Construction commenced in the early 1900s with further development during the 1920s to the 1950s. It was initially called “Avenida de Golfo” as it faced the Gulf of Mexico (hence translation; “Gulf Avenue”). But locals always referred to it as the “Sea Wall”, and in Spanish, this is “Malecon”. Today it is made up of 8 miles of differently named avenues, but no matter where you are on this stretch of coastline, the locals will call it the “Malecon” or “el sofá más largo del Mundo” (the worlds’ largest sofa). It gets this name as the sea wall is wide, and locals the length of the Malecon will sit and chat, play music, eat and drink, so just about everything you do on a sofa.
There are often locals fishing from the walls of the Malecon. Suppose you are there on a particularly stormy day. In that case, you may see locals that practise Santaria (a religion) throwing coins into the waves for Yemayá-Asesú, a Goddess who is said to inhabit the seashore. It is hoped the offerings calm the goddess (and therefore the sea).
