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Valparaíso
 

Valparaíso is an important Chilean seaport and cultural center.

Built upon dozens of steep hillsides overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Valparaìso boasts a unique urban labyrinth and a rich architectural legacy. Valparaiso is protected as a UNESCO world heritage site and is widely considered to be one of Latin America's most interesting urban areas.

Valparaiso is Chile's legislative capital and also the capital of the Valparaíso Region. In 2003, the Chilean congress passed a law declaring Valparaiso to be "Chile's Cultural Capital" and the administrative center for the nation's cultural ministry. Although technically only Chile's 6th largest city, with 263,499 inhabitants (2002 census), the Greater Valparaiso metropolitan area, including the neighboring resort city of Viña del Mar, is the second largest in the country.

Valparaiso played an important geopolitical role in the second half of the 19th century, when it served as a major stopover for ships traveling between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans by crossing the Straits of Magellan. Examples of Valparaiso's former glory include Latin America's oldest stock exchange, the continent's first volunteer fire department, Chile's first public library, and the oldest Spanish language newspaper in continuous publication in the world.

The opening of the Panama Canal dealt a staggering blow to Valparaiso, though the city has staged an impressive rennaissance in recent years.

Valparaíso is located in central Chile, 120 km to the northwest of the capital Santiago. The city is an important educational center with 9 universities. Key industries include tourism, culture, and transport. The last three days of the year, Valparaiso stages a major festival attended by hundreds of thousands of participants. The festival culminates with a "New Year's by the Sea" fireworks show, attended by a million tourists every year.

Approximately 50 international cruise ships call on Valparaiso during the 4-month Chilean summer. The port of Valparaiso is also an important hub for container freight, wine, copper, and fruit.

Travel between Valparaiso and Santiago currently takes some 70 minutes on a state-of-the-art freeway.

The Chilean Congress meets in a modern building in the Almendral section of Valparaíso, after relocation from Santiago during the last years of the military rule of general Augusto Pinochet. Although congressional activities were to be legally moved by a ruling in 1987, the newly built site only began to function as the seat of Congress during the democratically-elected government of Patricio Aylwin, who followed Pinochet, in 1990.

The historic quarter of Valparaíso was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003.

History

Valparaíso's bay was first populated by Changos, an ethnic group dedicated to fishing and gathering. Spanish explorers arrived in 1536, on the Santiaguillo, a ship sent by Diego de Almagro, considered the first European explorer of Chile. The Santiaguillo carried men and supplies for Almagro's expedition, under the command of Juan de Saavedra.

During Spanish colonial times, Valparaíso remained a small village, with only a few houses and a church. After Chilean Independence from Spain, Valparaíso became the main harbour for the nascent Chilean navy, and opened to international trade, which had been limited to commerce with Spain and its other colonies. Valparaiso soon became a required stopover for ships crossing between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans via the Strait of Magellan and Cape Horn, and gained particular importance supporting and supplying the California Gold Rush (1848-1858). In its role as a major seaport, Valparaíso received immigrants from many countries, mainly from England, Germany and Italy. German, French, Italian and English were commonly spoken among its citizens, who also had newspapers in these same languages.

International immigration transformed the local culture from its Spanish origins. Football (soccer) was introduced to Chile by Englishmen, and the first private, non-Catholic schools were founded by immigrants from England and Germany (The MacKay School, and Deutsche Schule respectively). Immigrants also formed the first volunteer fire-fighting units (still a volunteer activity in Chile), while architecture reflected European styles.

The golden age of Valparaíso's commerce ended after the opening of the Panama Canal, as most ships sought to avoid the Strait of Magellan, and the port's importance and use was reduced substantially. Traffic has increased in the last few decades with fruit exports and increasing opening of the Chilean economy to world commerce.

Today

Though San Antonio has taken the reins as the country's most comercially important seaport the City of Valparaiso remains a vibrant center of Chilean culture, and the greater Valparaiso metropolitan area (which includes Valparaíso, Viña del Mar, Quilpué and Villa Alemana) has the second largest concentration of population in the country after Gran Santiago.

Nicknamed "The Jewel of the Pacific", Valparaiso was declared a world heritage site based on its industrial heritage, improvisized urban design, and unique architecture. The official Unesco declaration also places exceptional emphasis on Valparaiso's unique "intangible heritage," which includes the city's ethnic heritage as seen through the traditions and life styles of Valparaìso's immigrant communities.

Immortalized in the words of Pablo Neruda as the 'Ocean's sweetheart' (novia del océano), the city that 'goes to Paradise' (Va al paraiso) is one of Chile's if not South America's most charismatic and historic ports, with its charming "ascensores" (funiculars) and colorful hillside houses. Valparaiso's road infrastructure is under substantial improvement at present, particularly with the upcoming completion of the Placilla-La Polvora highway bypass, which will permit trucks to go directly to the port facility over a modern highway and through tunnels, without driving through the historic and already congested downtown streets. In addition, roads to link Valparaiso to San Antonio, Chile's second largest port, and the coastal towns in between (Laguna Verde, Quintay, Algarrobo, and Isla Negra, for example), are also under various degrees of completion.

A new, regional Metro system, opened to the public on 24 November 2005, updates the railroad that originally joined Santiago and Valparaiso (and cities in between). The new metro constitutes the so-called "fourth stage" (Cuarta Etapa in Spanish) of Metropolitan improvements. The metro railway extends along most of Gran Valparaíso and is the second metro system in operation in Chile (after Santiago's), and includes an underground section that crosses Viña del Mar's downtown.

Culture

During Valparaiso's golden age (1848-1914) the city received large numbers of immigrants, primarily from Europe. The immigrant communities left a unique imprint on the city's architecture. Each community built its own churches and schools, while many also founded other noteworthy cultural and economic institutions. The largest immigrant communities came from England, Germany, and Italy, each developing their own hillside neighborhood, preserved today as National Historic Districts or "Zonas Tìpicas."

During the second half of the twentieth century, Valparaiso experienced a great decline, as wealthy families degentrified the historic quarter, moving to bustling Santiago or nearby Viña del Mar. By the early 1990's, much of the city's unique heritage had been lost and many Chileans had given up on the city. But in the mid 1990's, a grass roots preservation movement blossomed in Valparaiso.

In 1996, Valparaiso's unusual system of funicular elevators (highly-inclined cable cars) was declared one of the world's 100 most endangered historical treasures by the World Monument's Fund. In 1998, grassroots activists convinced the Chilean government and local authorities to apply for UNESCO world heritage status for Valparaiso.

One such activist group was the "Fundaciòn Valparaìso" or Valparaiso Foundation, founded by a contemporary North American Poet, Todd Temkin, who fell in love with the city while teaching literature at the Catholic University of Valparaiso. The Valparaìso Foundation has executed major neighborhood redevelopment projects; has improved the city's tourist infrastructure; and administers the city's jazz, ethnic music, and opera festivals; among other projects.

Some noteworthy foundation projects include: "The World Heritage Trail";"Opera by the Sea"; and Chile's "Cultural Capital".

Valparaíso was declared a World Heritage Site in 2003, thanks to its historical importance, natural beauty (large number of hills surrounding a picturesque harbor), and unique architecture (particularly, a mix of 19th century styles of housing).

Valparaíso's newspaper, "El Mercurio de Valparaíso", claims to be the oldest Spanish-language newspaper in circulation in the world.

"Fundación Renzo Pecchenino, LUKAS" maintains the drawings and paintings of the artist/cartoonist who came to symbolize Valparaiso in popular culture, in a newly restored building on Cerro Concepcion, overlooking the bay.

The city has the second largest concentration of universities in Chile, and is home to five major universities:

Valparaíso is the birthplace of many historically significant figures, including Augusto Pinochet, Salvador Allende, and Australia's third Prime Minister John Christian Watson among them. It has also been the residence of many artists like Pablo Neruda and Nicaraguan poet Rubén Darío.

Sports

Valparaíso Maratón Bicentenario is meant to be an international marathon, developed in the touristic surroundings of Valparaíso. On September 24 2006, we will have the first version, occasion in which two modalities will be run: 10 K (10 km) and 21 K (21 km), in 12 categories, both for Ladies and Gentlemen. The race will start at Plaza Sotomayor, and the course will cross diverse architectonic landmarks, for which Valparaiso owes to be known as "the Pacific's Jewel".

External links

Cities in Chile | Coastal cities | World Heritage Sites in Chile

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Valparaíso".

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