Palmira, Valle del Cauca

Palmira is a city in the south of the Colombian department of Valle del Cauca. Palmira is on the eastern influence of the Rio Cauca and is in the region of the population according to the second most important city after Cali. The distance to Cali is 22 kilometers. Palmira is located in the center of the Colombian sugar industry and is surrounded by sugar cane fields. Palmira is ( The grand Palmira ) named after its economic significance Capital Agrícola de Colombia ( Colombian Agricultural Center ) and by its history Palmira Señorial while Cali nicknamed La Sultana del Valle ( The Sultana of the Cauca Valley ) bears.

History

Palmira was founded around the year 1680. General and President Francisco de Paula named the city in 1824 Villa de las Palmas or Nuestra Señora del Palmar, city of palms from which nowadays Palmira was. At this time Palmia had an estimated 3,000 inhabitants. In the 20th century, large sugar cane plantations, which led to a great economic boom of the region originated. The engineer battalion Codazzi created the road link - Cali Palmira and the road cross the Panamericana mid-1950s, which gave Palmira further growth. The infrastructure is continually being expanded, so arose as the Estadio Deportivo Cali on the axis Cali - Palmira.

Flag and coat of arms

The coat of arms is based after -written in 1924 by Ricardo Nieto Hurtado poem " Canto a Palmira ". It shows a sun, which commemorates the independence proclamation of Simon Bolivar (¿? ), Palm trees as an allegory and a hammer hit on a forged anvil with a heart. The latter image alludes to the immigrants from other regions of Colombia, who worked on the future of the city. The flag consists of the colors white for peace, green for the work of the Palmiranos and yellow for the natural wealth and the fruits of the earth Palmiras.

Geography

Palmira is located in the south of the Valle del Cauca. It borders the Municipalities El Cerrito to the north, in the south of Tolima, Pradera and Candelaria in the east, as well as Santiago de Cali, Yumbo and Vijes in the West.

Climate

The city of Palmira is determined by the moist tropical savanna climate. The temperature zones of the entire Municipalities vary from the hot air on the banks of the Rio Cauca up to cooler climates in the Páramo de las Hermosas in the Central Cordilleras. The average annual temperature is 23 ° C and the mean height at 1,001 meters above sea level. Watersheds are the Cuenca Rio Nima and Agua Clara.

Surface and ground

The area of ​​1162 km ² Municipalities includes, of which only 19.34 km ² built area are. The borders on the Rio Cauca agricultural area is located about 1,200 meters above sea level. The land use is limited mainly to the cultivation of sugar cane. Other important crops are coffee, rice, maize and tobacco. The INVIAS is currently working on the further development of infrastructure, which causes problems especially on the erosion-prone slopes.

Fauna

The natural fauna was limited by the intensive cultivation of sugar cane and the ongoing urbanization on few natural refuges. Refuges are for example the Cuenca of the rivers Amaime, Nima and El Cerrito, where still able to maintain a high level of biodiversity itself. Through the cattle in particular New World vultures are attracted.

Transport

For the public transport operators as Coodetrans Palmira, Palmirana de Transportes y Monte Bello, which thus exert an oligopoly care. In addition, approximately 5,000 Moto taxis are privately employed. In Palmira several bus lines as Expreso Palmira, Palmira and Coodetrans Expreso Florida domiciled, which offer national cross-country trips and important city pairs. The northern access by Palmira on the Pan-American Highway runs through Tuluá and Guadalajara de Buga, in the south of the province of Cauca and Candelaria, in the west of the Rio Cauca and Cali and in the east on Miranda, Florida and Pradera. 1911 car bridge over the Cañón del Amaime and a Hochstraé by the Páramo de las Hermosas was built connecting Palmira with Chaparral and thus produces an auto connection to Bogota.

Traffic

One of the major Colombian airports is the Aeropuerto Internacional Alfonso Bonilla Aragón (international airport icon: CLO) in Palmaseca, about 15 minutes' drive north of the city center of Palmira. The international airport in Palmaseca is served by the companies Aires, Copa Airlines Colombia, Avianca, Satena and TAC provides flight connectivity to Miami Guayaquil, Madrid, Panama, Esmeraldas and Quito in Ecuador.

Shopping centers

The two major shopping malls and shopping streets of Palmira are LLanogrande Plaza " La Catorce " and Súper Marden El Bosque y Súper Marden la 47

Universities and Colleges

In Palmira there are the following universities and colleges:

• Universidad Nacional de Colombia ( Unal )
• Universidad del Valle ( Univalle )
• Universidad Santiago de Cali (USC )
• Universidad Antonio Nariño
• Fundación Universitaria San Martín
• Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana
• Fundación Universitaria Luis Amigo
• Universidad Abierta ya Distancia ( UNAD )
• Corporación Universitaria Remington

Attractions

• Museo de La Caña, sugarcane Museum
• Edificio Antigua Alcaldía, old town hall ( Monumento Nacional)
• Estación del Ferrocarril, Railway Station ( Monumento Nacional)
• Catedral de Nuestra Señora del Rosario del Palmar, Cathedral ( Monumento Nacional)
• Edifico de la Universidad Nacional de Agronomía, agricultural college of the National University ( Monumento Nacional)
• Hacienda La Rita, sugar cane mill Ingenio Manuelita ( Monumento Nacional), birthplace of writer Jorge Isaacs
• Hacienda El Oriente
• Museo Nacional del Transporte, National Transport Museum between Palmira Cali
• Estadio Deportivo Cali Deportivo Cali Stadium, between Palmira Cali
• Amusement park Parque del Azucar
• Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen
• Parque de Bolívar
• Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical, international agricultural research center
• ICA, National Agricultural Research Center