Carúpano, Sucre State, Venezuela

🇻🇪 Carúpano is a city in the eastern Venezuelan state of Sucre. It is located on the Venezuelan Caribbean coast at the opening of two valleys, some 120 km east of the capital of Sucre, Cumaná. This city is the shire town of the Bermúdez Municipality. Carúpano is considered the gateway to the Paria Peninsula and its main commercial and financial center.

History It was somewhere on the Peninsula of Paria, near Carúpano, where Christopher Columbus first set foot on the American continent for the only time, during his third voyage (in all his other trips he only explored the Caribbean islands).

It was in Carúpano where Simón Bolívar, the liberator of Venezuela, issued a decree ending slavery in 1814.

In 1815, King Ferdinand VII of Spain, sent a fleet of 18 warships and 42 cargo ships to Carupano and Isla Margarita with the mission of pacifying the revolts against the Spanish monarchy in the South American colonies.

In May 1962 Carúpano was the scene of a short-lived military rebellion against the government of Rómulo Betancourt, in which rebel military officers took over the city. The incident is known as El Carupanazo.

In July 1997, a violent earthquake struck the city and most of the state. This earthquake was centered in the town of Cariaco, where most of the deaths and damage occurred.

Economy Cacao, coffee, sugar, cotton, timber and rum have been important exports of Carúpano since colonial times. Carupanese rums are highly appreciated nationwide, so the internal consumption usually leaves little surplus rum for export.

Currently the local General José Francisco Bermúdez Airport does not carry regular commercial flights.

Government Carúpano is the administrative centre of Bermúdez Municipality.

House of Cable The House of Cable was where the first submarine cable between Europe and America arrived, joining the French city of Marseille with Carúpano, back in the late 19th century. This house is today the headquarters of the Tomas Merle foundation and the Paria Project, two organizations that promote tourism and industry.

Religious buildings • Iglesia Catedral Santa Rosa de Lima • Iglesia Santa Catalina de Siena • Iglesia Nuestra Señora de Coromoto • Iglesia San Martín de Porres • Iglesia Ntra. Señora del Valle • Iglesia San Rafael Ancargél • Capilla Santa Cruz(Guayacan de las Flores) • Capilla Santa Cruz(Guayacan de los Pescadores) • Capilla Santa Cruz(Sector el Mangle).

Squares and parks • Plaza Andrés • Plaza Bolívar • Plaza Colón • Plaza Miranda • Plaza Santa Rosa • Plaza Suniaga • Parque Karupana.