Mérida, Mérida

Mérida

- - Flag of the city of Mérida Coat of arms of the city of Mérida
Funded as: Santiago de los Caballeros de Mérida
Motto of the city: La ciudad de los caballeros
Estado	Mérida
Municipio	Municipio Libertador
Alcalde	Carlos León (2004 – 2008)
Surface	25 km² (aprox.)
Population  - Total (2001)  - Density	300.000 hab. (Metropolitan area) 204,879 hab. x,x hab/km²
GMT	GMT/UTC -4
Altitud	1630 Mts.
Latitud Longitud	8º 35' 12" N 71º 9' 29" O
Telephone Code	+58 0274
Gentilicio	Merideño/a
Fundation	9 of octuber of 1558
Sitio Web: http://www.merida5101.com/

The Venezuelan city of Mérida is capital of the state of the same name, Mérida State. Known as "La Ciudad de los Caballeros" (The City of Gentlemen), is considered one of the most attractive tourist destinations in this country.

Merida's population of 204,879 (2001 Census) makes it a relative small city, but it is filled with a highly active cultural life.

The weather of the city is one of its well known attributes, although being in a tropical latitude, the temperature is rather cold (around 20-25°C), with easy access to higher mountains wich temperature can go under freezing point. As told in www.natoura.com 'In Mérida, daytime temperatures are usually around 23-25ºC, but on overcast days they can reach as low as 7-10ºC. In the mountains at night, the temperature can get down to 0ºC, and at higher altitudes it can drop to -5ºC. So goes the saying in the Andes, "summer by day, winter by night"'.

Mérida is also home to the Universidad de Los Andes University of the Andes (http://www.ula.ve) known by its Spanish acronym ULA. It is home to the world's longest and highest cablecar, the french built Teleférico de Mérida, rising to 4765 meters (about 16,000ft), across 12,5 km in four stages. Mérida is also home to Heladería Coromoto, the ice cream parlor noted in the Guinness Book of Records as having the most flavors. Mérida is an ideal place for any of a wide-variety of mountain sports and activities.

Localización

La ciudad se ubica en la cordillera andina, en el valle que forman la Sierra Nevada y la Sierra La Culata, entre los rios Chama y Albarregas.

- Latitud: 8,6

- Longitud -71,18333

the access by road is trough Trasandina (troncal 7) that joins Merida with Trujillo, Barinas and Táchira states. It also have a nacional airport Aeropuerto Alberto Carnevali(SVMD) .

History

Merida was founded octubre the 9th of 1558 by spanish captain Juan Rodríguez Suárez with a group of 59 soldiers in the town of "San Juan de Lagunillas", altough a year later is moved año to its actual location some kilometers further in the Chama river valley by the hand of Juan de Maldonado who acted by the powers of the "Audiencia de Santa Fe"