Located in the hills in the center of Argentina, Cordoba is the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of the province of the same name. With its rich history and beautiful surroundings, it ranks high on the list of places to visit for many visitors to Argentina. Read on for the best sights to visit in Cordoba Capital.
Founded in 1573 the city has a remarkably well preserved city center with many parts still showing the strong Jesuit influence that dominated the city and region from around 1600 until 1767 when they were evicted by the Spanish king. Though at the beginning of the the 20th century the city only had around 90,000 inhabitants, it then started to grow rapidly with new immigrants from mainly Italy and Spain to its current size of around 1,3 million.
The most important sight to visit in the city of Cordoba is without a doubt the Manzana Jesuitica or Jesuit Block, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000. It consists of a group of buildings dating back to the 17th century that includes the campus of the oldest university in the country. Nearby Plaza San Martin makes for a very worthwhile visit as well. It is located on the historical founding pace of the city and is the location of Cordoba Cathdral, with foundations dating back to 1580 and officially consecrated in 1706
For culture fans the city offers the Evita Peron Fine Arts Museum housed in a Beaux-Arts mansion dating back to 1912 and including work by Francisco Goya.
If your tastes run more towards other activities then Cordoba also has the large Patio Olmos high-end shopping mall near the city center in a classic former school building or on weekends you can join the locals at the soccer stadium of Club Atletico Belgrano. Nicknamed “The Pirates”, they are one of only a handful of teams in the highest Argentine division that are not located in Buenos Aires or its surrounding suburbs.
