La Paz


La Paz, officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz, also named Chuqi Yapu in Aymara, is the seat of government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the third-most populous city in Bolivia. Its metropolitan area, which is formed by La Paz, El Alto, Achocalla, Viacha, and Mecapaca makes up the second most populous urban area in Bolivia, with a population of 1.8 million, after Santa Cruz de la Sierra with a population of 2.3 million. It is also the capital of the La Paz Department.
The city, located in west-central Bolivia southeast of Lake Titicaca, is set in a canyon created by the Choqueyapu River. It is located in a bowl-like depression surrounded by the high mountains of the Altiplano. Overlooking the city is the towering, triple-peaked Illimani. Its peaks are always snow-covered and can be seen from many parts of the city. At an elevation of roughly above sea level, La Paz is the highest capital city in the world. Due to its altitude, La Paz has an unusual subtropical highland climate, with rainy summers and dry winters.
La Paz was founded on October 20, 1548 by the Spanish conquistador Captain Alonso de Mendoza at the site of the Inca settlement of Laja as a connecting point between the commercial routes that led from Potosí and Oruro to Lima; the full name of the city was originally Nuestra Señora de La Paz in commemoration of the restoration of peace following the insurrection of Gonzalo Pizarro and fellow conquistadors against the first viceroy of Peru. The city was later moved to its present location in the valley of Chuquiago Marka. La Paz was under Spanish colonial rule as part of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, before Bolivia gained independence. Since its founding, the city was the site of numerous revolts. In 1781, the indigenous leader and independence activist Túpac Katari laid siege to the city for a total of six months, but was finally defeated. On July 16, 1809 the Bolivian patriot Pedro Domingo Murillo ignited a revolution for independence, marking the beginning of the Spanish American Wars of Independence, which gained the freedom of South American states in 1821.
As the seat of the government of Bolivia, La Paz is the site of the Palacio Quemado, the presidential palace. It is also the seat of the Bolivian legislature, the Plurinational Legislative Assembly, and numerous government departments and agencies. The constitutional capital of Bolivia, Sucre, retains the judicial power. The city hosts all the foreign embassies as well as international missions in the country. La Paz is an important political, administrative, economic, and sports center of Bolivia; it generates 24% of the nation's Gross Domestic Product and serves as the headquarters for numerous Bolivian companies and industries.
La Paz is also an important cultural center of Latin America, as it hosts several landmarks belonging to the colonial times, such as the San Francisco Church, the Metropolitan Cathedral, the Plaza Murillo and Jaén Street. The city is renowned for its unique markets, particularly the Witches' Market, and for its vibrant nightlife. Its unusual topography offers unique views of the city and the surrounding mountains of the Cordillera Real from numerous natural viewing points. La Paz is also home to the largest urban cable car network in the world. In May 2015, it was officially recognized as one of the New 7 Wonders Cities together with Beirut, Doha, Durban, Havana, Kuala Lumpur and Vigan. La Paz is listed on the Global Cities Index 2015, and is considered a global city type "Gamma" by Globalization and World Cities Research Network.

History

This area had been the site of an Inca city, located on a major trading route.
Although the Spanish conquistadors entered the area in 1535, they did not found La Paz until 1548. Originally it was to be at the site of the Native American settlement, Laja, with the full name of the city being Nuestra Señora de La Paz. The name commemorated the restoration of peace following the insurrection of Gonzalo Pizarro and fellow conquistadors four years earlier against Blasco Núñez Vela, the first viceroy of Peru. The town site was moved a few days later to its present location in the valley of Chuquiago, which is more clement.
Control over the former Inca lands had been entrusted to Pedro de la Gasca by the Spanish king Emperor Charles V. Gasca commanded Alonso de Mendoza to found a new city commemorating the end of the civil wars in Peru; the city of La Paz was founded on October 20, 1548 by Alonzo de Mendoza, with Juan de Vargas appointed as its first mayor.
In 1549, Juan Gutierrez Paniagua was commanded to design an urban plan that would designate sites for public areas, plazas, official buildings, and a cathedral. These were meant to express the ideals and relationships of Spanish colonial society. La Plaza de los Españoles, which is known today as the Plaza Murillo, was chosen as the location for government buildings as well as the Metropolitan Cathedral.
Spain controlled La Paz with a firm grip and the Spanish king had the last word in all matters political, but consultation was extended, taking months or longer by sea. Indigenous and other unrest was repeated around the turn of the nineteenth century. In 1781, for a total of six months, a group of Aymara people laid siege to La Paz. Under the leadership of Tupac Katari, they destroyed churches and government property. Thirty years later Indians conducted a two-month siege against La Paz. This incident was the setting for the origin of the legend of the Ekeko. In 1809 the struggle for independence from the Spanish rule brought uprisings against the royalist forces. On July 16, 1809 Pedro Domingo Murillo said that the Bolivian revolution was igniting a lamp that nobody would be able to turn off. This uprising formally marked the beginning of the liberation of South America from Spain. The first open rebellions against the Spanish Crown took place in La Paz and the city of Sucre simultaneously. This event is known as the Primer Grito Libertario de América.
Pedro Domingo Murillo was hanged at the Plaza de los Españoles that night. After Bolivia gained independence, La Paz named this plaza after him, to commemorate him always. He is remembered as the voice of revolution across South America.
In 1825, after the decisive victory of the republicans at Ayacucho over the Spanish army in the course of the Spanish American wars of independence, the city's full name was changed to La Paz de Ayacucho.
In 1898, La Paz was made the de facto seat of the national government, with Sucre remaining the nominal historical as well as judiciary capital. This change reflected the shift of the Bolivian economy away from the largely exhausted silver mines of Potosí to the exploitation of tin near Oruro, and resulting shifts in the distribution of economic and political power among various national elites.

Geography

La Paz is built in a canyon created by the Choqueyapu River, which runs northwest to southeast. The city's main thoroughfare, which roughly follows the river, changes names over its length, but the central tree-lined section running through the downtown core is called the Prado.
The geography of La Paz is marked by social differences. The more affluent residents live in the lower, central areas of the city southwest of the Prado. Many middle-class residents live in high-rise condos near the center. Lower-income residents live in makeshift brick houses in the surrounding hills.
The satellite city of El Alto, in which the airport is located, is spread over a broad area to the west of the canyon, on the Altiplano. La Paz is renowned for its unique markets, unusual and dramatic topography, and traditional culture.
La Paz is located in the valleys of the Andes, close to the Eastern split of the Altiplano region. It is closer to such notable mountains as the Illimani, Huayna Potosi, Mururata, and Illampu. On the Western side of the Altiplano divide, about an hour to the west of the La Paz, is the Sajama Volcano, the tallest mountain in Bolivia and ninth-tallest mountain in the Andes.
In July 1994, an earthquake rated at 8.2 struck just north of La Paz. It could be felt near La Paz and caused damage throughout the villages of the area.

Climate

At more than above sea level, higher parts of La Paz have an unusual subtropical highland climate, with subpolar oceanic characteristics, bordering on a tundra climate. The whole city has rainy summers and dry winters. Night-time temperatures range from cold to very cold. Snow flurries can occur in winter, especially at dawn and it usually melts before noon. At these high altitudes despite being located only 16 degrees from the equator, the city's average temperature is similar to that of cities such as Bergen, Norway or Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, located as far as 60 and 62 degrees from the equator respectively.
The temperatures in the central La Paz, at, and in the Zona Sur, at above sea level, are warmer.
Owing to the altitude of the city, temperatures are consistently cool to mild throughout the year, though the diurnal temperature variation is typically large. The city has a relatively dry climate, with rainfall occurring mainly in the slightly warmer months of November to March.
In the highest part of the city, above 4,000 metres, the two cloudiest months are February and March, in late summer, when sunshine averages around 5 hours per day. The two sunniest months are June and July, in winter, when sunshine averages around 8 hours per day.
Heavy precipitation typically occurs throughout summer, and often causes destructive mudslides. At an altitude of 3,250 metres, in the southern part of the city, the wettest month is January with a monthly average of, and the driest is July with.
The warmest temperature recorded was and the coldest was.

Districts and neighborhoods


Main neighborhoods and zones

; San Jorge : Located in the district known as Cotahuma and near Sopocachi, is one of the main residential and diplomatic areas of the city. San Jorge is one of the most exclusive neighborhoods of La Paz and the financial center of the metropolis, housing international firms like Deloitte, Bank of America, Ernst & Young, BBVA and the famous Ritz Hotel. It is now home of Bolivia's tallest building known as Torre Girasoles, and the only intelligent building of the country, known as Torre Azul. The neighborhood is also populated with expensive offices, renowned restaurants, museums and bookstores. Its Avenida Arce, one of the main streets of the city, is the highest-priced street in the country and the one with the most upscale boutiques in Bolivia. San Jorge is home to the embassies of the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Japan, Germany and Spain. The offices of the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the CAF – Development Bank of Latin America, the Goethe Institut, the Alliance Française and the Dante Alighieri Society are also located in this modern neighborhood.
; Sopocachi : Located in the 1st District, Sopocachi is probably one of the oldest residential neighborhoods, 10 minutes from the center of the city. Despite the expansion and development of the area, this quarter maintained its residential property. In the last years, there has been an important commercial expansion, mainly on the surroundings of Abaroa Square, one of the many squares and parks of the zone.
; San Pedro : Located in the 1st District, on the right bank of the Choqueyapu River and built around the "Plaza de San Pedro", is home to numerous shops, businesses and small enterprises, especially printing, spare parts and auto maintenance and repair shops. San Pedro's "Rodriguez Market" remains as one of the most popular middle-class and oldest of the city. The San Pedro prison is here.
; Centro : The city's downtown area, in the 7th District, comprising the center of La Paz and principal roads of the city, like Arce Avenue, July 16 Avenue, Mariscal Santa Cruz Avenue and Camacho Avenue — the last one being the home of the headquarters of the principal banks and companies of the country.
; Casco Viejo : Located in the 7th District, is the historic and ancient center of La Paz. It now houses museums, hotels, shops and buildings as the Mayor City of La Paz and the Central Bank of Bolivia. In the Old Quarter is the Plaza Murillo, which is home to the Government Palace and the National Congress.
; Miraflores : In the 7th District, Miraflores district is separated from downtown by a long barrel and connected by the Bridge of the Americas and two avenues. Originally a residential zone, its growth has led it to become a major recreational center. It houses universities, hospitals and the Estadio Hernando Siles.
; Northern District : Located in the 2nd and 3rd districts, it has a significant industrial activity, being the Cervecería Boliviana Nacional the most significant industry founded by Germans, and one of the city's biggest companies in the country. It connects La Paz with the city of El Alto by the autopista.
; Southern District : In the 5th district; has less height than the rest of La Paz. This area houses some of the most affluent and exclusive neighborhoods of the city, like Obrajes, Irpavi, Calacoto, La Florida and Achumani, among others. It has been benefited from steady economic growth and is now the second commercial and financial center of the city, housing international firms like Moody's, Citibank, Aon Corporation, Huawei, Millicom International Cellular, Nissan Motor Corporation, Samsung Electronics, Pan American Silver Corporation, a Sumitomo Corporation branch, Ernst & Young, and the "MegaCenter", La Paz's biggest shopping mall.

Cityscape

Colonial architecture

The city of La Paz has a consistently decreasing volume of colonial buildings, mostly centered around the vicinity of the Plaza Murillo. Due to a lack of funds and the inability of property owners to pay for restorations to colonial buildings, many have been torn down, or are in a dilapidated state. As historic buildings are more expensive to keep, land owners find it less of a burden to construct more modern buildings as opposed to keeping the old ones. Although there has been an increasing number of projects and propositions to restore some of the city's colonial buildings, the future of these historic edifices remains uncertain.

Economy

The economy of La Paz has improved greatly in recent years, mainly as a result of improved political stability. Due to the long period of high inflation and economic struggle faced by Bolivians in the 1980s and early 1990s, a large informal economy developed. Evidence of this is provided by the markets found all around the city.
While there are stable markets, almost every street in the downtown area and surrounding neighborhoods has at least one vendor on it.
La Paz remains the principal center of manufacturing enterprises that produce finished-product goods for the country, with about two-thirds of Bolivia's manufacturing located nearby.
Historically, industry in Bolivia has been dominated by mineral processing and the preparation of agricultural products. However, in the urban centre of La Paz, small plants carry out a large portion of the industry. Food, tobacco products, clothing, various consumer goods, building materials, and agricultural tools are produced. "The tin quotations from London are watched in La Paz with close interest as an index of the country's prosperity; a third of the national revenue and more than half of the total customs in 1925 were derived from tin; in short, that humble but indispensable metal is the hub around which Bolivia's economic life revolves. The tin deposits of Bolivia, second largest in the world,... invite development."

Sports

La Paz is the home of some of the biggest football teams in Bolivia.
The city is host to several other teams that play in the first and second divisions such as:
With the exception of Deportivo Municipal and Unión Maestranza, all the other teams play the majority of their games in the city stadium, the Estadio Hernando Siles, which also hosts the national football team and international games. Always Ready frequently play at the Estadio Rafael Mendoza which belongs to The Strongest, who rarely use the stadium due to its relatively small capacity.

Education

The city hosts some of the most important universities of the country:

Tourism

La Paz is an important cultural center of Bolivia. The city hosts several cathedrals belonging to the colonial times, such as the San Francisco Cathedral and the Metropolitan Cathedral, this last one located on Murillo Square, which is also home of the political and administrative power of the country. Hundreds of different museums can be found across the city, the most notable ones on Jaén Street, which street design has been preserved from the Spanish days and is home of 10 different museums.
The home of the Bolivian government is located on Murillo Square and is known as "Palacio Quemado" as it has been on fire several times. The palace has been restored many times since, but the name has remained untouched.

Principal attractions

Museums and cultural centers

Automobiles and public transportation are the main means to get into the city. In March 2012, more than 1.5 million vehicles were registered. Heavy traffic is common in the city center and traffic jams occur on peak hours.

Highways

The La Paz-El Alto Highway is a toll road that connects the city of La Paz with the neighboring city of El Alto. It is the city's main highway. It allows easy access to El Alto International Airport. The highway runs 11,7 km and crosses the city of El Alto:
The Southern District, one of La Paz's most affluent and commercial neighborhoods, is relatively separated from the rest of the city, including the CBD. The Avenida Costanera and Avenida Kantutani connect the southern district with the rest of the metropolitan area.

Air

is La Paz's national and international airport and a principal hub for Línea Aérea Amaszonas and Transporte Aéreo Militar. It also serves as a focus city for Boliviana de Aviación, Bolivia's flag-carrier and largest airline. The airport is located in the city of El Alto and is south-west of La Paz's city center. At an elevation of, it is the highest international airport and fifth highest commercial airport in the world. The runway has a length of. It is one of Bolivia's three main international gateways, along with Jorge Wilstermann International Airport and Viru Viru International Airport.
International carriers serving El Alto International Airport include Avianca, LATAM Airlines and Peruvian Airlines, which offer direct flights from La Paz to cities such as Bogotá, Lima, Santiago and Cusco. However, most international traffic, including flights to Europe, operated out of Viru Viru International Airport in Santa Cruz de la Sierra which is at a much lower altitude and is capable of handling larger aircraft.
Airport facilities include ATMs, cafés and restaurants, car rentals, duty-free shops, and free Wi-Fi internet. Additionally, the airport supplies travelers with oxygen for those who suffer from altitude sickness.

Bus

La Paz Bus Station, originally a bus and train station, was built by the French architect Gustave Eiffel. It is the main gateway for inter-city buses with several daily departures to all the main Bolivian cities, and routes to Chile and Peru. The city is connected by road with the city of Oruro from where there are routes to Sucre, Potosí and the south of the country. Another highway branches off before Oruro to reach Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. Roads to the west go to Copacabana and Tiwanaku, near Lake Titicaca, and continue to Cuzco, Peru via the border town of Desaguadero. There are also roads north to get to Yungas crossing the Andes Mountains.
Departures to smaller cities and towns within the department use informal stations located in Villa Fátima, Upper San Pedro and near the General Cemetery.

Cable car system

A system of urban transit aerial cable cars called Mi Teleférico was opened in 2014. Eight lines are in operation, and three more lines are in the planning stage. The initial three lines were built by the Austrian company Doppelmayr. The first two lines connected La Paz with El Alto. All stations have both a Spanish name and an Aymara name.
LineLengthTravel timeStationsopened
Red Line2.4 km10 min3May 2014
Yellow Line3.9 km13.5 min4September 2014
Green Line3.7 km16.6 min4December 2014
Blue Line4.7 km17 min5March 2017
Orange Line2.6 km10 min4September 2017
White Line2.9 km13.1 min4March 2018
Sky Blue Line2.6 km11.8 min4July 2018
Purple Line4.3 km16.2 min3September 2018

Communications and media

The water supply of La Paz is threatened by the impact of climate change through the melting of glaciers. The city receives its drinking water from three water systems: El Alto, Achachicala and Pampahasi. La Paz shares the first and largest of these systems with its sister city El Alto. All three systems are fed by glaciers and rivers in the Cordillera mountain range. 20-28 % of its water is fed by glaciers, the remainder coming from rainfall and snowmelt. The glaciers recede as a result of climate change, initially increasing water availability during the dry season, but ultimately threatening a substantial decrease in dry season run-off when they completely disappear. A small glacier, the Chacaltaya near El Alto, already disappeared in 2008. The El Alto system receives its water from the Tuni Dam and two water channels. These channels divert water that flows from the Zongo Glacier on the slopes of Huayna Potosi and from Condoriri North of El Alto. The 2.9 km long Zongo glacier retreats at a rate of about 18 meters per year. The Tuni and Condoriri glaciers have lost 39% of their area between 1983 and 2006. According to a study by the Stockholm Environment Institute, the El Alto system is the least resilient against the impact of climate change among the three systems. The study says that reducing water distribution losses is the most effective short-term strategy to deal with water scarcity. New water sources further to the North in the Cordillera include the Khara Kota and Taypicacha, but they are expensive to develop and their water supply is also affected by glacier melt.

International relations

Twin towns and sister cities

La Paz is part of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities from October 12, 1982 establishing brotherly relations with the following cities:

  • Andorra la Vella, Andorra
  • Arica, Chile
  • Asunción, Paraguay
  • Bogotá, Colombia
  • Buenos Aires, Argentina
  • Calama, Chile
  • Caracas, Venezuela
  • Cuzco, Peru
  • Ensenada, Mexico
  • Guatemala City, Guatemala
  • Havana, Cuba
  • Lisbon, Portugal
  • Madrid, Spain
  • Managua, Nicaragua
  • Mérida, Venezuela
  • Mexico City, Mexico
  • Montevideo, Uruguay
  • Panama City, Panama
  • Quito, Ecuador
  • Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  • San Jose, Costa Rica
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico, United States
  • San Salvador, El Salvador
  • Santiago, Chile
  • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
  • Tegucigalpa, Honduras
    • Additionally, agreement was reached by Twin Cities with:

    • Ankara, Turkey
    • Bolzano, Italy
    • Bonn, Germany
    • Budapest, Hungary
    • Dalian, China
    • Denver, United States
    • Dublin, Ireland
  • Hannover, Germany
  • London, United Kingdom
  • Moscow, Russia
  • Reykjavík, Iceland
  • Santa Ana de Coro, Venezuela
  • São Paulo, Brazil
  • Stockholm, Sweden
  • Tehran, Iran
  • Taipei, Taiwan
  • Tokyo, Japan
  • Vaduz, Liechtenstein
  • Washington D.C., USA
  • Zagreb, Croatia
  • Zaragoza, Spain
    • La Paz is also a member of Merco Ciudades, a group of 180 cities within Mercosur, since 1999.

    Notable people