Paramaribo
 |
Colonial style houses, Waterkant, Paramaribo. |
Paramaribo (nicknamed
Par'bo) is the
capital of
Suriname, located in the
Paramaribo district, with a population of roughly 250,000 people. It lies on the
Suriname River, approximately 15
km inland from the
Atlantic Ocean. Paramaribo is located at 5°52' North, 55°10' West ().
The area was settled by the
British in
1630, and in
1650 the city became the capital of the new English colony. The area changed hands often between the British and Dutch but was under Dutch rule from
1815 until the independence of Suriname in
1975. The citizens are chiefly of
Asian Indian, indigenous,
African, and
Dutch descent.
In January
1821 a
fire in the city centre destroyed over 400 houses and other buildings.A second fire in September
1832 destroyed another 46 houses on the western part of the
Waterkant.
The city's major exports are
bauxite,
sugar cane,
rice,
cacao,
coffee,
rum, and tropical
woods.
Cement,
paint, and
beer are all manufactured in the city.
Paramaribo is famed for its diverse ethnic makeup, including Indians, Creoles, Maroons, Indonesians, Amerindians, Chinese and Europeans.
On Sundays and holidays there is a popular
bird song competition. Black
twatwas (large-billed seed finch,
Oryzoborus crassirostris) are the most common birds used. This bird is in the
CITES- appendix I.
Paramaribo is the birthplace of several
football players; Some of them later represented
The Netherlands.
*
Edgar Davids*
Henk Fräser*
Frank Rijkaard*
Clarence Seedorf*
Mark de Vries |
Government House, 1955,
now Presidential Palace. |
Paramaribo is centred around the
Onafhankelijksplein (
Independence Square), which contains both the Presidential Palace and the National Assembly. Immediately the square is
Palmentuin Park. Other notable places are the Surinaams
museum, Numismatisch Museum,
Fort Zeelandia (dating from the
17th century, a market and
canals that are reminiscent of the
Netherlands. There is a wide variety of Dutch colonial buildings in the city.
There is a wide variety of religious buildings in the city owing its ethnic diversity. There are two
synagogues, a
mosque, two
mandirs, a Dutch Reformed
church and a Roman Catholic cathedral (
Roman Catholic St Peter and St Paul Cathedral) built in
1885 of
wood. It is thought to be the largest wooden building in the
Americas, however it is currently closed for repairs and restoration.
There are many hotels in the city, the main one being the Torarica Hotel, which also has a
casino and is generally regarded as the best and largest hotel in Suriname. Others include the Ambassador, Combi Inn, De Luifel, Eco-Resort, Fanna Guesthouse, Guesthouse Amice, Hotel Savoie, Krasnapolsky, Lisa's Guesthouse, Solana Guesthouse and YMCA Guesthouse.
Suriname has only one cinema, which is held in the capital.
Paramaribo is served by the
Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport and
Zorg-en-Hoop for local flights.
*
Map of Paramaribo*
Page with some basic information and images*
Small Paramaribo gallery*
Clickable map*
Audio interview with Paramaribo resident about life in Paramaribo*
Image gallery*
Paramaribo photo gallery*
Photo gallery*
1st gamers site in surinam
