European Capital of Culture 2012: Guimarães and Maribor
Sunday, 15 February 2015 - 07:57 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: European Union / Europäische UnionCategory/Kategorie: General, European Union, European Capital of Culture, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time: 4 minutes
© guimaraes2012.pt
Guimarães is a northern Portuguese city located in the district of Braga, in the Ave Subregion, with a population of 52 181 inhabitants, distributed throughout 20 parishes (freguesias in Portuguese), in an urban area of 23,5 km² with a population density of 2 223,9/km².
It is an historical city that had an important role in the formation of Portugal and it was settled in the 9th century, at which time it was called Vimaranes. This denomination might have had its origin in the warrior Vímara Peres, when he chose this area as the main government seat for the County of Portugal which he conquered for the Kingdom of Galicia.
Guimarães is one of the country’s most important historical cities. Its historical center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, making it one of the largest tourist centers in the region.
The city is often referred to as the “birthplace of the Portuguese nationality” or “the cradle city” (Cidade Berço in Portuguese). This might be because the administrative seat of the County of Portugal was established there by Henry of Burgundy, or that it might also been the birthplace of Afonso I of Portugal, the first Portuguese king or because of the historical role of the city in the Battle of São Mamede (June 24th, 1128), which had a tremendous importance in the formation of Portugal and was fought in the vicinity of the city, However, due to the needs of the Reconquista, the governative center was changed to Coimbra in 1129. The “Vimaranenses” are also called “Conquistadores” (the Conquerors) in relation with the historical heritage of the conquest initiated in Guimarães.
Guimarães, jointly with Maribor, is the European Capital of Culture in 2012.
Read more on City of Guimarães, Guimarães Tourism, VisitPortugal.com – Guimarães, Wikipedia European Capital of Culture and Wikipedia Guimarães. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.
© maribor2012.eu
Maribor (German: Marburg, Italian: Marburgo) is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants as of 2011. Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor.
In 2012, Maribor will be the European Capital of Culture, and in 2013, it will host the XXVI 2013 Winter Universiade. In November 2010, The European Youth Forum announced that Maribor will also be the 2013 European Youth Capital.
Read more on Maribor Tourism, Wikipedia European Capital of Culture and Wikipedia Maribor. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organizations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.
