Paramaribo

Paramaribo is located on the Suriname River, 20 kilometers from its confluence with the Atlantic Ocean . The climate is equatorial . Daytime temperatures throughout the year range from +23 to +31 ° C. The rainy season lasts from April to July, in September and October the rains are less plentiful. There are about 200 rainy days in a year. The annual rainfall is about 2300-3000 mm.

The vegetation is mainly represented by evergreen trees and shrubs . The fauna of the vicinity of the capital is represented by monkeys , jaguars , cougars , tapirs , anteaters , armadillos and many birds. The waters of the Suriname River are rich in fish .

Paramaribo was founded in 1640 by the French colonists, on the site of the Dutch trading post that arose in 1603, and in 1651 was captured by the British ^[4] . The name of the city in translation from tupi-guarani means "inhabitants of the big water." Since 1667, the city, along with the entire territory of Suriname, under an agreement between the Netherlands and Great Britain passed under the authority of the Netherlands and received the status of the administrative center of the Dutch possession of Suriname. The colony was ceded to the Dutch in exchange for territories in North America (the area of ​​modern New York ). Since 1954, it has been the center of an autonomous state within the Kingdom of the Netherlands . Officially, the city became the capital of the Republic of Suriname after the country achieved independence in 1975 .

The population of Paramaribo is about 250 thousand people. Natural population growth is one of the lowest in Latin America .

Indians live in the city, descendants of immigrants who came to the city in the 19th century (about 33%), Creoles (30%), Indonesians (15%), Negroes (10%), Indians (2%), Chinese (2%), Europeans (1%). The official language is Dutch , however, most of the population speaks Sranan-Tongo (or Negro-English) - an adapted English dialect.

Believers are divided into Hindus , Christians , Sunni Muslims , as well as adherents of Judaism and Confucianism .

The capital has the only university in the country, founded in 1968 , the city has one museum where you can see archaeological exhibits, exhibitions on the history of Surinamese culture and the natural history of the region.

The city center is Independence Square, located near the walls of the presidential palace. Immediately behind the palace is a city park , and east of the square is Fort Zealand , a 17th-century coastal fortified fortress. In general, the architecture of the city ​​is a combination of impressive brick colonial buildings with grassy squares of squares and wooden buildings, narrow streets lined with tall palm trees and mangroves bordering the coastal line of the city.

Due to previously misplaced priorities in state policy aimed primarily at the development of bauxite and gold mining , there has been a significant lag in other sectors of the economy, including tourism.

Tourism

Paramaribo gained wide popularity in Russia thanks to the popular song of the rock group “ Quarter ” - “Paramaribo”, but despite the colorful description of the city in the song, the real state of the resort complex of Paramaribo leaves much to be desired. The tourist infrastructure of the capital of Suriname, as well as the whole republic, is rather scarce. The ocean coast of Suriname is poorly developed, most of the tourist sites are concentrated along the banks at the mouth of the Suriname River.

Lag in the development of tourism infrastructure due to the introduction of a new state program for the development of tourism in Suriname ^{[ when? ]} , began to decline. The construction boom in Paramaribo has gained rapid development. New hotels, casinos , night clubs are being commissioned, old ones are being reconstructed and new tourist facilities are being built. High-rise buildings of foreign banks and office centers are massively erected in the city center, modern shopping complexes are appearing.

• The John Pengel International Airport, located 40 kilometers south of the city, has regular flights to Amsterdam , Willemstad , Oranjestad , Port of Spain , Georgetown , Belem , Kralendijk , Philipsburg and Miami . Also, near the city is the regional airport "Zorg", the busiest in the country, from which you can fly to any part of Suriname.

• Paramaribo, located on the most important highway of Suriname, running along the coast, from the border with Guyana to the border with French Guiana and is the main transport hub. Highways also branch out of the city to the south, inland. In 2000, a 1.5 km bridge was opened in Paramaribo across the Suriname River, linking the two parts of the city and the Republic.
• Paramaribo has the country's largest seaport . Port management is carried out by the state-owned company NV Suriname.
• In 1903 - 1912, a 166-kilometer railway with a meter gauge was built in Suriname. She connected Paramaribo with the town of Lava in eastern Suriname. The line was unprofitable and was reduced in several stages. The last train passed it in 1987 . In some sections of the road that have survived to this day, you can observe rusty trains.

The historical center of the city has a unique, mainly wooden architecture; since July 2002 it has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List . The ensemble of the center was formed over five centuries and its buildings include a plexus of various cultural layers at different times settled in Suriname . Cultural diversity is also represented by religious buildings: churches , mosques, a synagogue. Despite everything, the vast majority of the center’s buildings were built in the Dutch colonial style.

• Fort Zealand is a pentagonal fortress museum. It was founded at the beginning of the XVII century to protect the Dutch commercial settlement of Parmurbo, now Paramaribo. In 1651, it was captured by the British and named "Fort Willby." It was later repulsed by the Dutchman Abraham Kriensen, a native of Zealand and received the name "Zealand". In 1747 , after the construction of Fort Nieuw-Amsterdam, Zeeland lost its strategic importance, three of the five bastions of the fortress were dismantled, and the fortress itself turned into a barracks, and later into a prison. Now there is a museum .

• Fort Nyiv-Amsterdam is a pentagonal open-air fortress museum. Located in the town of Nyiv-Amsterdam , 11 kilometers east of Paramaribo. It was built in 1734 - 1747 to protect the Dutch colonies from enemy fleets. During World War II , Americans fortified coastal artillery fortifications in the fortress to protect the mouth of the Suriname River from German ships. Massive cannons are now available for viewing by tourists.

• Suriname Museum is a state historical museum with three branches in the city. Central located in the fort "Zealand". The museum exhibits contain an extensive collection of cultural and historical nature, telling about the colonial past and the new history of Suriname . Every first Sunday of the month, the best musical and dance groups of Suriname perform in the central branch, on the territory of the courtyard of Fort Zeeland.

• The Presidential Palace is the official residence of the government and President of Suriname . Located on Independence Square, next to the National Assembly, the building of Congress, the Court, and the Ministry of Finance. The palace is the most striking example of Dutch colonial architecture in Suriname and part of UNESCO World Heritage .

• The building of the Ministry of Finance of Suriname is one of the most beautiful buildings in the city. Built in 1841, it is a monumental building made of stone and brick in a traditional Dutch style. Noteworthy is the classicistic style portico and clock tower , which rises above Independence Square and the central part of the city.

• Keyserratrat Mosque is one of Suriname’s most beautiful buildings. The main residence of the Muslim Ahmadite movement "Lahore Ahmadiya." The first mosque in this place, a wooden one with four minarets, was built in 1932 . The construction of the modern building was completed in 1984 .

• The Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul is the cathedral of the diocese of Paramaribo of the Roman Catholic Church. The cathedral is the tallest (44 meters) wooden structure in the Western Hemisphere . The cathedral was built in 1885 from the unpainted Surinamese cedar, but its towers were not completed until 1901 . The western tower serves as a bell tower - it has three bells . The cathedral is designed for 900 parishioners. The interior of the main hall is decorated with carvings and bas-reliefs depicting scenes from the life of Jesus Christ . For a long time, the church fell into decay, but in 2007 the European Union allocated money for its restoration and on November 13, 2010 the cathedral was reopened for parishioners and tourists.

• The Neve Shalom synagogue is the only synagogue in the Ashkenazi community in Suriname, one of the oldest in the western hemisphere. The first building was erected by Sephardic Jews in 1723 and sold to the Ashkenazi community in 1735 . The new building was built in 1843 according to the project of architect Jean Frank Halfed. The synagogue is a two-story white building with a four-pitched roof. The facade of the building is decorated with a small triangular portico, which is supported by four columns.

• Paramaribo Zoo is the only Zoo in Suriname. Initiated by Prime Minister John Pengel on May 28, 1966 , opened in 1972 . The zoo contains animals from all over the world: royal Bengal tigers, tropical birds, wild pigs, crocodiles , as well as all the inhabitants of the rainforests and savannah of Suriname . Since 2003, the Rotterdam Zoo has been supporting the zoo. The zoo often hosts children's programs and holidays. The zoo is open daily from 10 a.m.

• Palm Garden is the city’s oldest park located next to the Presidential Palace . It consists of royal palms planted by Governor Van Aerssen in 1683 - 1688 . Since 1685, open to the public. The park has statues, benches and bungalows , there is a playground. In 2002, the park was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List .

• The Talia Theater is a must-see place for all theater-goers. This is the only operating theater in Suriname. The theater was founded in 1840 and accommodates 1,000 spectators. Here folklore ensembles from representatives of numerous nationalities of Suriname perform, theater performances and concerts are given, and in April the international film festival “Suriname plaats” takes place.

• Suriname State University is the country's main and most important educational institution . The beautiful university building was built in 1966 , and the university itself opened its doors on November 1, 1968 . On October 17, 1983, the university was named after Anton de Coma, a fighter for freedom of the nation. The university teaches law, medicine, social and economic sciences. The reserve of filling the university is over 600 students.

• The Jules Weidenbosch Bridge is the largest bridge in the country and one of the largest in South America . Opened in 2000 . The bridge is over 1,500 meters long and 52 meters high. Connects the two banks of the Suriname River. The bridge is visible from different parts of the city.

• "Paramaribo" - a song of the Russian rock band " Quarter "

•   Antwerp , Belgium
•   Willemstad , Curacao
•   Yogyakarta , Indonesia
•   Georgetown , Guyana
•   Hangzhou , China

• Paramaribo Map
• Photo galleries: [1] , [2]