El Centenario
Encyclopedia
El Centenario is a small seaside town located in La Paz Municipality, Baja California Sur, Mexico
, approximately 15 km west of La Paz, the capital city. El Centenario had a 2010 census population of 4,696 persons.
El Centenario is the town closest to CIBNOR, one of the leading marine biology institutes in Latin America. CIBNOR conducts studies of the Gulf of California
ecosystem (also known as the Sea of Cortez) which is one of the most bio-diverse bodies of water in the world.
by approximately 25 founding families. Each of the original families was delegated land to use for farming and on which to build a dwelling, while the land remained under the ownership of the communal ejido. During the 1990s, due to reforms associated with the North American Free Trade Agreement
, Mexican ejidos were granted rights to deliver legal ownership of ejido land to the members, thus changing from communal ownership to private ownership.
cacti as a main ingredient in tacos, which is unique in the La Paz area. This tradition was brought to El Centenario by the founding families when they moved from the interior of the Baja peninsula, where eating nopal is more common. In early fall, El Centenario holds a town nopal-themed festival. A carnival with rides and games is set up in the town center. A nopal cooking competition was held and a 'Nopal Princess' was selected during the 2007 festival.
, and is generally warm, sunny, and dry. The months of July, August, and September are the warmest and most humid, with August and September being the most likely months to receive heavy rainfall.
One local weather phenomenon is the Coromuel
Wind, which is a steady breeze that blows consistently during late afternoons in El Centenario. This is due to the cool Pacific Ocean waters creating relative low pressure and the warm Gulf of California waters creating relative high pressure. The wind then blows from the high pressure side, over the El Centenario area, to the low pressure side. Unlike most other parts of the Baja peninsula, there are no high mountains to block this air movement between the two sides of the peninsula.
Since its establishment, El Centenario has grown as a suburb of La Paz. The majority of the working residents commute to La Paz or surrounding areas. As of November 2007, many El Centenario residents work at the San Juan De La Costa Mine and the Paraiso Del Mar Resort Development on the El Mogote Peninsula, due the town's close proximity to these two locations.
In recent years, the hillside behind El Centenario has become a favorite location for United States and Canadian citizens to build new houses, either as vacation homes or as primary residences for retirement. The lower cost of living, when compared to the U.S., especially California or Florida, plus the rapid modernization of Southern Baja, has made it an increasingly viable alternative to retiring in the southern United States. New neighborhoods with growing English-speaking populations include Lomas del Centenario and Haciendas Palo Verde.
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, approximately 15 km west of La Paz, the capital city. El Centenario had a 2010 census population of 4,696 persons.
El Centenario is the town closest to CIBNOR, one of the leading marine biology institutes in Latin America. CIBNOR conducts studies of the Gulf of California
Gulf of California
The Gulf of California is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland...
ecosystem (also known as the Sea of Cortez) which is one of the most bio-diverse bodies of water in the world.
History
El Centenario was founded in the 1960s as an agrarian/fishing ejidoEjido
The ejido system is a process whereby the government promotes the use of communal land shared by the people of the community. This use of community land was a common practice during the time of Aztec rule in Mexico...
by approximately 25 founding families. Each of the original families was delegated land to use for farming and on which to build a dwelling, while the land remained under the ownership of the communal ejido. During the 1990s, due to reforms associated with the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
, Mexican ejidos were granted rights to deliver legal ownership of ejido land to the members, thus changing from communal ownership to private ownership.
Local tradition
El Centenario locals eat nopalNopal
Nopales are a vegetable made from the young cladode segments of prickly pear, carefully peeled to remove the spines. These fleshy pads are flat and about hand-sized. They can be purple or green...
cacti as a main ingredient in tacos, which is unique in the La Paz area. This tradition was brought to El Centenario by the founding families when they moved from the interior of the Baja peninsula, where eating nopal is more common. In early fall, El Centenario holds a town nopal-themed festival. A carnival with rides and games is set up in the town center. A nopal cooking competition was held and a 'Nopal Princess' was selected during the 2007 festival.
Climate
The general year-round climate in El Centenario is similar to that of La Paz, Baja California SurLa Paz, Baja California Sur
La Paz is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur and an important regional commercial center. The city had a 2010 census population of 215,178 persons, but its metropolitan population is somewhat larger because of surrounding towns like el Centenario, el Zacatal and San Pedro...
, and is generally warm, sunny, and dry. The months of July, August, and September are the warmest and most humid, with August and September being the most likely months to receive heavy rainfall.
One local weather phenomenon is the Coromuel
Coromuel
The Coromuel wind is a weather phenomenon unique to the La Paz area of the Baja California peninsula and adjoining Gulf of California . Occurring primarily in the late spring and summer, it is a south to south-west wind that typically starts late in the afternoon or early evening and blows...
Wind, which is a steady breeze that blows consistently during late afternoons in El Centenario. This is due to the cool Pacific Ocean waters creating relative low pressure and the warm Gulf of California waters creating relative high pressure. The wind then blows from the high pressure side, over the El Centenario area, to the low pressure side. Unlike most other parts of the Baja peninsula, there are no high mountains to block this air movement between the two sides of the peninsula.
Population
El Centenario had a 2010 census population of 4,696 persons.Since its establishment, El Centenario has grown as a suburb of La Paz. The majority of the working residents commute to La Paz or surrounding areas. As of November 2007, many El Centenario residents work at the San Juan De La Costa Mine and the Paraiso Del Mar Resort Development on the El Mogote Peninsula, due the town's close proximity to these two locations.
In recent years, the hillside behind El Centenario has become a favorite location for United States and Canadian citizens to build new houses, either as vacation homes or as primary residences for retirement. The lower cost of living, when compared to the U.S., especially California or Florida, plus the rapid modernization of Southern Baja, has made it an increasingly viable alternative to retiring in the southern United States. New neighborhoods with growing English-speaking populations include Lomas del Centenario and Haciendas Palo Verde.