Zapala
| Basic data | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| location | 38 ° 54 ′ S , 70 ° 4 ′ W | ||
| Height above d. M .: | 1002 m | ||
| Population (2015): | 34,400 | ||
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| administration | |||
| Province : |
 Neuquén
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| Department : | Zapala | ||
| Mayor: | Edgardo Sapag | ||
| Others | |||
| Postal code : | Q8340 | ||
| Telephone code: | 02942 | ||
| Zapala website | |||
Zapala is the capital of the Zapala department of the same name in the center of the Neuquén province in southwestern Argentina . It has 32,097 inhabitants, making it the third largest city in the province.
history
Zapala was founded on July 12, 1913 as a station on the Ferrocarril del Sur railway line (today: Ferrocarril General Roca ). The railway line was originally intended to continue across the Andes, but work stopped in the 1920s. The rails still divide the city into a historical part with the shopping area and a modern part with residential areas.
geography
Zapala lies at the intersection of two major regions: the Patagonian Meseta in the east and the southern Andes in the west. To the southwest of the city is the Cerro Michacheo hill . The climate is cool-temperate and semi-arid, with warm summers and cold winters.
traffic
Zapala is connected to the provincial capital Neuquén, 189 kilometers to the east, via the Ruta Nacional 22 . To the west this road leads over the Pino-Hachado Pass to Chile . At Zapala this road is crossed by the Ruta Nacional 40 in a north-south direction. The intersection of the two national roads makes Zapala an important relay for visiting the tourist attractions of the region: Villa Pehuenia , Primeros Pinos , Caviahue-Copahue , San Martín de los Andes and the Laguna Blanca National Park .
Worth seeing
The biggest attraction is the Mineralogical Museum Profesor Olsacher , which contains one of the most important mineral collections in the world.
economy
The economy is dominated by mining and the service sector. The industry is largely limited to the production of cement and the processing of the mined resources.
sons and daughters of the town
- Raúl Di Blasio (* 1949), pianist
Web links
- IFAM population data ( September 30, 2007 memento on the Internet Archive ) (Spanish)
- Portal Zapala (Spanish)
- Tourism information at interpatagonia.com (Spanish)