Quito | |
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Population | 1873458 |
Quito (; Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkito] (listen); Quechua: Kitu; formally Saint Francis of Quito) is the capital of Ecuador, the country's most populous city and at an elevation of 2,850 metres (9,350 ft) above sea level, it is the second highest official capital city in the world, and the closest to the equator. It is located in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes Mountains.
In 2008, the city was designated as the headquarters of the Union of South American Nations.The historic centre of Quito is one of the largest, least-altered and best-preserved in the Americas.
Punta Arenas | |
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Population | 130704 |
Punta Arenas (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpunta aˈɾenas]; historically Sandy Point in English) is the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antartica Chilena. The city was officially renamed as Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to "Punta Arenas". It is the largest city south of the 46th parallel south, and at the same time the most populous southernmost city in Chile and in the Americas, and due to its location, the coldest coastal city with more than 100,000 inhabitants in Latin America. It is also one of the most populous sites so far south in the world.
As of 1977 Punta Arenas has been one of only two free ports in Chile, the other one being Iquique, in the country's far north. (Punta Arenas itself is not a "free port": outside the city there is a "zona franca" where certain products can be imported into the country under a reduced-tax regimen.)
Located on the Brunswick Peninsula north of the Strait of Magellan, Punta Arenas was originally established by the Chilean government in 1848 as a tiny penal colony to assert sovereignty over the Strait.