Valencia (Venezuela)

Valencia is a city in Venezuela, capital and most populous city of Carabobo State, located in the Central Region of the country. It is known as The Industrial Capital of Venezuela, because it houses a valuable number of industrial areas in the country. In the same way, it has become an investment center, the object of large projects such as the World Trade Center Valencia, the first in the nation, and the Isla Multiespacio Complex.

According to the census of the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the city has a population of 1,484,430 inhabitants for the year 2011, while the entire metropolitan area has a population of 1,996,173 inhabitants, thus becoming the most populous city in the Central Region and the third most populous in Venezuela, after Caracas and Maracaibo. It is also the most populated city in the so-called "Valencia-Maracay metropolitan region", which with around 4,250,000 inhabitants (2020) is the second in the country after Caracas.

The city is made up of five different autonomous municipalities: Valencia Municipality, Naguanagua Municipality, San Diego Municipality, Libertador Municipality and Los Guayos Municipality, each having their respective public powers with their own administrative powers. The current regional legislation establishes that the authorities will promote an initiative to create a metropolitan district, like the one already possessed by the city of Caracas, if the Miguel Peña Parish were to be elevated to the municipal level. The city was the capital of Venezuela in three times, from 1812 to 1830.

Toponymy

The city was initially designated (in the colonial era) with the official name of Nueva Valencia del Rey, later Our Lady of the Annunciation of New Valencia del Rey b> and Our Lady of Help of the New Valencia of the King. Finally, in the constitution of the Carabobo State of 1991 it is referred to simply as Valencia. The name was given in honor of the city of Valencia de Don Juan located in the Province of León, Spain.

History

Valencia was the capital of Venezuela on three occasions: in 1812, when the public powers of the provisional government moved there during the Venezuelan War of Independence, and provisionally both in 1830 with the dissolution of Gran Colombia and in 1858 when the March Revolution triumphed.

During the War of Independence, Valencia was the theater of great events, the most famous being the Battle of Carabobo on June 24, 1821, in the area that today is called "Campo de Carabobo" located about twenty (20) kilometers from the city, later, six days later (on June 30, 1821) the Municipal Council was created there, which became the first in Venezuela. Valencia has enjoyed university jurisdiction since 1852, when four university faculties were created in the First Category National College, which after various transformations became what is known today as the University of Carabobo, being the starting point for the birth of multiple institutes of higher education that have emerged in the region.

First settlements

Already in the fourth millennium BC. C. indigenous populations existed in this area. Between 200 AD C. and 1000 C., there were different settlements of various ethnic groups, especially around Lake Tacarigua or Lake Valencia where objects and statuettes remained as proof of their culture, highlighting among them the so-called Venus of Tacarigua as the most iconic and important figurine that has ever been found. The Arawakos ethnic group was one of those who lived in the vicinity of the basin at a certain historical moment, although they were not part of the autochthonous inhabitants to whom they are known as "Tacariguas", of which there is very little documentary information. Even so, scholars tend to incline that the so-called Tacariguas Indians originated as a branch of the so-called "Barrancoides Centrales" and "Arauquinoides" between the year 400 d. C. and 800 d. C. who decided to settle in this particular valley.

It is noteworthy that the evidence of the presence of pre-Columbian populations in the region is largely supported by the objects left by these populations, since there are few written documents by the Spanish colonizers that recount any kind of encounter with these original cultures even since their arrival in the XVI century. Historians theorize the following possibilities: Migration of the local indigenous population, a very rapid enslaving action by the conquerors, epidemics that reduced their numbers, and even the loss or destruction of historical documents where their existence had been recorded. Regarding the language of this population, they could have come to speak the same language as the Caracas Indians (Caribbean language) according to some migratory scientific estimates, although this is not certain.

Local Indians were engaged in gathering and hunting, possibly experimenting with early forms of agriculture.

Foundation

The origins of Valencia go back to the year 1555, when Captain Vicente Díaz, a neighbor of Nuestra Señora de la Concepción de la Borburata, decided to provide the city with cattle with the aim of bringing greater prosperity to it. For this, he travels to the island of Margarita where he acquires a good batch of cattle and horses, in addition to getting a group of soldiers who would accompany him in moving said cattle to Borburata. The transfer was carried out, however, the Borburata lands were not conducive to the development of livestock, for which reason, Captain Vicente Díaz founded a herd where the city of Valencia is today. There he fixes his residence together with his sons and sons-in-law.

To promote the settlement of the region, Díaz favors the residents of Borburata who would like to settle in the new site, giving them cattle as gifts. Those who were attracted to the site initially did so due to the constant corsair attacks suffered by Borburata, the first settlers being Sebastián Ruiz, Andrés Hernández, Sebastián Díaz de Alfaro and Juan Fernández de Trujillo, who testify to these facts in a document found in the Cathedral of Valencia dated 1609. One of these attacks suffered in Borburata occurred on April 17, 1555, at the hands of French pirates^{[citation required]}, date on which the city was taken and sacked. After this and other similar events, more of its inhabitants decide to establish their residence in the town of Nueva Valencia, safer than the previous one.

Although the first siege was made by Captain Vicente Díaz, the name of the founder of the town that emerged there is still the subject of debate: The Captain General of the Province, Alonso Arias de Villasinda had given orders to his relative (Alonso Díaz Moreno) to fulfill the mandate to populate that privileged place on the same dates that Captain Díaz built his herd. The historian José de Oviedo y Baños specified in 1723 in his work History of the conquest and population of the Province of Venezuela that Valencia was founded by Alonso Díaz Moreno, leaving this version as the official version for posterity..

Regarding the date of foundation, tradition still considers it to be March 25, 1555, due to the fact that the city was born under the dedication and name of Our Lady of the Annunciation of Nueva Valencia del Rey, a religious date that is celebrated that day. Although the actual data on the date of the city's foundation were for a long time in the General Archive of the Indies in the city of Seville, they were lost due to successive transfers; The first of them being to the city of Madrid and later to the Alcalá de Henares Archive, where a fire caused the loss of this and another 150,000 files in the year 1939.

Even so, Luigi Frassato (member of the History Academy of Carabobo) considers that whether or not the city was founded in 1555, it should continue to be conceived as originally (March 25, 1555) due to both tradition as well as the fact that the choice of that date arose because it corresponded to the Angel Gabriel's annunciation to the Virgin Mary, which reflects the Christian stamp that the town has had since its inception:

It is the healthiest thing to continue to celebrate this, as Valencia Day, because in the founding acts the first church dedicated to the annunciation of the Virgin Mary

In the beginning, cattle raising formed the livelihood of the Valencians, who had significant wealth thanks to the lucrative nature of this activity.

Colonization

In Valencia, as in the rest of the territory of what we now know as Venezuela, there was a figure implanted by the conquerors known as Cabildo or Ayuntamiento, which was in charge of solving the problems that arose in the locality. This institution originated from the need to govern towns and cities at a time when there was no exact demarcation of the provinces in the New World; It was made up of the Alcalde Mayor, the Teniente de Justicia Mayor, a group of local inhabitants under the title of Cabildantes or Councilors, the Ordinary Mayors, the Procurator Trustee, the Alférez Real, the Faithful Executor, the Alguacil Mayor, the Mayordomo and the Escribano; all of them subordinate to the Governor of the Province (in the case of the Provinces) or to the Captain General (in the case of a General Captaincy). According to the chronicler of the city, Don Guillermo Mujica Sevilla, this is the description of the old Cabildo:

The Cabildo was based in the Consistorial House, located in the northwest part of the corner today formed by Colombia Street and Bolivar Avenue, opposite Bolivar Square. It had an image of the Virgin of the Annunciation of Valencia (Valencia was called "Our Lady of the Annunciation of the New Valencia of the King") there was also an effigy of the King of Spain with deterioration of time and modifications, this house was preserved (high house, or two floors, with roof of tiles and alero) until 1926, when it was knocked down to build the Municipal Palace.

This institution corresponds largely to what is now known as the Municipal Council, and the Cabildantes to the Councillors.

Casa de los Celis, built in the late 18th century

1561: "The tyrant" Lope de Aguirre besieges the city while Francisco de Madrid is the mayor of the city. The latter had written a letter to Governor Collado in Nuestra Señora de La Concepción in El Tocuyo, advising of Lope de Aguirre's plans, and requesting the help of 60 men to prevent the landing. Help was not sent and the city was invaded, forcing the inhabitants to flee to the islands of Lake Valencia. From there he writes a letter to the King of Spain. Around 1569, the expedition of Pedro Malaver de Silva arrived in Borburata with more than 400 Iberian colonists, mainly from Extremadura and Andalusia. Many of them decided to abandon Malaver and some of them settled in the Valencia valley.

In 1677, Valencia was devastated by French pirates, who burned its Town Hall and caused the loss of innumerable important documents, including the City Foundation Act. In February 1800, Alexander von Humboldt visits the city on his journey through the Americas. During his visit, the baron reports that the city had between six thousand and seven thousand inhabitants. During the colonial period, Valencia emerged as one of the main cities in the country, with numerous towns that grew around it thanks to its wealth (Nuestra Señora de La Begoña de Naguanagua, San Diego, Los Guayos, Tocuyito and San Agustín de Guacara). It has, among other organizations, a council in which the Valencians on numerous occasions raised their voices in defense of the privileges provided by colonial rule.

War of Independence

1) Oil of the Carabobo Battle. 2) Altar of the Patria in Campo Carabobo. 3) Arc of Triomphe and Mirador in Campo Carabobo

At the beginning of the rebellion against Spain, the Valencian elite demonstrated an attachment to the traditional society they had known for nearly three hundred years. In 1810, despite the evident attachment of the local council to the crown, the autonomy acquired by the events of the Revolution of April 19, 1810 and the convocation of the Constituent Congress led the Valencian council to collaborate with Caracas in its desire for independence; although this arises as a consequence of political interests and aspirations to become the capital of the province in the same way that Caracas had done during the Bourbon centralization, delegating enormous power to it. It is in these terms that Fernando Peñalver, the most important Valencian deputy before the congress, defends federalism proposing the conversion of Valencia into the capital of the province. This same position is taken by the city council as an important condition to cede its attachment to the monarchy. The refusal of Caracas to recognize the claims of the Valencians, the declaration of Independence in 1811 and the enormous Spanish presence in the city is what leads to a division in the Valencian elite, resulting in the insurrection of the city against the Republic of 1811.

The city is declared capital of the Confederation of the United Provinces of Venezuela by the National Congress on January 9, 1812, after the rebellion was put down. As of February 15, 1812, the headquarters of said congress became the Casa de La Estrella in Valencia, moving shortly after the other two powers created by the Constitution of the time, having for example the Executive Power working in a property of Miguel Ignacio Malpica. Later that same year of 1812, Spain reestablished its dominance over the province with the arrival of the royalist troops of Domingo de Monteverde, which dissolved the congress.

In 1814 a defeat occurred against the royalist José Ceballos by a besieged that the city carried out, which runs under the name of «Siege of Valencia». Faced with the difficult situation of the city, Escalona decided to accept the surrender treaty with the confidence that the royalist chief José Tomás Boves would take care of the rights of the patriots settled in the city as he had promised. To show his good intentions, Boves invited to a great dance to which all the principales of Valencia had to attend with their wives on the night of July 10. There, one of the most chilling scenes in Venezuelan history occurred, as all the men were vilely murdered, while the ladies were forced to perform a vulgar dance for the common people called "El Piquirico" and then were raped by the troops while they were watching. the murder of their husbands.

On June 24, 1821, the battle that would seal the nation's independence, the Battle of Carabobo, took place near the city. That is why the wounded in said battle are cared for in the city, being the place of death Ambrosio Plaza, the day after the battle; and other heroes of Independence who were treated at the city Hospital.

Time of Gran Colombia

Map of Gran Colombia in 1824.

With the promulgation of the Constitution of Cúcuta, which unified the Viceroyalty of New Granada (present-day Colombia) with the Captaincy General of Venezuela into a single nation (Gran Colombia), discontent arose from the outset in 1821 among the Venezuelans, who felt relegated and little benefited by the appointment of Francisco de Paula Santander for the Vice Presidency of the Republic, by the choice of a centralist system instead of a federal one and by the election of Bogotá as the capital of the recently formed Gran Colombia.

This discontent led General José Antonio Páez, who served as Commander General of the Department of Venezuela (Caracas, Carabobo, Barquisimeto, Barinas and Apure) from 1822, to take a series of decisions that culminated in his dismissal in 1826, causing him to resign his position and retire to his home in the city of Valencia. Shortly after, a revolt of citizens arose in front of the Municipal Council of the town where General Páez was informed that they were willing to ignore the authority of the new commanding general and urged him to remain in command. Faced with such a situation, José Antonio Páez declared himself in rebellion and gave rise to the movement nicknamed La Cosiata, where an unexpected popular uprising arose in Valencia and later spread to other cities in the Department of Venezuela.

That same year, 1826, the Municipal Council of Caracas joined the pronouncement of Valencia and Simón Bolívar saw the need to ratify Páez as Civil and Military Head of the Department of Venezuela to avoid the outbreak of a civil war; although the passage of time also only managed to intensify the desires for a constitutional reform of a Federal nature, with the ever-present threat of the secession of Venezuela from Greater Colombia.

Republican Era

Lourdes College in the city of Valencia.

On January 13, 1830, General José Antonio Páez, as Civil and Military Chief of a Venezuela still integrated into Greater Colombia, convened a Constituent Congress due to the growing and continuous distancing with the Central Government located in Bogotá. Said Congress took place in the city on May 6 and October 14, 1830, which culminated in the creation of the Republic of Venezuela and the establishment of Valencia as the provisional capital during the development of the congress. The choice of the city, Páez's residence at the time of the Congress, was also chosen for being the point of origin of the La Cosiata movement that occurred between 1826 and 1829.

In 1858, as a consequence of the pronouncement of Julián Castro, governor of the province of Carabobo, against the government of President José Tadeo Monagas due to social, political and economic problems that besieged the country, the movement known as the Revolution was born in Valencia. of March. This movement led to the overthrow of José Tadeo Monagas and the appointment of Julián Castro as Provisional President of the Republic by the Valencia Convention (and later as Interim President) making the city once again the provisional capital of the country.

In 1883 the English Railway was inaugurated in the city, which covered the Valencia-Puerto Cabello route. That same year, General Antonio Guzmán Blanco elevated the "Colegio de Estudios Superiores" to "Federal College of the First Category", abandoning its old headquarters in the Casa de La Estrella and moving it to the Convent of San Francisco. In 1892, Joaquín Crespo converted the National College created by José Antonio Páez into the University of Valencia.

In 1894, the Great Railway of Venezuela, of German origin, began to operate, which covered the Caracas-Valencia route. In 1904, Cipriano Castro closed the University of Valencia, going on to fulfill functions as the National College for Men and then as the "Pedro Gual" High School. In 1907, original documents related to the National Independence Act were found in the city, missing since 1811. This is how the chronicler of the city, Don Guillermo Mujica Sevilla, relates it:

In the last year (1907), in the house of the widow of Engineer Navas Spínola (Parroquia La Candelaria) the original record was found in several empasted books covering records prepared by the Congress of 1811. As it is said, these books were kept or hidden in Valencia following the closing of the Congress of 1811-1812 [...] Dr. Francisco González Guinán delivered this book to President Cipriano Castro through the president of the Carabobo, Dr. Samuel Niño. In a brilliant act with the active collaboration of several people, these books were handed over to the Valencian people for their preservation in our House of the Star, headquarters of the Congress of 1812.

On March 21, 1958, Wolfgang Larrazábal gave the order by presidential decree (issued by the Governing Board of that time) to reopen the University of Valencia, which took the name of University of Carabobo. Said reopening was done with an act in the Municipal Theater, with the presence of the governing board. In April 1951 at the VII National Assembly of Fedecámaras it was decided to promote Valencia as an industrial center of Venezuela. The Municipal Council decided to grant exemption from patents for industry and commerce to companies that would be installed on the land of the industrial zone.

Contemporary period

1) Aerial view of the north of the city. 2) Executive tower.

1) View towards the urbanizations of the area of El Trigal, northeast of the city. 2) View of the urbanization La Viña.

The initial stage of democracy allows, thanks to the administrative efforts of President Rómulo Betancourt, Minister Lorenzo Fernández and the President of the Municipal Council of Valencia Humberto Celli, the strategic planning of the Industrial Zone, thus opening the doors to a modern future and economic openness making the entity a fundamental pillar of Venezuela.

In 1988 the decentralization of the states began in Venezuela and for the first time the inhabitants of the state could elect their mayors and governors. Until then, the figure of Valencia as a city and municipality had been exactly the same, but decentralization was aimed at several of its parishes acquiring political-administrative independence and becoming autonomous municipalities. Seeking to prevent the importance of the city from being lost in the process of improving local administration, various important figures in the city spoke out to do something about it; as Oswaldo Feo Caballero (Valencian historian) comments:

I am pleased to have fought successfully for the territorial unit of Valencia. Starting in the 1990s, when there was controversy over the dismemberment that Valencia would have for the separation of its parishes Naguanagua, San Diego, Los Guayos, Tocuyito and Campo de Carabobo to convert them into municipalities, it was up to us to draft article 7 of the Territorial Political Division Law to prevent the division of Valencia. This article, approved by the Legislative Assembly in 1996, consecrates that the city of Valencia is constituted, in its urban aspect, by the parishes Catedral, Candelaria, El Socorro, Miguel Peña, Rafael Urdaneta, San José, plus the municipalities Naguanagua, San Diego, Los Guayos and Libertador that constitute an urban unit indissoluble to the statistical, urban effects.

En 1992 es creada la Bandera de Valencia, de la mano de Pedro Gramcko Almeida. Posteriormente la Valencia «municipio» y la Valencia «ciudad» se convertirían en conceptos independientes debido a la descentralización, pero ambos conservarían los mismos símbolos cívicos. En 1996 el Municipio Valencia efectivamente se separó en 5 municipios autónomos distintos, los cuales hasta ese momento habían sido parroquias: Municipio Naguanagua, Municipio San Diego, Municipio Los Guayos, Municipio Libertador. A partir de ese entonces se creyo que el concepto de «Ciudad de Valencia» pasaría a ser una delimitación «de facto» indisoluble correspondiente a la aglomeración urbana de esos 5 municipios, pero los años demostraron lo contrario, ya que cada oriundo de cada municipio reclamo su gentilicio y derecho a ser ciudad también, en el caso puntual del «Municipio Valencia» este pasó a ser una división político-administrativa de menor tamaño regida por un Alcalde.

In 2004, an attempt was forced by law to once again consecrate the extraordinary character of the «City of Valencia», through the provisions of the new Law on the Political-Territorial Division of the State of Carabobo exposed in the Extraordinary Gazette of the Carabobo State No. 1633, stating that Valencia as a city is fully made up of five (5) determined municipalities of the entity without implying any decrease in its autonomy.

Protests

Since 2014 there have been numerous protests against the government. In February of that year, several students were injured and a student died. In 2017 there were also new protests, which were again repressed.

Gentilic

Those from both the city of Valencia and its Metropolitan Area are called «Valencianos», although each member municipality imposes its own local adjectives, such as «naguanaguenses” (Naguanagua Municipality), “sandieganos” (San Diego Municipality) and “tocuyitanos” (Libertador Municipality).

Physical geography

Location

Valencia is located within the valley of the Cabriales River, which partially crosses it from north to south. The city is situated at 609 masl, surrounded by hills to the west, foothills to the east, part of the Coastal Range to the north, and savannahs to the south. It is close to the lake of Valencia. Geopolitically, it is located in the Central-North region of the country, forming an important communications node. Located 150 km west of Caracas, the capital of the country.

View of the north of the city, formed by the municipalities Valencia, San Diego and Naguanagua, from the El Orégano Row.

Connecting with Caracas and Maracay through the Autopista Regional del Centro (the main and busiest highway in Venezuela), it also connects with the city of Puerto Cabello (main port of the country) through the Valencia - Puerto Cabello highway, with the West, through the Autopista Centro Occidental and with Los Llanos through the Autopista José Antonio Páez.

The north of the city is dominated by the peaks of the southern slope of the San Esteban National Park, while the south opens up to the fertile lands surrounding Lake Valencia, the largest endorheic basin in South America. It has an estimated population for 2013 of more than 1,599,026 inhabitants, thus recognizing itself as the third city in importance, population and extension of Venezuela, after Caracas and Maracaibo.

Northwest: Puerto Cabello / Bejuma	North: Puerto Cabello	Northeast: Puerto Cabello / Guacara
West: Bejuma		This: Guacara / Lake of Valencia / Güigüe
Southwest: Cojedes State	South: Cojedes State	Sureste: Güigüe / Government

Orography

Night view of the north of Valencia from the Fila El Orégano.

The north is limited by slopes of the southern slope of the San Esteban National Park, divided by the mountains of the Protective Area of Valencia that separates the Municipality of San Diego through the Row The Oregano of the Naguanagua municipality and the San José Parish. The line has a maximum height of 800 meters above sea level and steep slopes, ending to the south at Cerro Copey, forming the Morro de San Blas.

To the west of the city, there are other smaller but significantly important foothills. The elevations of the Cerro El Casupo Municipal Park stand out, which reach 980 m in height at their highest point. To the north of this formation, is the El Café Row, with the El Café hill as its main height (1300 masl), in the Naguanagua Municipality.

To the south, the Casupo continues surrounded by neighborhoods in the La Guacamaya row, where there are steep slopes and important formations such as the Los Indios cave and El Calvario hill. Its maximum height is 700 m s. no. m. In the Libertador municipality is the El Tigre hill, with 900 ms. no. m. The rest of the city is located on the plains of Lake Valencia without presenting other important geographical features.

Hydrography

Rio Cabriales.

The Cabriales River is the most important water course in the city. It is born at 1650 m of altitude in the Hilaria hill (Naguanagua), ending, originally, in the Ciénaga Guanabanal (desparramadero "El Paito"), the latter tributary of the Paito river; Currently it flows directly into the Paito River, a tributary of the Pao River. However, between 1979–2006, the Ministry of the Environment diverted the course of the river towards Lake Valencia to mitigate the drop in water level.

The river runs through the city from North to South on its eastern side. It crosses the parishes of Naguanagua, San José, Catedral, San Blas, Santa Rosa and Rafael Urdaneta. On its margins are prominent places such as the University of Carabobo, the Fernando Peñalver park, Paseo Cabriales avenue and the Los Samanes neighborhood.

Other important rivers in Greater Valencia are:

• Rio Güigüe, head to the South of the Lake of Valencia.
• Rio Guacara, head to the north bank of the Lake of Valencia.
• Río Los Guayos, which flows on the north bank of Lake Tacarigua or Lake Valencia, is in danger of disappearing.

All these rivers flow into Lake Valencia, although the waters of the Cabriales River have been diverted towards the Paíto.

Climate

Due to its location in an intertropical zone, its temperatures are warm, attenuated by its varied altitude, with an annual average of 24 °C. Its average maximum is 34 °C, its minimum is 18 °C and it has a temperature of 23 °C in the shade. The rainy and dry periods fulfill the functions of the winter and summer seasons at the local level, the first occurring between the months from May to November and having little rainfall the rest of the year.

Temperatures and precipitation

Average climate parameters of Valencia, Venezuela
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Temp. max. abs. (°C)	31	31	32	32	33	33	33	32	32	31	31	31	34
Average temperature (°C)	28	29	30	30	30	30	29	29	29	29	28	27	29
Average temperature (°C)	24	24	25	26	26	26	25	25	24	24	24	23	24.7
Temp. medium (°C)	17	17	18	20	20	21	21	20	19	17	17	16	18.6
Temp. min. abs. (°C)	11	13	13	13	13	13	14	14	13	12	12	10	9
Total precipitation (mm)	2	1	25.4	60.7	226.9	95.7	172.6	134.9	132.4	117.6	132.4	17.3	1118.9
Days of rain (≥)	5	4	5	7	8	6	7	5	7	8	7	4	73
Hours of sun	190	190	201	188	205	180	201	154	166	175	166	157	2173
Source: The Weather Channel Interactive, Inc. March 2009

Ecology

Hippolita Black Park.

Wildlife

Wild morrocoy turtles in Valencia.

In wild areas, Morrocoy tortoises, picures, anteaters, porcupines, deer and iguanas have been found, as well as various snakes and other reptiles. In the mountains butterflies of the genus Morpho abound, especially Morpho menelaus; In the valleys and low areas of the city, butterflies of the nymphalidae family predominate, highlighting Danaus plexippus and Heliconius erato.

Flora

Samán, at the Naguanagua Botanic Garden.

Valencia has tropical vegetation. The greenest areas are in the hills. On the El Casupo hill, 256 plant species have been identified. Among the most common plants are the Agave cocui, the naked Indian, the camoruco (natural symbol of the Carabobo State), the saman, the apamate and the araguaney. Orchids of the genus Cattleya and Oncidium also abound, with Valencia being one of the main centers in the country for the practice of orchidology.

Valencia Lake

Lake Valencia, also called Lake Tacarigua, is the second most important lake in Venezuela after Lake Maracaibo and is the largest body of fresh water without outlet to the sea (closed lake), and the second largest in Venezuela. largest in South America. It is located in a tectonic pit known as Graben de Valencia, which is located between the Cordillera de la Costa and the Serranía del Interior. The basin is of the endorheic type and covers 3,150 km² (0.3% of the country).

This lake is the most important hydrographic phenomenon in the center of the country, it has a maximum length of 30 km, a maximum width that reaches 20 km, a maximum depth of 39 m and an average of 21 meters. Currently the lake has an extension of 344 km². On its shores the main cities of the country rise, such as: Maracay, Mariara, San Joaquín, Güigüe, Guacara, Los Guayos, Central Tacarigua, Los Guayos, Magdaleno, Palo Negro and the City of Valencia removed from its shores, due to this Lastly, the name Tacarigua Lake (original name before the colony) has recovered its daily use within the population and Lake Valencia is in disuse.

View of Lake Tacarigua or Lake Valencia.

Demographics

Demographics

1) Residential buildings of the urbanisations: Los Mangos and Valle de Camoruco. 2) View of the northwest of Valencia from the urbanization El Bosque.

Valencia is the third most populous city in Venezuela, after the cities of Caracas and Maracaibo. It has a population for 2011 of 1,484,430 inhabitants.

Between 1870 and 1930 the city had about 20,000 inhabitants, a relatively low number compared to other similar Latin American cities. According to the data collected in the 1990 census, 914,561 inhabitants were counted in the metropolitan area, while a decade later the National Institute of Statistics published that with the arrival of the new millennium the population of the city reached 1,210,612. population.

Most of the population is born in Valencia, being descendants of Spanish, Portuguese or Italian immigrants, as well as (although to a lesser extent) of indigenous, African and Chinese ancestry, among many others races and cultures that are part of the genetics of Venezuelans. Regarding the nationalities of foreign immigrants residing in the town, there is no study regarding their proportion or origin.

There are also inhabitants in the city from other cities or regions of the country, mainly from Caracas, Barquisimeto, Maracaibo and Oriente.

The Chinese community is the largest foreign colony of which an approximate numerical control of the city's inhabitants is kept, constituting itself as the home of the largest agglomeration of inhabitants of said Asian region residing in Venezuela. At the Chinese Embassy in Venezuela calculate that for 2007 there were approximately 160,000 of its nationals residing in the country, with some 60,000 of that total residing in Valencia. The penetration of this foreign society has led to some of its customs (such as the celebration of the Chinese New Year or the use of Chinese paper lanterns) are shows or activities that are highly anticipated and practiced by those who live in the city.

Metropolitan Area of Valencia

It is the main and largest urban area of Carabobo State, which includes the five (5) Municipalities of the City of Valencia: (Valencia Municipality, Naguanagua Municipality, San Diego Municipality, Los Guayos Municipality and Libertador Municipality), as well as the municipalities of Guacara, San Joaquín, Diego Ibarra and the Carlos Arvelo Municipality, forming for all intents and purposes an absolutely indivisible urban unit of nine (9) municipalities without any of these suffering impairment in their autonomy., political-administrative and jurisdictional functions.

It has an estimated population of 1,996,173 inhabitants for the year 2011, which makes it the third largest and most populous metropolitan area in Venezuela.

Ethnographic Composition

Like other cities in the country, it has a highly diverse and mixed population due to the large immigration that has taken place in Venezuela since the 19th century XIV until the middle of the XX, periods in which many immigrants from different parts of the world settled in the Valencian community as it is one of the main urban centers of the country and located in the central region of the same.

It can be mentioned that among the migratory currents that the city has attracted in the middle of different centuries, the most outstanding and of the greatest magnitude has been the European one, of which the highest percentage of immigrants is observed, varying in different nationalities and currents of different countries like; Spain, Italy, Portugal, and to a lesser extent but with great influence; United Kingdom, Poland, Germany, Switzerland, Greece, Serbia among others.

Immigration from Asian countries and the Middle East is also very present throughout the city, while African immigration is not of great magnitude and mostly only people from that continent arrived in the region as slaves of colonization Spanish.

Among important groups of immigrants there are also those from countries in the region, with a large presence in the city from various countries that were part of the Latin American exile in previous periods, among them the most noteworthy; Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, among others.

The Valencian population was identified, in the data issued by the INE in the 2011 census, as;

• Mestizos: 47.5%
• White: 46.3%
• Black/Afrodescendants: 2.1%
• Amerindians: 1.7%
• Other: 2.4 per cent

Administrative and Territorial Organization

Municipalities

Once the Valencia Metropolitan District is created, the Mayor's Office will fulfill a coordinating function over the autonomous municipalities that make up the city, which in turn are governed by their respective municipal mayors. In each municipality, the internal legislative power is exercised by each Municipal Council, with their respective powers in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and laws of the Republic.

• Valencia: (829,856 inhabitants) It is the most extensive municipality territorially and longitudinally of the city, located in the south-central state. Trade and industry are of great importance to their economy, so many of the state and national public and private companies have their headquarters there, and much of the local industrial area is also found. Most of its population is middle class. In its jurisdiction are also the most exclusive urbanisations of the city such as Altos de Guataparo, Guataparo Country Club, El Solar, Hato Royal, Guaparo and Terrazas del Country, located the parish of San José in the north of the municipality where the high strata predominate. His current mayor is Jesus Marvez of the PSUV party.
• Naguanagua: (157,437 inhabitants) It's the northernmost municipality in the city. Trade and cultural activities are the main source of their economy. Its population is predominantly middle class, having a large proportion of students in the locality to be located in its jurisdiction the main university of the state, the University of Carabobo. His current mayor is Gustavo Gutiérrez, of the PSUV party.
• San Diego: (93,257 inhabitants) Located north-east of the city, it is the second smallest municipality in the city. His current mayor is León Jurado, of the ConEnzo party.
• Liberator: (166.166 inhabitants) It is the second largest municipality in the city, occupying almost all of the west of it. There you will find the Campo de Carabobo, decreed National Historical Monument and Historic Heritage Site. His current elected mayor is Juan Perozo, of the PSUV.
• The Guayos: (149,606 inhabitants) It's the easternmost municipality in the city. Trade and industrial activities are the main source of their economy. Its population is predominantly middle- and middle-low-class in some sectors. His current mayor is Miguel Burgos, of the PSUV party.

View of the San José Urban Parish to the north of Valencia from the area of Agua Blanca.

Civil parishes

Location of Parroquias del Municipio Valencia.

In turn, each municipality is divided into parishes, the lowest assigned political-territorial rank. They are considered local demarcations created with the purpose of decentralizing the municipal administration and for the division of Civil Headquarters, which are equivalent to local courts in charge of the legal field. These localities do not have an administrative scope, and in turn are divided into neighborhoods and urbanizations. The estimated population is from the last census of 2011. In Valencia there are 14 parishes, which are:

Miguel Peña Municipality

Delimitation of the future Municipality Miguel Peña.

According to the Law of Political-Territorial Division of Carabobo State of 2004, it is expected that the Miguel Peña Parish of the Municipality of Valencia will be elevated to the status of municipality at some point in the future, for work of the Government of Carabobo.

Once it happens, the future Miguel Peña Municipality will have its own authorities (a Mayor) different from those of the Valencia Municipality, seeing the latter reduce its territory for the first time since 1996. It is also expected that the Negro Primero Non-Urban Parish will become part of that future Miguel Peña Municipality when its creation becomes effective. Although its birth was planned during the course of the year after the promulgation of the law, the election of its authorities has been delayed for various reasons. Once its elevation to a municipality is finalized, the so-called District will be created. Metropolitan Valencia.

Urbanism

Carabobobo Arch

Parque Negra Hipólita

The colonial period leaves as a legacy to the city the disposition that the Crown demanded of its colonies in America when erecting their cities. These norms were established in the Laws of the Indies, which recommended that the plots be distributed by line and ruler, beginning to measure the streets from the Plaza Mayor. It is in this way that the ancient conformation of a perfect grid that the city would look like until well into the XX century arose. This was made up of avenues that crossed it longitudinally, and streets that crossed it transversally. The space that remained between them would be used as lots for the various buildings of the city. The main lots, located next to Plaza Bolívar in Valencia (initially known as Plaza Mayor) were occupied by the main organs of power, which are the Cathedral of Valencia, which remains standing and continues to occupy its original position at the crossroads of Colombia Street with Urdaneta Avenue, and the Cabildo, which was demolished during the last century and whose site today occupies the headquarters of the Municipal Police of Valencia. The houses in this place, known as the Central Quarter of Valencia, were built with brick and lime, protected by wooden roofs covered with tiles, generally on one level, a rule that would be broken in exceptional cases. Numerous churches and several convents were built in the old city, including the complex of the Convent of San Francisco, with its respective church, the Chapel of San Buenaventura. Near this, was the Convent of the Discalced Carmelites, both in the surroundings of what is now Plaza Sucre. The Central District of Valencia currently extends from Calle Michelena, to the south, to Calle Navas Espinola, to the north; Aranzazu Avenue to the west, and the Circunvalación del Este Highway Crossing at the San Blas Distributor to the east of the city.

Urbanism in Valencia
Banaven Tower view from the Rectorate University of Carabobo.	Metrópolis Shopping Centre Valencia.	World trade center Valencia	Reda building Valencia	Financial centre of the Common Fund

The constant growth of the city at the end of the XIX century, resulted in the settlement of the population outside the old city limits. This is how the development of the area adjacent to Calle Michelena began. Later, after the appearance in Caracas of the first urbanization in the country (El Paraíso), the north of the city began to see the appearance of numerous urbanizations that followed the concept of this one: a group of residences that were accessed by a great avenue (main avenue) from which small streets started where the houses were located, and which gave the idyllic feeling of being separated from the city.

During the first decades of the XX century, the installation of large industries began in the city, which means the push end that will determine the enormous growth of it. The growth is vertiginous, and already in the mid-60s, the city has embraced five towns that were not previously part of it: Naguanagua, San Diego, Tocuyito, Los Guayos and Flor Amarillo, although the limits between one and another populated center remained recognizable. The first office complexes appeared in the center of the city, which were initially low-rise, and which meant the demolition of old colonial and Guzman buildings in emblematic places. Such was the case of the Municipal Palace of Valencia, which was rebuilt under the administration of Antonio Guzmán Blanco and was later demolished for the construction of a new building that was never completed.

The industrial growth of Valencia also meant an increase in immigration, being one of the main urban poles of attraction for the rural population during this decade. This enormous and rapid exodus ended up exhausting the organizational capacity of the city, thus appearing the first Unregulated Urban Settlements, which accumulated to the south of the city, in what is today the Miguel Peña Parish. These settlements, disorderly and lacking in basic services, brought together the working class of the city. Due to the presence of huge plains in this area, the houses (precarious constructions) were grouped around small streets that did not follow a regular layout. The constructions are generally made of blocks, without friezes or external decorations. Many of them form large human settlements of various levels, and in which numerous family groups live. The rapid growth of this area prevented the creation of organizational policies for it, often growing on land unsuitable for housing construction. Such is the case of the Los Samanes neighborhood, which is largely located on the banks of the Cabriales river.

Different industries are installed to the southeast of the city, which favors the increase of these Unregulated Urban Settlements in Los Guayos. Faced with the need for housing for the working class, and easy access to industries, the opening of large avenues with first-rate road solutions began in Valencia, at the same time that what is today the most populated urbanization in America: La Isabelica Urbanization. At the same time, the construction of large apartment complexes began in various parts of the city, which allowed space to be saved that little by little was gaining monetary value.

To the north, Avenida Bolívar Norte and Avenida Cedeño become the headquarters of the commercial and financial activity of the city. It is in this way that the construction of large office and apartment towers that are currently maintained begins. Most of them will not exceed 100 meters in height, which consolidates a low skyline in the city, but with a great diversity of buildings. The most luxurious apartment buildings in the city also appear on Avenida Bolívar Norte, such as the Los Sauces Building, the Bella Vista Building and the Francisco de Miranda Building.

Today, the real estate sector is one of the most dynamic in the city. Large apartment buildings cover the sky of Valencia, especially to the north of the city, where the Urbanization La Trigaleña, the Urbanization El Parral, the Urbanization Las Chimeneas, the Urbanization Guaparo, the Urbanization El Viñedo, the Urbanization La Viña, the Urbanization El Prebo and the El Trigal Urbanization are growing rapidly in length and height.

Plazas y Parques de Valencia
Fernando Peñalver Park	Parque Negra Hipólita	Southern Recreational Park	San Esteban National Park
Casupo Municipal Park	Botanic Garden of Valencia	Plaza Monumental de Toros de Valencia	Plaza Bolívar de Valencia
Plaza de la República	Parque Naguanagua	Guaparo Park	Parque Lomas del Este
North Park (Urb Lomas del Este)	Prebo Park (Urb Prebo)	Aquarium of Valencia	San Diego Skating Park

Multispace Island

World Trade Center Valencia

The Multisepacio Island (abbreviated IME), is a complex currently under construction, which will have the tallest skyscraper in Venezuela. This is located in the San Diego Municipality to the east of the city of Valencia, Carabobo State. Its construction began in July 2009, its completion date has yet to be defined.

The tallest Corporate Tower in the country is erected, positioning itself as the 8th in Latin America, with 245 meters. Its offices of up to 750 m², on the top floors, will allow a panoramic view of the city of Valencia and Lake Valencia. It will also have the first Private Theater in the country and a Hotel (of the InterContinental Hotels Group) of more than 150 meters designed for the enjoyment of guests with social areas that look the east of the city from above, among other projects. It will also have a Specialized Medical Center and a Shopping Center.

World Trade Center

The World Trade Center Valencia Complex (known as Hesperia & WTC) is a complex of buildings for business, hotel and commercial purposes located in Naguanagua, north of the city of Valencia. The hotel network within the complex is Hesperia & WTC of the Spanish Group NH Hoteles. The complex has the Hotel, the Business Tower, the Convention Center (Río Convention Center), the Commercial Area and the Entertainment Room.

The project was approved by the World Association of the World Trade Center on March 19, 2006 in Paris, France, beginning the works in the middle of that year and inaugurated in 2009, becoming in the first World Trade Center of Venezuela.

Politics and government

Comparison between the Municipality Valencia and the City of Valencia.

Administration

Unlike other large cities and metropolitan areas in the world, Valencia currently lacks a metropolitan government in charge of administration, a fact that consequently complicates the functioning of the city as a single entity due to the lack of coordination of the different authorities that exercise the municipal executive power in it.

The city is made up of 5 Autonomous Municipalities of the Carabobo State closely connected to each other, these being the municipalities of Valencia, San Diego, Naguanagua, Los Guayos and Libertador. As the Capital of the Carabobo State, it is here where The executive power of the state, the Governor's Office, is established.

Valencia Metropolitan District

District of the Gran Valencia

According to article 9 of the Law of Political-Territorial Division of the Carabobo State promulgated in 2004, once the Miguel Peña Parish is elevated to the status of Autonomous Municipality and its elected authorities (Mayor and Council) are sworn in Municipal), the creation of the Valencia Metropolitan District is proposed, which will be a political-administrative body that will coordinate the operation of the city of Valencia through the Mayor's Office of Valencia when its creation occurs, this being a form of coordinate and plan the development of the city together with the six (6) pre-existing mayors of the municipalities that would make up the city. At the same time, the conurbation of the Greater Valencia Metropolitan Area has been conceptualized throughout the central region, which would be Initially formed by the municipalities that have a coast with said lake, that is to say: Girardot Municipality, Libertador Municipality, Zamora Municipality, Diego Ibarra Municipality, Joaquín Municipality, Guacara Municipality, Los Guayos Municipality, Carlos Arvelo Municipality, which would be taking an important step for the organized integration of the cities and towns of the region.

Economy

Vista de la Urbanización La Trigaleña al northeste de la ciudad, la zona de mayor desarrollo inmobiliario de Valencia.

Valencia has been considered in 2009 as the third city with the highest rates of investment attraction in the country, after Caracas and Porlamar, while in terms of human resources it ranks second due to the large number of people preparations that you have. In the measurement of adequate infrastructure for business, the city is in fourth place, having that in the macro field (taking into account the size of the population, socioeconomic situation of the inhabitants, financial growth and facilities credit, among other factors) the capital of Carabobo drops to seventh place in the ranking. In a similar study (investment attraction ranking) but within the Latin American continent in 2010, Valencia ranked 48th on the list; having as a contrast the "Motorola Ranking of Digital Cities" that placed it in 25th position in 2011.

It has also been listed as one of the most modern and fast-growing cities, entering the top 50 in the world and number 3 in all of Latin America. On the other hand, Valencia also enters rankings that are not as favorable as being the fourth most expensive city in the country.

Its excellent location with communication crossroads to the coast, the Llanos, the Capital Region and the Central-Western Region of the country, make it an excellent place for investment, since it dominates a wide market. It has about 50 km on the coast of the Caribbean Sea.

Industry

North view of the city from the urbanization Camoruco, one of the first private urbanizations of the north of the city.

Valencia is considered the industrial city of Venezuela, and is even called by many as the Little Detroit of Venezuela^{[citation required]} for the dominance of its large assembly companies (General Motors, Ford and Chrysler). It is also the headquarters of the largest transnational manufacturing companies and the largest industrial zones in the nation, in addition to important food, metal-mechanic, wire drawing and electric cable industries, galvanizing plants, industrial ceramics, spinning mills, textiles, pharmaceuticals, plastics, paints, tires, asphalt, paper, household appliances. To this we must add its proximity to Puerto Cabello, the country's main port and the place where the nation's main petrochemical industry is located, which has given a notable boost to its economy over other regions and has allowed the creation of sources of employment. and investment in both the public and private sectors.

Valencia is recognized nationally as the industrial capital of Venezuela for being the city with the largest number of companies and industries. Among the Industrial Zones and companies located in the city are:

Service Sector

View of the C.C. Reda Building Valencia, Venezuela.

It should be noted that the city has not only grown in the real estate and financial sector, but also has large and important shopping centers, such as C.C. Metropolis Valencia, listed as the largest shopping center in the entire Carabobo State, in the Central Region and one of the five largest in the country. It also has large and important Malls such as the Sambil Valencia, Reda Building, Galas Plaza, Vía Veneto, among others.

Stock Market

Almost a decade after the creation of the Maracaibo Stock Exchange was authorized, it was decided to establish a third stock market in the country on September 29, 1994: the Electronic Stock Market in Valencia, whose first session was It was held on June 5, 1995. Boasting itself as "promising" and calling it the "stock market of the future", it came to be highly supported and encouraged by the city's Chamber of Commerce, headquarters of such an institution at the time.

One of the world's most modern Electronic Transaction Systems (SET) was even implemented to promote the movement of capital in the local stock market, but for reasons of market weakening worldwide (as well as the regional one), added to this by the lack of information on the business roundtables and the possible businesses in the portfolio, the two most recently created regional stock markets in the country reduced their stock market operations to a minimum and were subsequently closed. With the appearance on the scene of the World Trade Center Valencia, the possibility of a future reactivation of the stock market to satisfy the capital market in the region has come to be speculated.

Public services

Education

Núcleo FACES - Universidad de Carabobo

University of Carabobo

The University of Carabobo (UC) is the main center of higher education in the city of Valencia, in the State of Carabobo and in the entire Central Region of the country. The University of Carabobo is one of the most prestigious and important public and autonomous universities in Venezuela, recognized for the quality of the education provided and the optimal performance of its graduates. The Chancellor's Office of the University of Carabobo located at Av. Bolívar-Norte-Sector Camoruco Viejo; The Auditorium located in the Center of Valencia, (Urban Parish El Socorro) and some administrative centers are in the Valencia Municipality proper; while the Bárbula University City (the Faculties, the Directorate of Student Development and Postgraduate Area, sports and Recreation Areas) are located in the Naguanagua Municipality, north of the Valencia metropolitan area (Venezuela).

Arturo Michelena University

The Arturo Michelena Private University (Abbreviated UAM) is one of the main and most prestigious private universities in Carabobo State in the Central Region of Venezuela. Its headquarters are in the San Diego Municipality, in the city of Valencia, Carabobo State. It was founded on November 5, 2000.

José Antonio Páez University

Technological University of the Center

The Technological University of the Center (UNITEC) is one of the main and most prestigious private universities in the State of Carabobo. It is headquartered in the city of Guacara, and northwest of Valencia.

Supply

• Water: the state company Hidrocentro is responsible for the service of white water and waste Valenciaas well as the whole Carabobo State, the Aragua State and the Cojedes State. Water comes mainly from reservoirs Cachinche and PaoSouth Carabobo, and Guataparowhich is west of Valencia.
• Electricity: electricity is provided by the state CORPOELEC (formerly Electricity of Valencia Eleval and the Anonymous Company of Electrical Administration and Development CADAFE).

Roads of transport and communications

The city of Valencia is connected by various highways, avenues and national roads, which not only connect the city with other municipalities, but also with other states.

Air Transportation

The city of Valencia is connected to other cities and states in the country and other countries, through the Arturo Michelena International Airport, located in the heart of the industrial area, southeast of the city. It is the fourth airport in order of importance in the country. It is also the most important airport in the country in terms of volume of goods transport, occupying 60% of the nation's air cargo. Each year it receives more than 150,000 passengers, in addition to being the boarding site for more than 160,000 national and international travelers. According to the IATA Airport Code corresponding to the Arturo Michelena Airport, the initials "VLN" are the initials identifying of the city, both nationally and internationally.

International airports connected to Arturo Michelena International Airport

City	Airport
Panama	International Airport of Tocumen
Punta Cana	International Airport of Punta Cana
Santo Domingo	International Airport Las Americas

Valencia Metro

Metro de Valencia.

Metro de Valencia

The city of Valencia has the National Metro System in the capital city of the state (Valencia) called Valencia Metro inaugurated in 2006. It currently has 9 seasons:

• Monumental station.
• Station Las Ferias.
• Palotal Station.
• Santa Rosa Station
• Michelena Station
• Lara Station
• Estación Cedeño
• Estación Rafael Urdaneta (Cámara de Comercio)
• Estación Francisco de Miranda (Rectorado UC)

Likewise, the Valencia Metro is expanding with 5 new stations that are currently under construction. The Valencia metro will have 2 intermodal stations for interconnection with the National Railway System, at the Simón Bolívar Station of the University of Carabobo (Naguanagua) and in the Castillito Industrial Zone (San Diego).

Plaza de Toros station of Valencia (Monumental)

National Railway System

Currently, the railway section that will link the city of Valencia with Maracay and Caracas is under construction. The central section Ezequiel Zamora II (Puerto Cabello - La Encrucijada) of the National Railway System is the fundamental axis of the system, designed for passengers and cargo. This provides an interconnection between the capital of the Carabobo State (Valencia) and the East Industrial Axis, and in turn with Puerto Cabello. In this way, the Metropolitan Area of Valencia is consolidated and extended towards the most populated urban axes of the State; and the cohesion on a larger scale of all the urban areas of the Central Region. In Carabobo, the section has 6 stations: Puerto Cabello, Naguanagua, San Diego, Guacara, San Joaquín, Mariara and an interport in San Diego.

There is currently a freight train line with little traffic from the West (starting from Barquisimeto) to Puerto Cabello. This railway and its stations are being rehabilitated as part of the Simón Bolívar Central Western Section (Passenger and Cargo), from Puerto Cabello to San Felipe (Yaracuy), Barquisimeto (Lara), Acarigua and Turén (Portuguesa). Projecting a branch to Tucacas and Chichiriviche (Falcón) is under study.

Surface Public Transportation

Public transportation is mostly made up of small buses and buses belonging to cooperatives or institutes attached to municipalities. Said public transport system is quite criticized due to the constant violations of traffic regulations and for not respecting the areas designated for the entry or discharge of passengers. Currently, the TransCarabobo Mass Transportation System is available with several routes throughout the city.

TransCarabobo

The Carabobo Mass Transportation System, also known as “TransCarabobo”, is a mass transportation system of the Carabobo State in Venezuela, especially in the cities of Valencia, Guacara, Puerto Cabello and Naguanagua. It is BRT type. It was inaugurated on July 11, 2014 in the hands of the Government of President Nicolás Maduro as part of the Transportation Mission, it began operating the same day with two routes only in the city of Valencia. Later, new routes were added in the cities of Guacara, Puerto Cabello and Naguanagua.

TransCarabobo has a central station located adjacent to the South Recreational Park, where the units and workshops yard is located and from where the two trunk lines leave.

On June 17, 2018, the governor of the state of Carabobo, Rafael Lacava announced the start-up of the new state transportation system called Transdrácula. On June 26, this transportation service formally began operations in the Puerto Cabello municipality.

Interstate Public Transportation

Boarding area of the terminal of Valencia.

Bus services to other cities are carried out from the Big Low Center Passenger Land Terminal, located in the Municipality of San Diego to the east of the city of Valencia. All buses to the main cities of the country depart from this terminal.

Until 1986, the bus terminal was located in the Los Samanes sector to the southeast of the city, where a peddlers' market called Multimecado or Mercado Los Goajiros is currently located. >.

Currently, a new and modern passenger land terminal is being built, the Valencia Metropolitan Terminal, or also called the San Diego Tourist Terminal, located in the Castillito Industrial Zone right in front of the current Big Low Center Terminal. This will be one of the largest and most modern land passenger terminals in Venezuela, it will have hotel services, food fairs, a shopping center, among other things, and it is estimated that it will be completed by 2016.

TV stations

• Ecovision channel 36 UHF [former NC Television]
• DAT Television channel 30 UHF

Culture

Among the main cultural centers of Valencia are the following:

Municipal Theatre of Valencia

• Municipal Theatre of Valencia:

Public Municipal Theater of the city. It is one of the most representative buildings of the Republican period in Venezuela. It has a capacity of 647 seats.

• Dr. Theater. Alfredo Celis Pérez:

(known as the old Bárbula Amphitheater), was inaugurated on December 9, 1951 in the Bárbula University City of the University of Carabobo.

• The Aula Magna de la Universidad de Carabobo is a cultural complex, which is still in the terminal phase of construction. It will become the largest and most important university cultural and event complex in the Carabobo State and the second in Venezuela after the UCV Magna classroom in Caracas. It has a General Room, various Scenarios, Workshops, Chamber and Drama and Multiple Uses Room.

For more information, see:

Sports

Estadio José Bernardo Pérez

Among the most followed sports in the city of Valencia and the State of Carabobo are baseball, soccer and basketball, having the first sport as the one with the most local fans and the second with the largest number of practitioners of all the ages.

In terms of competition, the city is also one of the locations with the greatest representation of athletes in national level competitions, thus leaving the Carabobo State as 10 times champion of the national games of Venezuela, of which 9 have been consecutively.

The local professional baseball team, Los Navegantes del Magallanes. Originally the team was founded under the name "Magallanes de Catia" in the city of Caracas, later becoming the flagship team of the town (previously between 1955 and 1964 it had passed through the East of the country as Indios de Oriente and Estrellas Orientales). It is consecrated as the oldest sports institution in Venezuela. Until 1968 the local baseball team was the Industriales de Valencia.

In soccer, the state capital has four (4) teams registered in the different tournaments organized by the Venezuelan Soccer Federation, among which are the Carabobo Fútbol Club of the First Division of Venezuela, the Gran Valencia Fútbol Club of the Second Division «A», the CIV Valencia and the Valencia Sport Club of the Second Division «B».

In basketball, it has the team of the Professional Basketball League of Venezuela, representatives of the Carabobo State, the Trotamundos de Carabobo.

Sports clubs

• Basketball: Carabobo Colossus [until 1982], Trotamundos de Carabobo [since 1983] (Venezuelan Basketball Professional League)
• Baseball: Industrials of Valencia [until 1968], Magellan Navigators [dest 1969] (Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional)
• Football: Carabobo Football Club (First Division of Venezuela)
• Football: CIV Valencia (Third Division of Venezuela)
• Football: SC Guaraní (Second Division of Venezuela)
• Football: Valencia Sport Club (Second Division of Venezuela)
• Rugby: Universidad de Carabobo Rugby Club (Venezuelan Club School of Rugby)
• Swimming: Carabobo dolphins (Venezuelan Federation of Aquatic Sports)
• Volleyball: Club Volleyball Industriales de Valencia (Liga Venezolana de Volleyball)

Predecessor: Lima

South American City 1994

Successor: Cuenca