La Vega, Dominican Republic

La Vega
Municipality
From top to bottom and from left to right: Plaza Duarte, Juan Bosch Building, Inmaculada Concepción school, Padre Fantino Park, Court Of Justice, City Hall
La Vega
Coordinates: 19°13′12″N 70°31′48″W / 19.22000°N 70.53000°W / 19.22000; -70.53000Coordinates: 19°13′12″N 70°31′48″W / 19.22000°N 70.53000°W / 19.22000; -70.53000
Country	Dominican Republic
Province	La Vega
Founded	1494
Municipality since	1844
Area[1]
• Total	639.85 km2 (247.05 sq mi)
Elevation[2]	100 m (300 ft)
Population (2012)[3]
• Total	235,698
• Density	370/km2 (950/sq mi)
• Demonym	Vegano(a)
Distance to  – Santo Domingo	125 km
Municipal Districts	2
Climate	Af
Website	http://www.alcaldiavegana.com/

La Vega, or Concepción de La Vega is the fourth largest city and municipality of the Dominican Republic. It is located at a province that shares the same name.This city is known as the heart of the Dominican Republic for its geographical position and its large agricultural production methods throughout the province with the same name "Provincia de La Vega".

History

Christopher Columbus built a small fort near present-day La Vega, in 1494. It was intended to guard the route to the interior gold deposits of the Cibao valley. A Spanish settlement known as Concepción de la Vega gradually grew up around the fort.^[4] After 1508, when gold was found in quantity there, Concepción became the first gold boomtown in the continent. By 1510 it was one of the largest and most important European cities in the hemisphere. The town was destroyed and buried by an earthquake on December 2, 1562, and the survivors relocated to the present site on the banks of the Camú River. The site of the ruined town remained largely in farmland until a small portion of the original city was purchased by the Dominican government in the mid-1970s and renamed as National Park of Concepción de La Vega.

Sectors

• Arenoso (surrounding areas)
• Barrio Guarionex
• Barrio Loteria
• Barrio Militar
• Barrio X
• Bayacanes (surrounding areas)
• Carmelitas
• Centro Ciudad (Margarita)
  

  Centro Ciudad sector
• Conani
• Cutupú (surrounding areas)
• Don Bosco
• Don Pedro
• El Bolsillo
• El Campito
• El Cerro (surrounding areas)
• El Ensueño
• El Napoles
• El Riito
• Ensanche Duarte
• Gamundi
• Guaigui (surrounding areas)
• La Arboleda
• La Boca Del Lobo
• Las Carolinas
• La Enramada
• La Cigua
• La Planta
• La Riviera
• Las Marias
• Licey (surrounding areas)
• Los Pomos
• Los Robles
• Los Multi-Familiares (Viejos y Nuevos)
• Palmarito
• Parque Hostos
  

  Parque Hostos sector
• Ponton
• Puerto Rico
• Rancho Abajo (surrounding areas)
• Residencial Chimbin
• Residencial Coral
• Río Verde Abajo (surrounding areas)
• Río Verde Arriba (surrounding areas)
• San Antonio
• San Martin
• San Miguel
• Santo Domingo Sabio
• Soto (surrounding areas)
• Villa Carolinas
• Villa Francisca
• Villa Francisca II
• Villa Margarita
• Villa Mera
• Villa Real
• Villa Hollywood
• Villa Lora
• Villa Rosa
• Zafaraya

Government

Economy

The local industries are based upon cacao, coffee, tobacco, rice, and cattle production. There is also a small but very famous brewery called Cervecería Vegana known for its pilsener-style beers, named Quisqueya and Soberana. There is a factory known for making the famous sausage Induveca.

Geography

La Vega is bounded on the north by the Camú River. This river flows about 100 kilometers before emptying into Yuna River. South of the city is the Cordillera Central, the largest mountain system of the Dominican Republic. El Ponton Field, a local airport, bounds the city on the east. To La Vega's west are the Camú River again and Montellano.

Climate

Education

There is an extension of the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña and there is the Universidad Católica Tecnológica del Cibao. Since 2005 the national and local governments are planning to build an extension of the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo, but there are some conflicts and the project is behind schedule. This city also has one of the most expensive schools in the country, the famous Colegio Agustiniano, which is the only in the country.

Private, public, and high schools

Eugenio María de Hostos School

Laura vicuña

The Book Fair

Annually, the famous Feria del Libro de República Dominicana (Dominican Republic Book Fair) takes place in the city of La Vega. In this fair most of the famous books and literary works from Dominicans writers such as Juan Bosch, Joaquín Balaguer, w:es:Federico García Godoy, among others, and international writers such as Gabriela Mistral, Rubén Darío, Gabriel García Márquez, among others, are sold, and some theatrical works are shown to the public. The fair is celebrated each year in the month of September, lasting about one week, and brings to this city all the editors from all around the country, selling many kinds of books, theatrical works, etc.

• 
  Concepción de La Vega section
• 
  Hermanas Mirabal section
• 
  Monte Cristi section
• 
  Santiago section
• 
  Puerto Plata section
• 
  Mao section
• 
  San Francisco de Macorís section
• 
  Nagua section
• 
  Dajabón section
• 
  Samaná section
• 
  Santiago Rodriguez section

Transportation

There are many bus companies which travel between La Vega other cities like: Santo Domingo, Santiago, Samana, Puerto Plata, and others. There is also El Ponton Field, which serves domestics flights.

Sports

Each year between the months of October and December a basketball tournament is held in this city, it is called in Spanish Torneo Superior de Baloncesto de La Vega in English Superior Basketball Tournament of La Vega, This tournament started in October 1994 (after a time of political and cultural crisis between the years 1978 and October 1994). One team is still active, the other ("El Country Team") disappearing.

a match being held between La Matica and Enrriquillo

• El Parque Hostos is the most winning team with nine crowns (1995, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2013) and five times as runner up (1997,2003,2008, 2014, 2015).
• La Matica is the second most winning team with five crowns (1994, 1999, 2000, 2010, 2011), six times as first runner up (1998, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) and qualified to the finals in 1996 but that year's finale was eventually canceled.
• DOSA is the third most winning team with four crowns (1998, 2008, 2012, 2014) and four times as first runner up (2001, 2009, 2010, 2013).
• La Villa is the fourth most winning team with two crowns (1997, 2015) and five times as runner up (1994, 1999, 2000, 2011, 2016).
• Enriquillo is the fifth most winning team with two crowns (2003, 2016), one time as first runner up (2012) and qualified to the finals in 1996 but that year's finale was eventually canceled.
• In the tournament number 19 (2012) was the first time in the history of this tournament that none of the most winning teams Club La Matica & Club Parque Hostos didn't advance to the final.

Notable people

• Juan Bosch: famous writer, former President of the Dominican Republic, from February 27, 1963 to September 24, 1963, and for decades a top, national political leader
• Juan Carlos Payano: boxer
• Victoriano Sosa: Boxer
• Antonio Guzmán Fernández: former President of the Dominican Republic, 1978–1982
• Larimar Fiallo: Miss Dominican Republic 2004
• Federico García Godoy: famous writer
• Carlos de la Mota: Televisa actor
• Vielka Valenzuela: Miss Dominican Republic 1994
• Carola Durán: Miss Dominican Republic 2012 DETHRONED
• Jonathan Villar: professional baseball shortstop for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball.
• Antonio Eugenio Robinson: inventor holder of multiple US patents who sought refuge 1950 in NYC from the political strife of the Trujillo era died in 2014 at age 102.5

References

Photo gallery

• 
  The Catedral of La Vega
• 
  Plaza Duarte
• 
  A typical neighborhood
• 
  Commercial center in La Vega
• 
  Electrical center in La Vega