Parque del Este

Parque del Este ("East Park"), renamed as officially Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda Park by chavez, in honor of the Venezuelan national hero, is a public recreation park located in the Sucre Municipality of Metropolitan Caracas in Venezuela. Opened in 1961, it is one of the most important of the city, with an area of 82 hectares (200 acres). The park was designed by Roberto Burle Marx and associates Fernando Tabora and John Stoddart.[1][2]

Parque del Este, Caracas

The park is located just outside the station Miranda (formerly East Park) Line 1 of the Caracas Metro. East Park is managed and supervised by the National Parks Institute (INPARQUES), an agency under the Ministry of Popular Power for the Environment.

The park combines three differently designed areas: the first is an open grass field with a gentle undulating topography, the second is a densely forested landscape with meandering pathways, while the third is a series of paved gardens with tiled murals and water works.[3]

History
East Park facilities in the late 1960s
Patios in the north sector of the Park

The park is located on part of the land of the ancient hacienda San Jose.[4][5][6] (10 ° 29'38 "N - 66 ° 50'8" W) The hacienda still exists and is located between the existing park boundaries[7] and the distributor Santa Cecilia, in front of the Caracas Museum of Transport.

The area was covered with forest vegetation composed primarily of old Bucares (Erythrina spp.) on which hung strands of Lagas Palo Beard (Tillandsia usneoides); in addition there were old coffee trees (Coffea arabica).

The park's inauguration took place under the government of President Romulo Betancourt on January 19, 1961[8] under the Decree No. 443[9] May 1960[10] and was designed by Brazilian landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx and associates Fernando Tabora and John Stoddart.[11]

When first opened the park was designed to receive about 6,000 visitors per month; in 2008 the park received 270,000 visitors a month.[12]

Official name

Park East over its history has had the following official names. At the time of its inauguration in 1961 was called Park "Romulo Gallegos" and in 1983 was renamed Park "Romulo Betancourt" a memorial to that character until 2002, when its name changed to present name Park Generalissimo "Francisco Miranda" in honor of the Venezuelan national hero.

Humboldt Planetarium

Humboldt Planetarium

Humboldt Planetarium[13] started construction on 15 January 1959 under the direction of its designer the Venezuelan architect Carlos Guinand Sandoz (1917 - 1963)[14] his inauguration took place on July 24, 1961, its facilities include a 20-meter dome and a Zeiss planetarium projector.

Its mission is to establish the knowledge in astronomy and related sciences, and to make them available for all public. The planetarium wants to promote formal education in all scientific levels.

Zoo

The park has a zoo with a wide variety of animals including jaguars, monkeys, squirrels, capybaras, ocelots, sloths, opossums, many kinds of birds: Caricare, many types of parrot, yellow-shouldered parrot, Tinamou, White heron, kind egret, Blue heron, gonzalito, blue and yellow macaw, scarlet macaw, Green macaw, North Guacharaca, Barn owls, helmeted curassow, king Zamuro (vulture), Red-billed toucan and reptiles including crocodiles and anacondas.

Caravel of Christopher Columbus

For many years one of the attractions of the Parque del Este was the caravel of Columbus, a replica of the ship known as the Nao Santa Maria [15][16] was built in the city of Barcelona, Spain, and was purchased by the Corporacion Venezolana Development and brought to the country in 1967. The Children's Foundation donated it to the Parque del Este on 12 October 1971; inside there were allegorical figures of Columbus and the crew that accompanied him on his travels, as well as weapons, shields, flags, clothing, tools, navigational devices and more.

Corvette Leander

The Nao Santa Maria operated until 2008[17] when by decree of the National Executive President Hugo Chávez was dismantled to make way for a replica of the cruiser Leander and a museum in honor of Francisco de Miranda project which has brought inclusive of a legal dispute.[18]

Considerations aside, the Nao Santa Maria suffered damage caused by years of government neglect, so the replication status at the time of decommissioning was serious. One of the reasons which led to their change by the corvette was the need to implement the rehabilitation plan of the park that had been created to receive about 6,00 people a month, but already was welcoming about 270,000, with consequent damage as a result.

  • Boating lake
  • Lake plant
  • Nao Santa Maria Replica
  • Replica of the Leander in Parque del Este
Panoramic view of the South Lake in Parque del Este, 2011

References
  1. Aristiguieta, Leandro. 1974. Parque del Este sus plantas y sus ambientes. Litografía Tecnocolor, S.A. Caracas. 159p.
  2. Caracasvirtual. Paque del Este "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-11-21. Retrieved 2012-06-10.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. Anita Berrizbeitia: Parque del Este Caracas: Between a Critical Naturalism and a Critical Formalism, Delaware Review of Latin American Studies, Vol. 6, No. 1, 2005
  4. Aristiguieta, Leandro. 1974. Parque del Este sus plantas y sus ambientes. Litografía Tecnocolor, S.A. Caracas. Pp12.
  5. Garriga, Gorgias R. 1979. Fichas, señas y ñapas de Venezuela. Cuadernos Lagoven. Lagove, S.A. Caracas. Pp:47-50
  6. Mipunto.com. Oasis urbano el Parque del Este http://www.mipunto.com/temas/3er_trimestre03/parque.html
  7. Casanova, Rafael Díaz. El Parque del Este Analítica.com. Sábado, 5 de junio de 2010. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2012-06-10.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. El Parque del Este cumple medio siglo este jueves http://www.lapatilla.com/2011/01/19/el-parque-del-este-cumple-50-anos-este-jueves/
  9. Pérez, Alejandro. Reseña Histórica de Parque Generalísimo Francisco de Miranda. http://www.laguiadehoteles.com.ve/index.php?mn=7&ct=59&nt=30
  10. Agencia venezolana de noticias. Parque Generalísimo Francisco de Miranda llega a 50 años este jueves. http://www.avn.info.ve/node/39053
  11. Venezuela.com: El Parque del Este. http://www.venezuelaa.com/julio_2002/97.asp
  12. Agencia venezolana de noticias. Parque Generalísimo Francisco de Miranda llega a 50 años este jueves. http://www.avn.info.ve/node/39053
  13. Planetario Humboldt http://www.planetariohumboldt.com/wordpress/?page_id=2
  14. Speedylook.com: Carlos Guinand Sandoz http://www.myetymology.com/encyclopedia/Carlos_Guinand_Sandoz.html
  15. Mipunto.com. Oasis urbano el Parque del Este http://www.mipunto.com/temas/3er_trimestre03/parque.html
  16. Jurado Toro, Bernardo. 1992. Cristóbal Colón y Venezuela. Macuro, primer lugar de tierra firme. Compañía Anónima Venezolana de Navegación. Caracas. 216p. ISBN 980-07-0768-9
  17. El Universal: Deterioro desmerece el Parque del Este. Caracas, jueves 20 de enero, 2011 http://www.eluniversal.com/2011/01/20/ccs_art_deterioro-desmerece_2163492.shtml
  18. El Universal: Hoy realizan audiencia de juicio contra el Proyecto Leander. CARACAS, martes 26 de abril, 2011. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2012-06-10.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

Further reading
  • Anita Berrizbeitia: Roberto Burle-Marx in Caracas. Parque del Este, 1956-1961, University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 2004

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