5/5 Abdulkarim A. 1 year ago on Google
The
historical
center
of
Villa
de
Leyva
has
been
largely
frozen
in
time
since
its
foundation
in
the
16th
century.
At
the
heart
of
this
Colombian
colonial
gem
lies
a
vast
square
paved
with
river
stones,
the
largest
plaza
in
Colombia
and
one
of
the
largest
in
South
America.
Villa
de
Santa
María
de
Leyva
was
founded
on
June
12,
1572,
by
Hernán
Suárez
de
Villalobos,
under
the
orders
of
Andrés
Díaz
Venero
de
Leiva,
the
first
president
of
the
New
Kingdom
of
Granada
(after
whom
the
town
is
named).
Built
in
the
classic
Spanish
colonial
style
with
whitewashed
houses,
cobbled
streets
and
terracotta
roofs,
the
town
of
some
17,000
people
has
been
remarkably
well-preserved.
At
the
heart
of
Villa
de
Leyva
lies
an
unusually
large
square–the
largest
in
Colombia
and
one
of
the
largest
in
South
America–which
on
a
quiet
day
seems
excessively
expansive.
Apart
from
a
small
central
fountain,
the
150,695-square-foot
(14,000-square-meter)
plaza
is
a
sea
of
cobbles
surrounded
by
a
sliver
of
low-lying
whitewashed
colonial
buildings.
In
colonial
times
up
until
the
mid-20th
century
neither
the
plaza
nor
the
streets
of
the
town
were
paved
with
river
stones.
The
stones
were
added
to
keep
dust
storms
at
bay.
The
existence
of
this
vast
plaza
in
such
a
small
town
is
due
to
two
things:
Villa
de
Leyva’s
original
function
and,
to
a
lesser
extent,
bored
soldiers.
The
town
was
originally
built
to
serve
as
a
storage
site
for
the
region’s
agricultural
produce,
so
a
large
main
square
was
required
for
all
the
incoming
goods.
The
square
itself
was
built
by
soldiers
who
had
come
to
conquer
the
New
World
(and
in
this
case
the
local
indigenous
Muisca),
and
who
now
found
themselves
with
time
on
their
hands.
So
when
it
came
to
building
the
square,
it
was
a
case
of
going
big
or
going
home.
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