Puerto Chiapas, Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tapachula is a municipio (municipality) and city with a hot, humid climate
in the Mexican state of Chiapas. It is located in southern part of the state
on the Soconusco coastal plain, near the border with Guatemala, at 14.91° N
92.27° W. In the 2005 census the population of the municipality was 282,420
people, whereas the city of Tapachula had a population of 189,991 (more than
two-thirds of the municipality's total). The city and the municipality both
rank second in the state in population, behind Tuxtla Gutiérrez.

The city has one of the highest GDP per capita in Mexico, and it is known
sometimes as "Perla del Soconusco" ("Pearl of Soconusco").

Culture

The population mix is culturally diverse. From Native Americans and Mestizos
Spanish, German, Chinese, Japanese, French and several others. The
International Fair of Tapachula is celebrated during March with cattle
agricultural and commercial exhibition.

Important newspapers are the Tapachultecan "El Orbe" and the Soconuscan "El
Diario del Sur"; radio can be received from both Mexico and Guatemala.

Important politicians, scientists, and artists were born in Tapachula, like
Fray Matías de Córdova and Amparo Montes. During the history of the city
several foreign cultures had influence in the rich history of the city. The
Germans came during the coffee boom and created German villages and
haciendas where their descendants live today, and haciendas like: Hamburgo,
Bremen, Germania, etc. still remind us of the first Saxons of the area. The
Japanese and the Chinese also left a strong influence in Tapachula, in the
cuisine and architecture. They came to construct railroads and were the
first Asian immigrants in Latin America. Italian, French and other expats
descendants still live along the Spanish, Mestizo and Indians of the region.

Migration

Tapachula is also known as the point at which the undocumented migrants from
Central America begin their trek northward in search of jobs, and a better
life. Before Hurricane Stan devastated the Soconusco region, a train system
carried large numbers of these migrants weekly to the north.

Metropolitan area

Tapachula has an extensive metropolitan zone that includes several suburbs
including beaches like Playa Linda, Puerto Madero, Viva Mexico a downtown
Tapachula and even a Cruise Harbor named Puerto Chiapas (2005). The postal
code for Tapachula is 30700.

Education

The city is an exemplary cultural hub with strong involvement from the
government of Mexico changing trends of literacy around this city. Although
there are not that many universities, most majors are offered from law and
accounting (UNACH, CEST), to medicine and civil engineering (IESCH,
Tecnologico de Tapachula), architecture and system engineer (UVG).

Puerto Madero is a former name of the current Puerto Chiapas.