Santa Cruz de la Sierra 673987 224555030 2008-07-09T11:35:10Z 200.58.187.121 /* External links */ {{Cleanup|date=November 2006}} {{Infobox City |official_name = Santa Cruz de la Sierra |native_name = Santa Cruz |nickname = |motto = |image_skyline = Panorama Santa Cruz de la Sierra Bolivia.jpg |imagesize = 240px |image_caption = |image_flag = Flag of santacruz.svg |image_seal = |image_shield = |image_blank_emblem = Escudo Santa Cruz de la Sierra.jpg |image_map = Distritosdesantacruz.png |mapsize = 150px |map_caption = |pushpin_map =Bolivia <!-- the name of a location map as per http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Location_map --> |pushpin_label_position =bottom <!-- the position of the pushpin label: left, right, top, bottom, none --> |pushpin_map_caption =Location within Bolivia |pushpin_mapsize = |subdivision_type = [[Countries of the world|Country]] |subdivision_name = [[Bolivia]] |subdivision_type1 = [[Departments of Bolivia|Department]] |subdivision_name1 = [[Santa Cruz Department|Santa Cruz]] |subdivision_type2 = [[Provinces of Bolivia|Province]] |subdivision_name2 = [[Julio Rivero Province|Andrés Ibáñez]] |government_type = |leader_title = Mayor |leader_name =Percy Fernandez |established_title = Founded |established_date = February 26, 1561 |area_magnitude = 1 E8 |area_total_km2 = 325.57 |area_total_sq_mi = |area_land_km2 = |area_land_sq_mi = |area_water_km2 = |area_water_sq_mi = |area_water_percent = |area_urban_km2 = |area_urban_sq_mi = |area_metro_km2 = |area_metro_sq_mi = |population_as_of = 2006 |population_footnotes = <ref>[http://www.gmsantacruz.gov.bo/ Portal del Municipio Autónomo de Santa Cruz de la Sierra<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |population_note = |population_total = 1,528,683 |population_density_km2 = 4215.24 |population_density_sq_mi = |population_metro =1,862,911(includes neigbouring city of Cotoca) |population_density_metro_km2 = |population_density_metro_sq_mi = |population_urban = |population_density_urban_km2 = |population_density_urban_sq_mi = |timezone = [[UTC-4]] |utc_offset = |timezone_DST = |utc_offset_DST = |latd=17 |latm=48 |lats= |latNS=S |longd=63 |longm=10 |longs= |longEW=W |elevation_m = 416 |elevation_ft = |postal_code_type = <!-- enter ZIP code, Postcode, Post code, Postal code... --> |postal_code = |area_code = |website = http://www.gmsantacruz.gov.bo/ |footnotes = }} :''This article is about the Bolivian city. For other cities named Santa Cruz, see [[Santa Cruz]]'' {{coor title dm|17|48|S|63|10|W|type:city}} '''Santa Cruz de La Sierra''', commonly known as '''Santa Cruz''', is the capital city of the [[Santa Cruz Department|Santa Cruz department]] in eastern [[Bolivia]]. With a population of 1,528,683 inhabitants (2006 official estimate<ref>[http://www.ine.gov.bo/ Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Bolivia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>) it is the largest city in [[Bolivia]]. == History == [[Image:Cattedrale santa cruz.jpg|thumbnail|200px|left|[[Basílica Menor de San Lorenzo]]]] [[Image:Basilica Menor de San Lorenzo Santa Cruz de la Sierra.jpg|thumbnail|230px|left|Catedral Metropolitana o Basilica Menor de San Lorenzo.]] Santa Cruz de La Sierra was founded on [[february 26]], [[1561]] by [[Ñuflo de Chávez]] who gave the new settlement its name, which means "Holy Cross of the Hills," in honor of his beloved native city in [[Extremadura]], [[Spain]]. Ñuflo de Chávez was a Spanish captain whose biggest legacy was the expansion of colonization through virgin rainforest and savanna areas in southeastern South America. His campaign started in Buenos Aires - then Argentina's capital city - to the second biggest settlement, Asunción - then Paraguay's capital city - and finishing with the last of the larger settlements, Santa Cruz de la Sierra. Each of the three cities helped to consolidate the colonization of several indigenous populations through what was named as Audiencia de La Plata, or a type of administrative province during the colonial stage of Latin America history. The Audiencia de La Plata consolidated what today is Argentina, Uruguay, the three Southern states of Brazil, Paraguay, and the south, southeast, and north of Bolivia, inclusively the state of Acre which is currently part of the Brazilian Federation. Within the specific area of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, several tribes were incorporated under Spaniard control and converted to the Catholic faith, as a result of the Jesuits' influence over this region; the Guaranies, Moxeños, Chiquitanos, Guarayos, and Chiriguanos were just a few of several ethnic groups who were the ancestors of the racially mixed population of the modern Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando, and Tarija departamentos (states) of Bolivia. The original settlement of Santa Cruz de la Sierra was actually 220 km east of its modern location, only a few kilometers south of today's [[San José de Chiquitos]]. After conflicts with the indigenous population, the town was moved to another location closer to the banks of Río Grande; as a result of unfriendly environmental conditions, however the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra was then moved to its present location on the banks of [[Piraí River]] in [[1592]]. Remnants of the original settlement can be visited in [[Santa Cruz la Vieja]] ("Old Santa Cruz"), an archeological site south of San José de Chiquitos. It is commonly believed there were more than two relocations of the city between February 26, 1561 and the year when the last settlement was finally founded, but this is still not known for certain. After the city was moved, it became an important staging point for Jesuit and other Christian missions to Chiquitos and Moxos for the next two centuries. Still, Santa Cruz saw little growth during that period of time. It was not until nearly a century after Bolivia gained its independence that the city started to take an important role in the nation's history. The [[Acre war]] with [[Brazil]] in the early 20th century, as well the [[Chaco war]] with [[Paraguay]] in the 1930s, forced the central government to turn its attention to the east, allocating more resources for regional governments and improving communication. The isolated town was connected by a road to [[Cochabamba]] in the 1950s, and subsequently to Brazil by railway, thus stimulating economic and demographic growth. Improvement in routes and pathways of communication, such as [[Viru Viru International Airport]]), as well as a continuous influx of immigrants, turned the city into one of the most industrialized and important trading centers of the country during the second half of the twentieth century. Today [[Santa Cruz]] is not only the most populated city in [[Bolivia]], but the department is also the richest, with over 30% of the national [[GDP]]. Santa Cruz is also leading a movement against the central government of Bolivia to separate the country into an autonomic political regions where each region manages its own production, taxation, and internal laws with only a small level of coordination with the national government, much like in federal countries, like the United States or the neighbouring Brazil or like the [[autonomous communities of Spain]]. This movement is in direct conflict with [[Evo Morales]] aim to keep power centralized. The other departments following this movement are Tarija, Beni, and Pando, that are regions that have interest in separating Bolivia for cultural reasons/differences with the Altiplano region as well as economic reasons such as Bolivian gas. [[Bolivian gas conflict]] Other regions that are in the same line of the four mentioned before are Cochabamba and Chuquisaca, six of nine regions. == Geography == The department of '''Santa Cruz de la Sierra''' is located in the eastern part of Bolivia (17°45', South, 63°14', West) at 416&nbsp;m above [[sea level]]. It is part of the province of [[Andrés Ibáñez]] and the capital of the department of Santa Cruz. == Climate == The weather is semi-tropical, with an average annual temperature around 21 °C (or 70 °F). Although the weather is generally warm all year round, cold wind patterns, called "surazos", can blow in occasionally (especially in the winter) from the [[Argentina|Argentine]] [[pampas]] making the temperature drop considerably. The months of greatest rainfall are January and February. {| class="wikitable" |+ '''Seasonal temperatures''' ! [[Spring (season)|Spring]] !! [[Summer]] !! [[Autumn]] !! [[Winter]] |- | 18 [[Celsius|°C]]&ndash; 33 [[Celsius|°C]]<br>64[[Fahrenheit| °F]]&ndash;91 °F || 22 °C&ndash;38 °C<br>72 °F&ndash;100 °F || 20 °C&ndash;30 °C<br>68 °F&ndash;86 °F || 8 °C&ndash;29 °C<br>46 °F&ndash;84 °F |- | 21 Sep - 20 Dec || 21 Dec - 20 Mar || 21 Mar - 20 Jun || 21 Jun - 20 Sep |} ==Gastronomy== The city of Santa Cruz has benefited from a fast paced growing economy for the last 15 years. This has allowed for a multicultural and ethnically diverse city to develop. Despite its fast growth, the city preserves much of its traditions and culture. This is particularly reflected in its typical foods. The agricultural richness of the region allows Santa Cruz to enjoy a vast variety of flavours and ingredients. The following is a list which describes the most typical foods: '''Typical Foods''' *[[Picante de Pollo]] (chicken in a red hot salsa served with a portion of rice and yuca *[[Majao]] or [[Majadito]] (a risotto style plate which includes [[charque]], duck or chicken meat.) *[[Locro]] (a very dense, rice based soup containing vegetables and chicken) *[[Sopa de maní]] ( Another dense soup, whose base is made of cooked peanuts, crushed and boiled) *[[Masaco]] (smashed plantain with charque(sun dried meat)Also made with yuca and [[charque]]) '''Typical Drinks''' *[[Mocochinchi]] (this rather strange looking drink consist of sun dried peaches which are boiled with honey and clove) *[[Somó]] (white corn based drink, served cold, very refreshing) *[[Chicha]] (alcoholic drink made by fermenting white corn). '''Typical Pastries''' *[[Cuñapé]] ([[yuca]] and cheese baked as small bread bunds) *[[Zonzo]] ([[yuca]] and cheese, boiled and mixed in a type of mashed potato consistency, oven baked or grilled) *[[Empanada]] de arroz **[[Empanada]] de queso **[[Empanada]] de jigote **[[Empanada]] de carne *[[Bizcocho]] de trigo *[[Masaco]] de plátano **[[Masaco]] de [[yuca]] *[[Arepa]] *[[Salteñas]] *[[Queque]] ==Additional Notes of Interest== * The city's street layout currently consists of a [[concentric ring model]]. * There are several Japanese-manufactured taxi cabs throughout the city. The steering wheels have been modified to the left side of these vehicles, thus earning them the name of "transformers" (transformed). * The Spanish language of Bolivia's eastern lowlands (the departments of Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando) is referred to as "[[Camba]] Spanish". Aside from local idioms and vernacular, the distinctive, phonological traits of Camba Spanish include using the "[[j]]" insted of the "[[s]]" (similar to Caribbean Spanish{{Fact|date=October 2007}} mixed with Argentine Spanish) and the use of the ''[[voseo]]'' pronoun instead of ''tú'' in informal address. The use of ''vos'' is spoken also with frequency within the departments of [[Tarija]], [[Beni]],[[Pando]]. * Santa Cruz de la Sierra is a major fashion and modeling hub in Bolivia. Cruceños pride themselves in winning the most Bolivian beauty pageant titles, including the [[Miss Bolivia]] pageant whose delegate continues her representation at the [[Miss Universe]] pageant. For this reason, Cruceños colloquially honor their city as ''"La Capital de la Belleza Amazónica"'' (''"The Capital of the [[Amazons|Amazon]] Beauty"''), even though it is not located in the Amazon forest. Nationally, Cruceños spend the highest amount of money per capita on personal care and beauty products. * ''Las Magníficas de Pablo Manzoni'' is a modeling troupe and agency that conducts showcases of Bolivia's top fashion models; several of them being from Santa Cruz. The showcase is heralded as one of Bolivia's most prestigious fashion and modeling events, having recently acquired international appeal and interest. * The city is home to [[Palmasola]] prison ==External links== *[http://3dlatinamerica.com 3dLatinamerica.com] Many 3-dimensional high-quality images of Santa Cruz and other cities in Bolivia and Latinamerica (also viewable in standard 2-D) *[http://www.gmsantacruz.gov.bo/ Official city government site] * [http://santacruz.beta.2night.com/home Images of cosmopolitan Cruceños, social events, and nightlife.] *[http://www.bolivia.com/Especiales/magnificas/ Bolivian Models: Las Tetonas] *[http://www.boliviabella.com/ Website about Santa Cruz and its surroundings] *The [[Viru Viru International Airport]] (Aeropuerto Internacional Viru Viru): [http://www.sabsa.aero/aeropuertointernacionalviruviru www.sabsa.aero/aeropuertointernacionalviruviru] (Sabsa = Servicios de Aeropuertos Bolivianos S.A. is the operator of three airports in Bolivia). *The railway company [[Ferroviaria Oriental S.A.]]: [http://www.ferroviariaoriental.com www.ferroviariaoriental.com] (Train from Santa Cruz to Quijarro ([[Puerto Quijarro]]) on the border with Brazil). *Estatuto Autonomico de Santa Cruz: [http://www.asamcruz.org/Estatuto%20autonomicode%20scz.htm] *[http://www.bolivia-online.net Bolivia-Online.net] Online City Guide about Bolivia ==References== {{Reflist}} *Gutsch, Jochen-Martin, "Im Labyrinth der Unordnung" Der Spiegel 5 December 2005, pp. 144-50. {{coor title dm|17|48|S|63|10|W|region:BO_type:city}} [[Category:Santa Cruz de la Sierra| ]] [[Category:Cities, towns and villages in Bolivia]] [[Category:Settlements established in 1561]] [[frp:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[ay:Santa Krus]] [[be:Санта-Крус-дэ-ла-Сьера]] [[da:Santa Cruz (Bolivia)]] [[de:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[es:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[eo:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[eu:Santa Cruz]] [[fa:سانتا کروس د لا سیرا]] [[fr:Santa Cruz (Bolivie)]] [[it:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[lt:Santa Krus de la Siera]] [[hu:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[ms:Santa Cruz, Bolivia]] [[nl:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[ja:サンタクルス]] [[no:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[pl:Santa Cruz (miasto w Boliwii)]] [[pt:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[qu:Santa Krus llaqta]] [[ru:Санта-Крус-де-ла-Сьерра]] [[fi:Santa Cruz]] [[sv:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[vi:Santa Cruz (Bolivia)]] [[uk:Санта-Крус-де-ла-Сьєрра]] [[vo:Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] [[zh:圣克鲁斯 (玻利维亚)]]