SAN SALVADOR

'San Salvador' is the capital city of the nation of El Salvador. The valley where it is located was earlier known as '"El Valle de las Hamacas"' (''The Valley of the Hammocks'' in English) because of its high seismic activity. San Salvador is the second largest city in Central America. It covers an area of 601 km² (232 sq. mi.) and is home to nearly 2.2 million people. It is home to one-third of El Salvador's population and one-half of the country's wealth.

Contents

History

Today's San Salvador

Social issues

Crime

Pollution

Transportation

Demographics

Climate

Disasters

Landmarks

Gallery of San Salvador

Sister Cities

References

External links

History

The origins of the city can be traced to before the Spanish Conquest. It is near the present location of San Salvador that the Pipil groups, established their capital, Cuscatlán. Not very much is known about this city, since it was abandoned by its inhabitants in an effort to avoid Spanish rule.
Although the city was founded on April 1, 1525, in the sixteenth century, it was rebuilt and changed locations twice afterwards 1528 and 1545. Originally founded in what is now the archaeological site Ciudad Vieja, north of the present-day city, it was moved to the Valle de Las Hamacas or the Acelhuate Valley, named so due to the intense seismic activity that characterizes it, which boasted more space and more fertile land, thanks to the pristine and now extremely polluted Acelhuate River. As the population of the country remained relatively small up until the early twentieth century, the city grew slowly.

Today's San Salvador

Today, San Salvador is a modern city and is the second most populated city in Central America right after Guatemala City. While the city proper has a population of about half a million, and covers an area of approximately 75 square kilometers, the explosive growth during and after the war created a metropolitan area (the AMSS, Area Metropolitana de San Salvador) that is often administered as a whole. The AMSS covers an area of approximately 610 square kilometers and 2.2 million people.
The Pan-American Highway runs through the city, connecting it with other urban areas in Central America and the United States. San Salvador is also the overall transportation and economic hub of the nation, since it is home to one third of the population and one half of the country's wealth.

The city's modern downtown area has many high-rise buildings, but very few of the historic landmarks remain, due to the earthquakes that have hit the city since its founding in 1525 by Spanish Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado. Today, the city produces beer, tobacco products, textiles, and soaps.

The disparity between the 'haves' and 'have-nots' is prevalent in San Salvador. The city's most affluent suburbs are located in the western areas of the city, which include Escalon, San Benito, Maquilishuat, San Francisco and the newly established Santa Elena. Several housing estates are continuously springing up in the surrounding areas. A number of upscale shopping centres stocking the latest in international fashions include La Gran Via, Plaza Mundo, Multiplaza, Galerias, and Plaza Merliot.

Some new gated communities come with high tech security, parks, bike tracks, fitness clubs, shops and swimming pools are popular with the city's middle class families.
While San Salvador's more affluent enjoy all the comforts found in any 'first world' nation, including exclusive private clubs such as Club Campestre Cuscatlán y Club Deportivo Internacional, private beach houses at La Costa del Sol, the finest of restaurants, and fancy Discos such as Code, these luxuries remain out of reach for the majority of the population. Slums and shanty towns grow just as fast as the city itself, as it struggles to accommodate migrants from the countryside in search of work. In the poorer areas such as Apopa & Soyapango, related violence remains a headache for the authorities.
While the city is relatively wealthy compared to the rest of the country (per capita GDP - PPP is approximately USD $10,000, compared to a national average of approximately $4,700), poverty and crime are its major problems.

Social issues

Crime

In the past years El Salvador has experienced high crime rates including gang-related crimes, and gangs in general. Some say that this was a result of the deportation of thousands of Salvadorans from the U.S, the majority of whom were members of MS13 (Mara Salvatrucha), in the mid-90s. The gangs in which Salvadorans had been involved in the United States began to show up in El Salvador. In 1996 San Salvador was considered the second most dangerous city in the world, according to statistics.[1] Today San Salvador and El Salvador in general experiences some of the highest rates murders in the world, it is also considered an epicenter of the gang crisis, along with Guatemala and Honduras.^[1] In response to this, the government has set up countless programs to try to guide the youth away from gang membership, but so far its efforts have not produced any quick results. One of the government programs was a gang-reform called ''"Super Mano Dura"'' (Super Firm Hand). ''Super Mano Dura'' had little success and was highly criticized by the U.N., it saw temporary success in 2004 but then saw a rise in crime after 2005. In 2004, the estimated murder rater per 100,000 citizens was 41.2, with 60% of the 2,576 murders committed were gang-related. The Salvadoran government reported that the ''Super Mano Dura'' gang legislation led to a 14% drop in murders in 2004. However, El Salvador recorded a total of 552 murders in January and February 2005 alone. In addition, crime rose 7.5% in just a year, from 2005-2006.^[2] Homocides are among the highest with respect to the overall crime rate. The homicides reported in 2006 reached up to 3,906, in 2005 3,779 were reported; 57.2 violent deaths per every 100,000 people.[2]
In the first half of 2007 La Policía Nacional Civil of El Salvador statistics showed lower numbers in homicide, and extortions as well as robbery and theft of vehicles. In 2007 homicides in El Salvador had reduced 22%, extortions reduced 7%, and robbery and theft of vehicles had gone down 18%, all in comparison with the same period in 2006.[3]

Pollution

Pollution remains one of the city's biggest problems. Located in a valley, San Salvador is a perfect pollution trap. Fueling this, the city struggles with an increasing traffic problem. New highways and arterial roads offer some relief. According to a study by the United Nations, El Salvador was ranked as the second worst polluter of carbon dioxide emissions in Central America.

Transportation

The City of San Salvador is served by 1 international airports: Comalapa International Airport. Ground transportation: San Salvador offers the widest boulevards in Central America and also served by a railroad that connects to other cities such as Soyapango, and Apopa.

Road to San Salvador, Leaving from Apopa. Vertical road leads to Quezaltepeque. Volcano of San Salvador is seen in the distance.

Demographics

Years Population 1900 138.200 1910 178.200 1920 205.000 1930 191.100 1940 222.500

Years Population 1950 296.000 1960 475.300 1970 731.000 1980 979,700 1990 1.500.000

San Salvador is a large city whose population is starkly divided between the wealthy and impoverished. The wealthier neighborhoods of Santa Elena, Antiguo Cuscatlan, San Benito, Escalon and Ciudad Merliot boast luxury shops, fine restaurants, five-star hotels, tree lined avenues and well-guarded mansions. However, most of the other neighborhoods in Apopa and Soyapango, among others, are hot, dusty and overcrowded, and are plagued by skyrocketing crime rates and gang related violence.

Climate

San Salvador is mainly hot, the coldest months being November, December, January, and February. The temperature is very different at midday than midnight, the factors being the humidity levels, which vary as the day passes. The highest reading ever recorded in San Salvador is 38 degrees Celsius, the lowest being 2 degrees Celsius. The highest dew point is 27 and the lowest -10, both on the Celsius scale. San Salvador has two seasons: rainy and dry. October, November, December, January, February and March being the dry seasons, and April, May, June, July, August and September the rainy.

San Salvador from space, January 1997

San Salvador is home to the Iglesia Elím Central, a Pentecostal/Evangelical megachurch with 220,000 members.
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Approximately 89% of the population are mestizo (mix of Indigenous and European ancestry), 9% European followed by Indigenous and other small ethnic groups, including Chinese and Palestinians who have increasingly played a key economic role in the country's development. Many prominent figures in the political, such as Shafik Handal and Antonio Saca (current President), and economical scene are of Palestinian descent.

Disasters

A landslide caused by one of the 2001 El Salvador earthquakes.

The city has suffered from severe earthquakes over the years, the most disastrous of which occurred in 1854. Also worthy of mentioning is the 1917 eruption of the San Salvador volcano, which resulted in three major earthquakes and damaged the city so extensively that the government was forced to move the capital to the present-day city of Santa Tecla, then named Nueva San Salvador. The most recent Earthquake, in 2001, resulted in considerable damage, especially in Las Colinas suburb where a landslide destroyed homes and killed many people. During the 1980s, conflicts in El Salvador erupted into a civil war, and many people fled to the city since most of the fighting occurred outside of it (San Salvador itself was not directly affected by the war until the final offensive of 1989).

Landmarks

★ Catedral Metropolitana, Metropolitan Cathedral

★ Teatro Nacional de El Salvador, the National Theatre of El Salvador

★ Palacio Nacional, the National Palace

★ Monumento a Salvador del Mundo, Monument to the Savior of the World

★ Casa Presidencial, the Presidential Mansion

★ Monumento a La Libertad, Monument to Liberty

★ Torre Cuscatlan, the second tallest building in the city (tallest being 105 Campestre A tower) - though only around 260ft tall - owned by Banco Cuscatlán.

Gallery of San Salvador

Sister Cities

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Guatemala City, Guatemala

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Los Angeles, United States

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Managua, Nicaragua

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Mexico City, Mexico

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San Pedro Sula, Honduras

References

1. Gangs in Central America Clare Ribando
2. El Salvador Dispatches Additional Contingent to Iraq :Domestic Issues Overrule Anxiety over War Ryann Bresnahan

External links

★ Municipality of the city of San Salvador

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★ San Salvador city tour. El Salvador en Imágenes

★ Medical and health information in San Salvador