Location Colombia Criteria v, vi UNESCO World Heritage Site inscription 2011 | Type Cultural Reference 1121 | |
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UNESCO region Latin America and the Caribbean | ||
Colombia coffee axis region the only risk is wanting to stay
The Colombian coffee Region (Spanish: Eje Cafetero), also known as the Coffee Triangle (Spanish: Triángulo del Café) is a part of the Colombian Paisa region in the rural area of Colombia, famous for growing and production of a majority of Colombian coffee, considered by many to be the best coffee in the world. There are three departments in the area: Caldas, Quindío and Risaralda. The most visited cities are Manizales, Armenia and Pereira.
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History of coffee
Coffee beans began being grown commercially in Colombia in Salazar de las Palmas, Norte de Santander and grew to be Colombia's primary export in the twentieth century. In 1999 it represented 3.7% of gross domestic product and 37% of agricultural employment. The main coffee producing departments are: Nariño, Norte de Santander, Antioquia, Valle del Cauca, Huila, Tolima, Caldas, Risaralda, Quindio and Cundinamarca.
The area between the departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío is known as the Coffee Zone because of the large development experienced by the cultivation of this product. This region was strongly affected by an earthquake of 6.4 on the Richter scale on January 25, 1999, and subsequently the region's economy recovered rapidly.
Overview
Weather conditions (8 °C to 24 °C), geographical (Andean Rainforest) and this geological region, determine the production of high quality coffee, with relatively short harvest periods. Farmers in the area have developed techniques for growing, harvesting and processing of grain, and all done "grain by grain", and have retained this form of processing industry despite new techniques of mass agricultural industrialization.
The famous advertising icon "Juan Valdez", represented by a Paisa farmer wearing a carriel, aguadeño hat and poncho, and accompanied by a mule, has become a triumph of advertising communication. Juan Valdez has been considered in United States as the advertising image of greater recall among the inhabitants of that country in the year 2005.
“Coffee Cultural Landscape” in Colombia
“The coffee axis” and “The coffee triangle”, is different from the “Coffee Cultural Landscape”(es: Paisaje Cultural Cafetero) in Colombia. The “Coffee Cultural Landscape”, inscribed on the World Heritage List by UNESCO, 2011, is different from “The coffee axis” and “The coffee triangle”.
Tourist attractions
The region has developed major theme parks. One of them, the Colombian National Coffee Park located in the town of Montenegro in Quindio. The area is also the Museum of Culture Coffee, showing the process of grain production to savor a traditional Colombian coffee, this museum, like all the other theme parks are a replica of the colonial city, where tourists enjoy dance performances and traditional music, panoramic view from cable car with its lush landscape, and various rides.
Another theme park unique in Colombia is the National Park of Culture Agriculture - 'Panaca', also located in the Municipality of Quimbaya in Quindio. Its key feature is that, unlike zoos, visitors are immersed in a personal and direct contact with farm animals and also enjoy scheduled activities and events with those animals.
The Matecaña City Zoo in Pereira, is one of the most important traditional zoos in Colombia and South America, has 150 species and 800 individuals, distributed in 239 mammals, 172 birds, 57 fish, 111 reptiles and 5 Of note, the high rate of reproduction, making even a few years ago the crossing of an African lion and a Bengal tiger, resulting in the 'Ligre'. It also has the important Museum of Nature within.
Other attractions in the area include:
Main urban centers
Tourism
Offers some trekking and the chance to see some of Colombia's top coffee cultivating land as well as the country's native palm tree - the Wax Palm, which grows up to 60 metres tall.