It is the main urban park of Leticia, Amazonas Department, Colombia. It was created in 1940, by Law 114 of December 23, with the name of Francisco de Orellana square, on the occasion of the IV centenary of the discovery of the Amazon River by the Spaniard in 1542 (Alvarez, 2012).
Santander Park has a direct view of the Amazon River. It has a small lake with species of Victorias Regias, as well as pedestrian paths and in the center a large fountain and water mirror.
In addition, it has a court for soccer, basketball and volleyball practice.
Around the park there are statues dedicated to Francisco de Paula Santander and the indigenous peoples, as well as a mobile library or cultural space with free access, from the Bibliovan project that houses some 150-300 books in abandoned refrigerators and conditioned for this purpose.
Source: Aliman5040, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Adjacent buildings
The park is surrounded by several administrative, religious, military and financial institutions of the city of Leticia (the Governor’s Office, the Mayor’s Office, the Navy, the Air Force, the Navy and the Army, among others).
The Concha Acústica was also built, a place for cultural expressions and exchanges between three countries: Colombia, Peru and Brazil (Álvarez, 2012; Millán Muñoz, 2020).
The park is also a meeting place for locals and tourists, located near the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, commonly called “parrot park”.
Where is Santander Park located?
It is located in the southeast of Colombia, on Carrera 11, between streets 7 and 8 in downtown Leticia, facing the Amazon River, therefore it has an extraordinary panoramic view.
The famous birds of Santander Park
At the end of the afternoon, colorful birds of the Amazon converge in this park and above all many parrots that come to sleep in the branches of the trees, brightening up the atmosphere with their daily noise;
July 28, 2020
Orinoco Goose
July 26, 2020
Horned screamer
July 24, 2020
Fulvous Whistling duck
July 22, 2020
Black-banded woodcreeper (Dendrocolaptes picumnus)
July 20, 2020
Yellow-rumped cacique
July 18, 2020
Andean Cock-of-the-rock – Amazon Rainforest Birds
July 16, 2020
Emerald hummingbird / Emerald chiribiquete
July 14, 2020
Castelnau’s antshrike
July 13, 2020
The Curassow from the Amazon Rainforest
July 9, 2020
Amazonian Royal flycatcher
July 6, 2020
Scissor-tailed hummingbird
July 3, 2020
Yellow-headed Parrot (Alipiopsitta xanthops)
You can also go up to the church to have a better view of this spectacle and its sunsets.
Another of its attractions is the endemic vegetation typical of the Amazon region, being able to appreciate the Victorias regias, very common in less urban environments of the Amazon (Alvarez, 2012).
Source: Alex matiz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Where to eat in Parque Santander in Leticia?
In the Santander Park there are street vendors selling arepas filled with cheese, honey and condensed milk, as the locals have a sweet tooth. yucca) and açai.
This last option offers cassava starch-based pancakes called baiju with different sauces, including those typical of the region.
In addition, you can enjoy smoothies or sorbets made from açai, an Amazonian fruit with beneficial health properties and is also very refreshing.
Video of Santander Park from the air(drone)
References
(https://guillodeviaje.co/atardecer-en-el-parque-santander-el-espectaculo-de-los-loritos/, 2017).
Economist (Central University of Venezuela). Full professor and researcher attached to the “Edgar Abreu Olivo” Agrifood Research Center, Universidad de Los Andes. Doctor from the University of La Laguna (Spain). Award “One of the 10 most consulted authors of the Saber ULA university portal” (2005); prize in the III Essay Contest of the Central Bank of Venezuela BCvoz Economico, 2016, with the work “Theobroma cacao: transformation and consumption of the “food of the gods” in Venezuela and the world” (co-authored).
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