City in Loja, Ecuador
About Loja, Ecuador
Loja, formerly Loxa and fully City of the Immaculate Conception of Loja, is the capital of Ecuador's Loja Province. It is located in the Cuxibamba valley in the south of the country, sharing borders with the provinces of Zamora-Chinchipe and other cantons of the province of Loja. Loja holds a rich tradition in the arts, and for this reason is known as the Music and Cultural Capital of Ecuador. The city is home to two major universities.
History
Loja was definitively founded on 8 December 1548 by the Spanish captain Alonso de Mercadillo in the Cuxibamba valley, after an earlier mid-1540s site near La Toma in the Catamayo canyon proved unhealthy. Contemporary and official accounts explain that the relocation followed severe seismic damage and malaria outbreaks, and that the town took its name from Mercadillo's birthplace, Loja in Spain. About a century after its establishment the town was destroyed by an earthquake and then rebuilt on its present site. During the colonial period it stood on the royal road between Quito and Cuzco, serving as an administrative hub for the southern highlands and lying near the historic gold-mining district of Zaruma. …
Geography
Loja is in the bottom of the broad glacial Cuxibamba valley. It lies between the humid Amazon Basin and the Peruvian sechura, and is composed mainly of paramo, cloud-forest, and jungle. The valley borders the Podocarpus National Park, which is a massive cloud-forest reserve accessible through the Cajanuma gates just minutes outside the city. The Rio Zamora and Rio Malacatos flow through the city of Loja. Loja has a mild Andean climate, generally warm during the days and colder and often wetter at night. The average temperature is 16 °C (61 °F). June and July brings an eastern drizzle with the trade winds, and is referred to as the "windy season." Due to its valley location, the city is often misty in the morning with general absence of sunshine, clearing off towards the afternoon.
Arts and culture
There is a thriving musical scene in Loja, in keeping with the city's reputation. There are numerous small music and salsa clubs, and it is not uncommon to hear Lojanos singing as they go about their day. On Sundays, the local police band performs in the Plaza de Independencia outside of San Sebastian Church. The city is full of public artworks, including massive painted tile murals, frescoes, and statuary. Of particular note are the frescoes of Bolívar and Sucre that greet visitors as they pass through the gates of the city. Loja is the birthplace of several renowned intellectuals, such as: Pablo Palacio, Benjamín Carrión, Miguel Riofrío, Ángel Felicísimo Rojas, among others. …
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