subject: A Close Approach to Nature in San Martin Park [print this page] A Close Approach to Nature in San Martin Park
The parks and squares in the city of Mendoza offer their visitors relaxing moments through close approaches to nature and culture. Just a few blocks away from the Executive Hotel in Mendoza, San Martin Park is one of the best alternatives for a nice picnic in the core of the capital.
These days the General San Martin Park is one of the most beautiful in America. It is the icon of the advance of mankind on the desert and tells a lot about the people of Mendoza, in its daily attempts to accomplish a better quality of life. In any time of year, this park is expecting us to give us mysteries of nature that can only be found there with its natural, historical and artistic treasures.
During more than a hundred years the San Martin Park is one of the largest urban parks in Argentina, both for its size and proximity to the city of Mendoza. It currently covers 307 hectares, 17 kilometers of paths and 82 acres for expansion. It is a symbol that characterizes Mendoza's people.
The main entrance to the park has been marked by the gates, since 1909. They are crowned by the figure of a condor and the buckler of Mendoza. The forest patrimony, with over 300 species from North America, Asia, Europe and Australia, has become a plant life universe, full of streets and roads specially built to make our travel more enjoyable. We could see the park as a large sculpture museum with more than 34 pieces that decorate walkways and gardens. Tourists and visitors can choose restaurants, camping, barbecues, transport services and guided tours on comfortable minibuses.
Cuddled by a great assortment of roses and sculptural replicas we can find the Rose Garden, a French-style footer path opened in 1919. Likewise, its magnificent view bases its splendor at the Park's Lake, a place of major leisure that had its beginnings in 1906 and since then gives racing fans a place to practice this discipline.
After the earthquake in 1861, Mendozas population developed serious health problems, like epidemics of diphtheria, cholera and rubeolas, and it was hit by several floods.
During the construction of the new city, the prison had been located within the border of the town, only some miles away from the Executive Hotel in Mendoza, which also entailed another negative factor that needed urgent answer. In 1895, some legislators proposed the relocation of the correctional, the improvement of the alluvial defense by means of forestation and the consideration and treatment of health problems.
