The Bridge of Sighs (Spanish: Puente de los Suspiros) is a wooden pedestrian overpass located between the Hermitage of Barranco and the Paseo Chabuca Granda (also known by its former name of Pasaje Zepita)[1] in Barranco District, in Lima, Peru.[2][3] It is one of the most visited tourist places in the historic district, and a meeting point for couples in love.[4][5]
Bridge of Sighs Puente de los Suspiros | |
|---|---|
 The bridge in 2016 | |
| Coordinates | 12°08′57″S 77°01′21″W / 12.14914°S 77.022624°W |
| History | |
| Inaugurated | 1876 |
| Location | |
 | |
Overview
editThe bridge, 44 metres long and 3 metres wide, joins Ayacucho Street with the Paseo Chabuca Granda (the access to the hermitage of Barranco that runs up until it reaches Pedro de Osma Avenue),[1] while, by joining the ends of the ravine and saving a height of 8.5 metres, the Bajada of the Baños of Barranco passes below (the road that leads to the district's beaches).[6][7][8]
Due to the popular tradition that indicated the place as a meeting point for lovers and romances, the bridge became known as the bridge "of sighs".[2][9]
History
editThe bridge was inaugurated during the municipal administration (1875–1878)[10] of Mayor Francisco García Monterroso, on February 14, 1876.[6][9][10] During the War of the Pacific, it was destroyed by Chilean troops passing through the place after being victorious in the Battle of Chorrillos on January 13, 1881.[5]
In 1960, the Creole music composer Chabuca Granda dedicated the Peruvian waltz "El puente de los suspiros" to the bridge.[6][11][12] Years later, the municipality of the district placed a monument to the singer next to the bridge.[13][14]
In December 2014, after six months of restoration work, the bridge was reopened to the public. The investment for the job was S/. 10 million.[15]
In the early morning of June 3, 2023, the structural integrity of a building built in 1911 located next to the bridge became compromised, causing a partial collapse of a section of a wall that faces the passage that leads to the bridge, leading to the closure of the area, including the bridge.[16] Its reconstruction was soon announced.[17]
Gallery
edit-
Seen from the Bajada de Baños -
Ditto. -
Opposite view -
The bridge at night
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Plan Distrital de Seguridad Ciudadana del Distrito de Barranco (PDF) (in Spanish). Municipalidad de Barranco. 2016. pp. 11–17.
- ^ a b "El Puente de los Suspiros en el corazón de Barranco". Peru.com. 14 October 2014.
- ^ "20 cosas que hacer en Lima". El País. 25 August 2016.
- ^ "San Valentín: cinco destinos imperdibles por el día del amor y la amistad". Wapa.pe. 12 February 2020.
- ^ a b "Google Maps: buscó lugar de Barranco y encontró a pareja haciendo esto". Peru.com. 28 February 2018. Archived from the original on 27 July 2020.
- ^ a b c "Atractivos Turísticos". Municipalidad de Barranco.
- ^ "Puente de los Suspiros – Ermita de Barranco". Museos de Lima. Ministerio de Cultura.
- ^ Segreda, Ricardo; Caputo, Lorraine (2009). V!VA Travel Guides: Peru. Viva Publishing Network. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-9791264-3-7.
- ^ a b "Cebiche y bohemia". El País. 30 December 2010.
- ^ a b Plan Distrital de Seguridad Ciudadana del Distrito de Barranco (PDF) (in Spanish). Municipalidad de Barranco. 2016. p. 14.
- ^ Gutiérrez, Czar (26 July 2020). "El novio de la muerte: César Calvo (1940 – 2000)". El Comercio.
- ^ Monjeau, Federico (2 December 2017). "El Puente de los Suspiros y otros motivos limeños". Clarín.
- ^ Reyna, Rob (3 September 2018). "Chabuca Granda: nuestra cantautora universal cumpliría 98 años (¿Quién fue Chabuca Granda y por qué es mundialmente conocida?)". RPP Noticias.
- ^ "Camioneta se despista cerca a Puente de los Suspiros y casi destruye estatua de Chabuca Granda". Trome. 4 April 2018.
- ^ "Reabren el renovado Puente de los Suspiros en Barranco". El Comercio. 20 December 2014. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016.
- ^ Huayta, Athenas (5 June 2023). "Barranco: casona de 112 años se derrumbó cerca al Puente de los Suspiros". La República.
- ^ "Reconstruirán antigua casona que colapsó en Barranco". Panamericana Televisión. 5 June 2023.