Santiago Mariño Municipality facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Santiago Mariño Municipality Municipio Santiago Mariño
Municipality
Flag Seal
Location in Aragua
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Country	Venezuela
State	Aragua
Municipal seat	494.0 square kilometre
Area
• Total	http://santiagomarino-aragua.gob.ve/portal-alcaldias/ km2 (Formatting error: invalid input when rounding sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	211,010
Time zone	UTC−4 (VET)
Area code(s)	0244

The Santiago Mariño Municipality is a special area, like a county, in the Venezuelan state of Aragua. It is one of 18 such areas in the state. In 2011, about 211,010 people lived there. Its main town is Turmero. The municipality is also home to Chuao, a famous village where some of the best cocoa beans in the world are grown. The municipality is named after Santiago Mariño, a hero who helped Venezuela become independent.

Population of Santiago Mariño

In 2007, about 191,731 people lived in the Santiago Mariño Municipality. This was an increase from 165,436 people in 2000. This means that about 11.5% of all the people in the state of Aragua live here. For every square kilometer, there are about 385.78 people.

Chuao: The Famous Cocoa Village

Chuao is a small village that was started in the 1500s. It is known worldwide for its special cacao farms. The village is surrounded by tall mountains and thick rainforests. To the south, it is close to the Caribbean Sea and the Henri Pittier National Park.

You cannot reach Chuao by car. Visitors must travel by boat from a town called Puerto Colombia, which is along the coast. Another way is to hike through the mountains and the beautiful cloud forest from Turmero, a town near Maracay.

Chuao's Special Cacao Beans

On the Chuao farms, farmers grow pure Criollo cacao and also hybrid types. Criollo beans from Chuao are very high quality. Many people think they are Venezuela's best beans. Another top type is Porcelana Blanca beans from Lake Maracaibo.

Some famous chocolate makers use Chuao cacao. Amedei, an Italian company, and Chocolate NAIVE, a Lithuanian company, make chocolate bars with it. Chocolate NAIVE even won a European gold medal at the International Chocolate Awards in 2014.

In November 2000, the cacao beans from Chuao got a special award called an appellation of origin. This means they were officially recognized as "Cacao de Chuao." This makes them one of the most expensive and wanted types of cacao in the world.

Gallery

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  Chuao Bay

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  Cacao beans

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  Chuao cocoa beans under the sun

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  Plaza de Secado. The Church yard where the cocoa beans are sun dried

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  Plaza de Secado. Boy helping his mother to collect the cocoa beans. Chuao. Venezuela

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  Plaza de Secado. The mother collecting the cocoa away from the sun. Chuao. Venezuela

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  Cocoa under fermentation process

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  Chuao church

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  Chuao Fishers boats

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  Chuao new town

See also

In Spanish: Municipio Santiago Mariño para niños