Malecón 2000 5.21

Malecón 2000 is the name given to boardwalk overlooking the Guayas River in the Ecuadorian port city of Guayaquil. An urban renewal project focusing on the old Simón Bolívar boardwalk, it stands along the west shore of the river for an approximate length of 2.5 km. (1.5 mi.) Several of the greatest historical monuments in the history of Guayaquil can be seen along its length, as well as museums, gardens, fountains, shopping malls, restaurants, bars, food courts, the first IMAX theater in South America, as well as boarding docks where several embarkations offer both daytime and nighttime tours up and down the Guayas River. It is one of the largest works realized in Guayaquil and it is considered a model of urban regeneration by global standards, having been declared a healthy public space by the Pan-American Organization of Health (POH) and the World Health Organization (WHO).HistoryDuring the colonial period, Malecón was a narrow path in roadway form. During the 19th century people started to gather around this place, gradually expanding its extension as years went by and it became a focal point of early social life in the young city.Over several decades, the boardwalk fell into disrepair with several areas of it eventually falling into the river itself by the mid-to-late 1980s. By this time it was also regarded as a very unsafe place, as many thieves, muggers and cutpurses took advantage of the cover provided by overgrown foliage and poor illumination to hide and wait for possible victims. Drug dealers and prostitutes also used to frequent the area at night during its most dangerous period.