Barranquilla vs Ghent

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Barranquilla (American Spanish: [baraŋˈkiʝa] (listen)) is the capital district of Atlántico Department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and second port in the northern Caribbean Coast region; as of 2018 it had a population of 1,206,319 making it Colombia's fourth-most populous city after Bogotá, Medellín and Cali. Barranquilla lies strategically next to the delta of the Magdalena River, 7.5 kilometres (4.7 miles) (originally 25 kilometres (16 miles) before rapid urban growth) from its mouth at the Caribbean Sea, serving as a port for river and maritime transportation within Colombia. It is also the main industrial, shopping, educational and cultural center of the Caribbean Region of Colombia. The city is the core of the Metropolitan Area of Barranquilla, with a population of over 2 million, which also includes the municipalities of Soledad, Galapa, Malambo, and Puerto Colombia. Barranquilla was legally established as a town on April 7, 1813, although it dates from at least 1629. It grew into an important port, serving as a haven for immigrants from Europe, especially during and immediately following World War I and World War II, when waves of additional immigrants from the Middle East and Asia arrived.

Barranquilla became Colombia's principal port, and with its level of industrialization and modernity earned the city the nickname "Colombia's Golden Gate" (Spanish: La Puerta de Oro de Colombia). In the 1940s, Barranquilla was the second-largest city in Colombia and one of the most modern cities in the Caribbean and in South America; later local administrations, due to widespread corruption in their ranks, brought about a decline in the standard of living. As government investment increased in other Colombian cities, Barranquilla's national position was eclipsed. The city is home to one of the most important folk and cultural festivals of Colombia, the Carnival of Barranquilla, which was declared a National Cultural Heritage by the Congress of Colombia in 2001 and recognized by UNESCO in 2003.Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport, built in Barranquilla in 1919, was the first airport in South America. The city is served by domestic and international flights.

Source: Wikipedia

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Ghent ( GHENT; Dutch: Gent, [ɣɛnt] (listen); French: Gand, [ɡɑ̃] (listen); traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in size only by Brussels and Antwerp. It is a port and university city. The city originally started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Leie and in the Late Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of northern Europe, with some 50,000 people in 1300. The municipality comprises the city of Ghent proper and the surrounding suburbs of Afsnee, Desteldonk, Drongen, Gentbrugge, Ledeberg, Mariakerke, Mendonk, Oostakker, Sint-Amandsberg, Sint-Denijs-Westrem, Sint-Kruis-Winkel, Wondelgem and Zwijnaarde.

With 262,219 inhabitants at the beginning of 2019, Ghent is Belgium's second largest municipality by number of inhabitants. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,205 km2 (465 sq mi) and has a total population of 560,522 as of 1 January 2018, which ranks it as the fourth most populous in Belgium. The current mayor of Ghent, Mathias De Clercq is from the liberal & democratic party Open VLD. The ten-day-long Ghent Festival (Gentse Feesten in Dutch) is held every year and attended by about 1–1.5 million visitors.

Source: Wikipedia