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Matanzas - Cuba
 
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Matanzas - Cuba |
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Matanzas is one of the provinces of Cuba. Major towns in the province
include Cárdenas, Jovellanos and the capital of the same name, Matanzas. The
resort town of Varadero is also located in this province.
The second largest in Cuba, Matanzas province is largely flat, with its
highest point (Pan de Matanzas) at only 380m above sea level.
The north coast has numerous small cays of its coast, and scrubland and
mangroves near the shoreline.
The southern coast has one of Cuba's most distinctive features: an enormous
marsh, Ciénaga de Zapata that covers both the southern part of the province
and the peninsula of the same name. East of the peninsula lies the Bay of
Pigs, the site of the failed US backed invasion.
Of Cuba's provinces, Matanzas is one of the most industrialised, with
petroleum wells, refineries, supertanker facilities, and 21 sugar mills to
process the harvests of the fields of sugarcane in the province.
The Province of Matanzas is located toward the
central part of Cuba. It has an area of 8,444 square kilometers (3,378
square miles). Matanzas is the fifth largest province of Cuba, greater only
than the Province of La Habana. The population estimates according to the
1953 census were approximately 395,780 residents. The population of Matanzas
consisted mostly of rural residents, with 59% rural and 41% urban.
The cacique or Indian chief Abana originally formed Matanzas as part of the
La Habana area. The Matanzas and La Habana areas were later seperated, with
the Matanzas capital being founded in 1690. This Province of Matanzas
consists of 22 municipalities, which are: Agramonte, Alacranes, Arcos de
Canasí, Bolondrón, Cabezas, Cárdenas, Carlos Rojas, Colón, Guamacaro, Jaguey
Grande, Jovellanos, Juan Gualberto Gómez, Los Arabos, Manguito, Martí,
Matanzas, Máximo Gómez, Pedro Betancourt, Perico, San José de los Ramos,
Santa Ana Cidra, and Unión de Reyes.
This province forms part of the geographic region called Occidente, which
encompasses the Provinces of Pinar del Río, La Habana, Matanzas, and Las
Villas. The Matanzas area is divided into two significant regions: 1) the
northwestern area that extends to the hills called Tetas de Camarioca; and
2) an area called the Llanura de Colón, an extensive valley that occupies
the vast majority of the province. Matanzas contains one of the most
picturesque and beautiful valleys in Cuba called the Valle de Yumurí, as
well as the magnificent caverns called the Cuevas de Bellamar. Matanzas
harbor are also one of the most beautiful and important in Cuba, which
include the bahías de Matanzas, Cárdenas, and Santa Clara. Cárdenas contains
a peninsula called Hicacos, the site of Cuba's most beautiful beach,
Varadero -- also called "Playa Azul."
Matanzas most important agricultural product was sugar, followed by the
industries of distilleries, sugar refineries, liquor manufacturers, and
pastry producers. There were twenty-four major sugar mills in Matanzas:
Alava, Araujo, Australia, Carolina, Conchita, Cuba, Dolores, Dos Rosas,
Elena, España, Guipúzcoa, Limones, Mercedes, Porfuerza, Progreso, Puerto,
San Ignacio, Santa Amalia, Santa Rita, Santo Domingo, Soledad, Tinguaro,
Triunfo, and Zorilla. |
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