats, it is the only square where bullfighting is held in Maracay. Inside it there is a bullfighting museum, where famous bullfighters' costumes, famous bulls' heads, historical documents and other objects related to bullfighting are exhibited.

The history of the César Girón maestranza is closely associated with the start of the patron saint festivities of San José. The then Vice President of Venezuela Juan Vicente Gómez promoted the first Josefina fair in Maracay in 1905 with three bullfights in a impromptu circus in the center of the city near Girardot square and the cathedral. As bullfights became popular, Florencio Gómez Núñez, Juan Belmonte García and other businessmen founded ranches, including "La Quebrada", "La Providencia" and "Guayabita" with Spanish bulls destined to father imported and Creole cows.

In 1946, the maracayeros attend a memorable one-on-one bullfight between two idols of the time: Manolete and Carlos Arruza, the Cyclone. Thus, Maracay becomes the center of the Venezuelan bullfighting festival, with a quarry of famous bullfighters whose best example is the dynasty of the Girón, Curro and César brothers, highlighting the figure of the latter.

Religion

View of Maracay Cathedral.

The arrival of the Spanish conquerors in Venezuela meant the introduction of the Catholic religion in this area populated by aborigines of various ethnic groups, who followed their own religions, which produced a religious syncretism. San José, was named patron saint of the city on March 5, 1701, when the town of Maracay was erected as a vice parish.

The Aragonese capital is the seat of the Diocese of Maracay, which was established in June 1958 as a diocese. The diocese was established on June 21, 1958 by means of the bull Qui Supremi Pontificatus of Pope Pius XII, taking territory from the Diocese of Calabozo (today an archdiocese) and from the Archdiocese of Valencia. On November 12, 1974, it became part of the ecclesiastical province of the Archdiocese of Valencia. Currently the diocese of Maracay is in charge of Monsignor Enrique José Parravano Marino.

Among the places of worship in the city, there is the Sanctuary of Mother María de San José, a Catholic religious complex built in recognition of Laura Evangelista Alvarado Cardozo, a Catholic nun born in Aragua in 1875, who was declared blessed on May 7, 1995, when in a ceremony held in Saint Peter's Square in Vatican City, Pope John Paul II read the decree that makes Laura Alvarado Cardozo, Mother Mary of Saint Joseph, the the first Venezuelan blessed woman. For her part, in the city she held a gigantic religious manifestation, where thousands of people gathered on Bolívar Avenue and in the surroundings of the Maracay Cathedral and the Sanctuary of Mother María de San José, to attend the liturgical acts and witness the moment of beatification. At dawn, planes from the Venezuelan Air Force drop a shower of flowers over the city.

One of the religious events is the San Sebastián walk that takes place on the last Saturday of January each year on the outskirts of the city. The route of this pilgrimage begins in the city of El Limón and ends in the church of Ocumare de la Costa.

As in the rest of the country, the vast majority of the population is Catholic.

Customs and traditions

View of an allegorical float at the fair of San José.

In Maracay there is an infinite variety of folk dances that show the diversity of cultures. However, most of these demonstrations are practiced in the coastal towns of Aragua state and not precisely in the city. The paramunicipal company whose objective is the organization, planning, administration, promotion and execution of the Maracay Fairs, and the responsibility of the San Jacinto Fair Park, is FERIMAR, founded in October 1986.

The San José fair is the most important festivity, and is celebrated on the day of San José (between March 16 and 25). It is a show in which thousands of families come to witness the event that includes different activities such as dances, concerts, floats, bullfights, tailed bulls, beauty contests, among others. These festivities began in November 1904. At that time, important personalities such as President Cipriano Castro and General Juan Vicente Gómez came to the town; there were all kinds of festivities: tailed bulls, cockfights, dances, calves for the popular sectors, an impressive military parade. Said fair began as an Andean-style regional fair, which was a transplant of Tachirense customs.

Another important festivity is the Fiesta de San Juan that is celebrated between June 23 and 24, mostly in the coastal towns of Aragua. However, the party is of the utmost importance in some neighborhoods of Maracay, such as 23 de Enero. Various types of drums are used in this Afro-Venezuelan festival, which range from the so-called cumanos, large or long drums, to the round ones, traditionally called culo e' jab. In certain populations they are accompanied with other types of musical instruments such as the guaruras or the horns.

Among the most popular expressions of folklore are the joropo aragueño; the dance of La Llora, the most autochthonous folkloric manifestation of the central valley of the state of Aragua and celebrated on the second day of the month of November; and the dancing devils, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, whose origins date from the mid-XVII century, where the first demonstrations were held in farms in the states of Aragua and La Guaira. and The Appeal.

Sports

Estadio José Pérez Colmenares

Stadium Brothers Ghersi

Colosseum The Lemon

Kartódromo Carmencita Hernández

The main sport practiced in the city, as in the whole country, is baseball. This sport began to gain importance at the end of the 1910s thanks to the sponsorship of Florencio and Juan Vicente Gómez, sons of General Gómez, being Maracay Baseball Club the first team in the city. However, it was not practiced professionally until the foundation of the Tigres de Aragua team in 1965. Currently, the Tigres participate in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League, and are the third most winning team in the league. Maracay has been a quarry for top-level baseball players, such as David Concepción or Miguel Cabrera. The main sports venue for the practice of this sport is the José Pérez Colmenares stadium, which has hosted events such as the 2006 Caribbean Series, while the Julio Bracho municipal stadium is one of the oldest sports venues in the city where it is practiced. said sport.

Another sport of great importance is soccer. The Venezuelan Primera División was only played in the city of Caracas since its foundation, and it was not until 1963, with the inclusion of Tiquire Flores Fútbol Club —the city's first professional team—, that the league became national. Today the city is home to a second division team: the Aragua Fútbol Club, which is based at the Hermanos Ghersi Páez Olympic Stadium. Likewise, figures such as Juan Arango, listed as the best player in the country's history, or Deyna Castellanos, listed as one of the most promising soccer players in the world, have emerged from Maracay.

There are also institutions that have infrastructure for the practice of other sports such as basketball and volleyball. In basketball, the city is the headquarters of the Toros de Aragua and Taurinos de Aragua teams. Founded in 1974, Toros is the oldest professional basketball team in the country. Both teams play their home games at the El Limón coliseum, and at the Mauricio Johnson indoor gym, respectively. In these scenarios, disciplines such as volleyball or futsal are also practiced.

There are also other complexes for practicing sports such as tennis, such as the Juan Carlos Bianchi Tennis Complex located in the Las Delicias parish, being one of the venues where ATP tournaments are held in the country.

For its part, in the city is the Las Delicias Sports Center, a state complex that houses athletes from all over the country and allows the practice of a large number of sports, highlighting the place where swimmers and divers from Aragón develop. The complex is made up of swimming pools and sports fields, where the regional swimming, synchronized swimming and ornamental diving teams come to life. There is also the Santos Michelena park, which houses more than fifteen fields of different sports disciplines, including soccer, baseball, volleyball, basketball and indoor soccer.

In motor sports there is the layout of the Carmencita Hernández international kart track, located in the San Jacinto Fair Park. In the metropolitan area of Maracay there is also the Pancho Pepe Cróquer Turagua International Raceway, founded in the mid-1970s, it was the first racetrack in Venezuela. The most successful maracayero in this discipline has been Pastor Maldonado, also being the first and only Venezuelan to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix, after winning the 2012 Spanish GP with Williams.

Among other sports, the national sport of Venezuela stands out, the coleados bulls, which is staged in the Veteranos de Aragua coleo sleeve.

Twinned cities

Town twinning is a concept whereby towns or cities from different geographic and political zones are paired up to foster human contact and cultural links.

• IzhevskRussia (25 July 2006).