El Olivar Park
A green treasure in Lima
Nestled within the district of San Isidro lies a beautiful park called El Olivar this park is full of Olive trees and dotting the surroundings is a library, an early 20th century mansion, a lagoon and the local municipal building. During the time of Spanish colonization the park stretched to 27 hectares and by 1730 had 1,500 trees the original Olive trees are said to have arrived from Seville, Spain in 1560 by Antonio de Rivera. By 1828 the amount of trees supposedly recorded reached to 2,338.
This park has two legends one of which is that when the Spaniards left Peru after the independence of 1821 they chopped the trees down within the park for revenge but from the trunks left behind the trees regrew (the damage can still be seen today).
And secondly, It's said that St. Martin of Porras planted an olive tree in this park, and when the newly married couples sit beneath the tree, their love will be eternal. Due to financial issues in the 1920s parts of the park were sold off and people then built homes around the park, the park now has 23 hectares and before 1931 the park was private and was surrounded by high walls however, in 1931 the government made it a public place where anyone could enjoy its beauty and it was officially announced a National Monument on the 16th December 1959. Just like in the time of the Spaniards olives are still harvested from this park and can be still used to make olive oil.
Not only does this park boast a wide variety of trees but also thirty species of birds can found here, so if you wish sit and relax, go running or go bird watching this park is perfect....I'll write more about this park soon!
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