Cuerno de Águila, part 1
The westward expansion of the metropolitan area towards the western end of South Bay soon ran into geographical constraints, most notably the mountainous Shrimp Peninsula and the imposing Cuerno de Águila peak overlooking the bay. This large hill gave its name to the westernmost suburbs of Bahía Medusa, built between the mountains and the sea and in a thin strip of land between two different bodies of water. This is Cuerno de Águila.
General information
City name: Cuerno de Águila
Date of foundation: XIX century
Population: 520,390
Size: 16 sq km.
Land area: 70ish?%
Average income: 30k/person/year.
History
Early years
There are at least two converging stories that lead to the foundation of Cuerno de Águila as it is known today. The first one, the town proper, begun as a humble fishermen's village on the western end of South Bay. Here, land realestate is at a premium, but the sea is at its calmest and the coastline offers plenty of coves and small bays. Cuerno de Águila first saw construction on a small sand spit, nowadays the main shopping district, and in the namesake hill immediately to its west (up, in this picture).
The Cuerno de Águila waterfront and (behind some luxury residential apartments) the main train station, nowadays an important transportation hub
With its temperatures moderated by the sea, but on the rain shadow of the imposing Cuerno de Águila hill, CdA soon became a retreat for wealthy Anclaje patrons, who would ride on the Coast Tram (nowadays replaced by the monorail) to reach the village. It was these patrons that enabled Cuerno de Águila to grow both to the north and south, on a small strip of land, first by buying beach houses, and then, by establishing the second CBD of the South Bay area, right next to the sea. Many of Bahía Medusa's banks are now located in this sector, next to the ironically named Karl Marx square, linked by monorail to Anclaje's downtown.
Keeping it light and breezy. Mostly light and dry
At the same time, the natural expansion of Anclaje surpassed its administrative borders and the city spilt into its western neighbours; first timidly, along the coast and following the tram, and then explosively during the 20th century, following Highway 2 and Line 1 of the subway. Many new middle-class owners weren't so deterred by the hills around the area, with many of them actually seeing them as a boon, offering panoramic seaviews; meanwhile, less fortunate workers were attracted to the many farms dotting the area and the steady demand for labour. St. Paul's basilica, atop Anclaje hill (oddly enough, not located in Anclaje) soon became a landmark of the neighbourhood, which advanced relentlessly, eventually consuming all farmland.
Why be in Anclaje when you can be in Anclaje Oeste? (North is up)
Extension and growth
As downtown CdA slowly coalesced with Anclaje to become a single, continuous metropolitan area, the snobbish wealthy class grew tired of the growing popularity of their former resort and sought new grounds for expansion.
Cuerno de Águila's western coast was, by then, mostly unoccupied. It offered even worse building conditions than the eastern side of the peninsula: an even thinner, swampy strip of land along the coast, very little flat ground, and wetter conditions. It was also oriented in the direction of Isla Enojada, which could potentially mean catastrophic gas emissions from that volcanic island. Nevertheless, two events made this part of town more attractive for realestate investors: the Isla Enojada volcano begun to lay dormant, and the Isla Bonita government extended Highway 2 through a tunnel.
Soon, this area became the plaything of developing interests, who carved canals and reclaimed islands, built a casino, an airport, and one of the densest residential neighbourhoods in the world: Peninsula, served by –yet again– a Line 1 extension, Highway 2 and rail. Despite its density and remoteness, or maybe because of it, Peninsula soon became one of the most in-demand developments in the entire island.
Peninsula, actually continuing beyond Cuerno de Águila's city limits
At the same time, commercial interests set their sights on the southern coast of South Bay. There lay a number of farms, but also a very busy route for commuters from other cities, beyond CdA, and the main downtown areas of the city, Anclaje and beyond. Soon Las Granjas was developed as a commercial district, with hotels and beaches, as well as an extension of downtown CdA, with more luxury apartments.
Las Granjas, island included
The city nowadays continues to grow in the direction of the hills. The urban area has linked both coasts, and while there remains some farmland, it's projected to soon disappear.
Geography and climate
Located at the westernmost extremity of South Bay and straddling a mountain range, Cuerno de Águila presents several microclimates. Broadly speaking, the western part of the city, overlooking the Main Channel separating Isla Bonita from the rest of the archipelago, sees a more humid, colder climate, while most of the city, located on its eastern shore, is drier. In between both coasts, upland areas are the wettest parts of the city, while the Boticas neighbourhood, on the other side of Anclaje hill, regularly features temperature inversions that can make it feel really cold, especially in winter. Nevertheless, the entirety of the city, like all of Isla Bonita, sits at the intersection of a Mediterranean and a Humid Subtropical climate with strong maritime influences.
The Valle neighbourhood, enclaved between the hills, is the driest part of the city
Transportation
Cuerno de Águila has been built by transportation like no other city in Isla Bonita, and it features an extensive network with a few particular quirks.
Rail
The city is served by the Anclaje Northeast line. The main line coming from Anclaje more or less follows the coast from a distance, drawing an "U" shape around South Bay. There are two branches: one that splits from the main line and heads in the direction of Cuerno de Águila airport, and a second one that tunnels near Las Granjas and heads to the Peninsula neighbourhood on the western side. The main stations are Cerro Anclaje (serving all branches), the aforementioned Estación de la Auditoría (a.k.a. downtown station, offering connections to the tram, monorail, and ferry), Las Granjas station, and the terminals at Aeropuerto and Peninsula, the latter featuring exquisite art-deco architecture.
Blink and you'll miss it, "it" being services to Anclaje, Providencia and Finisterra
Road transportation
CdA is traversed by Highway 2, which heads west from Anclaje, tunnels under the mountains and then turns sharply to the south over the western coast. This is an unusual route, avoiding what was then the main town due to pressure from the local inhabitants.
The city does, however, have plenty of avenues linking its main neighbourhoods. The most important among these is probably the Paseo del Nuevo Extremo, which snakes its way along the city, from the coast at Anclaje Oeste, along Colina Hill, down a boulevard through downtown, and then turning east at Las Granjas. Other avenues include Avenida del Valle, through its namesake neighbourhood; Avenida Súbita, straddling the central hills, and the newly built Avenida La Barra, on the western coast. Note that all of these avenues traverse from north to south.
The Nuevo Extremo Boulevard was actually a pioneer in the standard Isla Bonita boulevard construction. It was the first avenue in the island to feature side parks, separated traffic and a central tram line
Subway, tram, cable car/funiculars and monorail
The history of Cuerno de Águila simply couldn't have been written without trams. The Coast Tram was what enabled it to become a streetcar suburb, and even though its tracks to Anclaje have long since been replaced by Monorail Line A, which loops around South Bay before heading south into Finisterra, there are still some tram lines currently working in the city, most notably Line T5, the Coast Tram's successor, coming in from the north, traverses alongside Nuevo Extremo Avenue (see above) before continuing alongside the coast, southeast to Pueblo Simón. Tram Line T4, on the other hand, comes from Anclaje on the other side of the hills and links a number of neighbourhoods before finishing at Monumento station.
Line 1 of the subway crosses the city from southwest to northeast in a wide arc, so much so that Cuerno de Águila has the longest amount of track belonging to this subway line within city limits. Nevertheless, since the extension to Finisterra, it no longer holds any of its terminals. Line 1, instead, comes from this town and travels alongside the entire western coast (a remarkable engineering feat, only possible through a series of deep tunnels), turning east at La Barra and crossing the mountains near Valle Súbito before coming down the other side, and passing nearby St. Paul's Basilica on its way to Anclaje. Cuerno de Águila is also served by Line 4, which travels along the coast, mostly shadowing the monorail line but a bit further to the northwest, directly beneath downtown, before ending at Auditoría station.
Finally, Cuerno de Águila features a number of cable cars or funiculars ascending the steep hills. This idea, brought from a commission that visited Valparaíso, Chile, has enabled plenty of people to more easily access upland neighbourhoods. Estadio funicular has a direct connection to Tram Line T4, but the cable car with the best panoramic view has got to be Cine, near downtown and linking it to the new neighbourhoods near the top of Cuerno de Águila hill.
The "Hollywood" sign near Cine funicular has been widely derided as "tacky", "unoriginal" and "yet another legal liability", but the city has remained steadfast in keeping it
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