Barquisimeto is the capital city of the
State of Lara located in west central
Venezuela, halfway between
Caracas and
Maracaibo on the Turbio River. Coordinates
10°3'50?N, 69°20'05?W.
The city has strong agroindustrial (the large-scale production, processing, and packaging of food using modern equipment and methods) roots, being surrounded by a sugar cane valley and near two of the largest vegetable-producing regions in Venezuela the Valle de Quíbor (Quíbor Valley) and Sanare.
First founded by Don Juan de Villegas in 1552 and named Nueva Segovia de Variquisimeto, the site of the city was later moved to several places until 1563, when the town finally settled in its present location. Today Barquisimeto is a modern city, the fourth most populated in the country, and is situated in the middle of Venezuela's west-central axis of communication, industry and agriculture.
Two well-known landmarks in Barquisimeto are the obelisk, called El Obelisco (which is actually flat on top not making it a true obelisk), raised to commemorate Barquisimeto's 400th anniversary of foundation, and the Cathedral, which looks like an inverted orchid; this style of construction is very rare in Latin America since it consists of a cross-like tinted glass dome, designed in 1959 by Jan Bergkamp and finished in 1969.
