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 Caracas is the capital of Venezuela
and main entry way to the country. The city is hemmed in by green
forested hills and is home to almost five million people, from the
tremendously wealthy to the desperately poor. Caracas has an excellent
infrastructure of hotels and services
for demanding leisure travelers and adventure traveler alike.
The city was founded in 1567 as Santiago de Leon de Caracas by Spanish explorer Diego de Losada. Caracas was the birthplace of two of Latin America's most important figures, Francisco de Miranda and "El Libertador" Simon Bolivar.
A terrible earthquake destroyed the city on
March 26, 1812 and was portrayed by authorities as a
divine punishment to people rebelling against the
Spanish Crown, during the Venezuelan War of
Independence.
As the economy of oil-rich Venezuela grew steadily
during the first part of the 20th century, Caracas
became one of Latin America's economic centers, and
was also known as the preferred hub between Europe,
South America and the United States of America.
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