Tapachula

Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez on the map of Mexico

Tapachula (full name Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez ) is located near the Pacific coast of Mexico City, about 18 kilometers from the border with Guatemala at Ciudad Hidalgo. Tapachula is located in the homonymous municipality, the administrative center it is. Tapachula is the most economically important city in Chiapas with the highest GDP per capita in the state. In the area a variety of industrial and agricultural products are produced. The most important role Tapachulas is the trade route between Central and North America.

Toponym

The Nahuatl name tapachollan means roughly ' flooded place ' and refers to the frequent rains that many rivers and streams in the area and the almost tropical, humid climate.

Location and climate

Tapachula is located about 25 km ( straight line ) from the port city of Puerto Chiapas on the Pacific coast at an altitude of 177 m above sea level.. inst Distance to Tuxtla Gutierrez, the capital of the state of Chiapas, is almost 400 km ( driving distance ); to Mexico City, there are almost 1100 km. Throughout the year, the weather is extremely hot and rainy: 30-50 ° C, 70-90 % humidity (tropical climate).

Transport and Infrastructure

Tapachula has an international airport (Aeropuerto Internacional de Tapachula ), a new big -scale harbor (Puerto Chiapas ), a train station with direct connections to Texas and numerous import-export service providers. A six-lane highway runs along the coast. In addition, the city has shopping centers with department stores, customs agencies, foreign trade firms and the prison of the immigration office. From Tapachula also starts from the route of the Ticabusses that travels to Panama through the whole of Central America.

Population

Most of the inhabitants of the city are mestizos; less than 2% still describe themselves as pure-blooded Indians. According to data from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática of 2000, 63.22 % of the inhabitants are Roman Catholic, 12.06 % Protestant, 6.71% Christian sects ( Adventists, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses ) belonging, 16.88 % atheistic and 1.13 % other religions belong. The Diocese of Tapachula is located in Tapachula.

History

The place was founded in pre-Hispanic times ( in 1486 ) by the Aztecs, who set up a station for trading with the tribes of the Guatemalan highlands ( Quiché Cakchiqueles ) here. After the conquest of Guatemala by a Spanish- tlaxcaltekisches expeditionary force under Pedro de Alvarado Tapachula seems to have lost some of its significance, but in 1794 it became the capital of the province of Soconusco, a portion of the Mexican state of Chiapas later appointed; the full city rights were granted Tapachula until the year 1842. During porfiriato ( 1876/7-1911 ) came from many German settlers of Guatemala in the region of Tapachula (see Unión Juárez ) to build large coffee plantations there. During the Second World War was a part of the coffee plantations that were owned by Germans, expropriated and handed over to agricultural cooperatives. Because of its geographical location Tapachula since the end of the 20th century collection point for Central American immigrants who want to emigrate to the United States either short-term or want to work in the coffee plantations Tapachulas.

Remnants of hurricane Stan in October 2005 focused on heavy destruction.

Attractions

• The Archaeological Museum ( Museo del Soconusco Archaeological en Tapachula ) at the Antiguo Palacio Municipal showing stelae from Izapa, an occupied with Jadeplättchen skull from Toniná and other finds from places in Chiapas.
• The former cathedral and parish church (Iglesia San Agustin ) is a neoclassical building dating from the 19th century.
• The Parque Hidalgo in the city center is the evening meeting place for the local population.
• The new building of the Cathedral ( Catedral San José ) was designed in the 1950s, but only completed in the 1980s.

• A visit to the pre-Hispanic archaeological site ( arqueológica Zona ) of Izapa (12 km) is highly recommended.
• The Pico de Loro ( German: " parrot's beak ") is a granite formation a few kilometers before Unión Juárez with panoramic views of the volcano and the Tacaná lying in Guatemala volcano Tajumulco (43 km).
• The coffee plantations in Cacahoatán and the Chalet area of ​​Unión Juárez ( 40-50 km) provide a more pleasant climate, which is ideal for walking in the wooded area.
• The beaches of Puerto Chiapas (formerly Puerto Madero ) and the neighboring villages ( 25-40 km ) on the Pacific coast are mainly visited by Mexicans like.

Others

• Sons of the City: Fray Matías de Córdova (1768-1828), driving personality in the independence struggle of Chiapas
• Sebastián Escobar (1831-1893), Governor of Chiapas
• Carlos Olmos (1947-2003), novelist and playwright
• Augusto Enrique Villarreal Quezada (1934-2005), writer and journalist; Fighter for the secession of the province of Soconusco in Chiapas