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Caracas is the capital of Venezuela. It is located in the north of the country, following the contours of a narrow mountain valley. The valley's temperatures are springlike, and the urbanizable terrain of the Caracas Valley lies between 2,500 and 3,000 feet above sea level. The Valley is close to the Caribbean Sea , separated from the coast by a wall of mountains that rise to more than 7,000 feet. The historic center of Caracas, known as the Libertador Department, had a population of 1,9 million in 2004. The metropolitan area, or Caracas region, boasted a population of 5.1 million in 2004.
The city was founded in 1567 as Santiago de León de Caracas by Spanish explorer Diego de Losada.
The city of Caracas gave birth to two of America's most important figures Francisco de Miranda (1750) and "El Libertador" Simón Bolívar (1783).
An earthquake destroyed Caracas on March 26, 1812 and was portrayed by authorities as a divine punishment to people rebelling against the Spanish Crown.
As the economy of oil-rich Venezuela grew steadily during the first part of the 20th century, Caracas became one of Latin America's economical centers, and was also known as the preferred hub between Europe and South America. The Concorde used to fly weekly to Caracas implying its geographical and economical importance.
The city has two main football stadiums: The Olympic Stadium (35,000) and the Brigido Iriarte Stadium with a capacity of 25,000 seats (home of the Caracas Futbol Club and Italchacao Club). Baseball teams Tiburones de la Guaira and Leones del Caracas also play on their shared stadium Estadio Universitario (33,000 seats).
The Caracas metro has been in operation since 1983 and is the safest and quickest way to travel in the city.
Nearby Maiquetia has Maiquetia International Airport.
On October 17 2004, one of the Parque Central Torre towers caught fire.