Lajas, Puerto Rico

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Lajas is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo".^{[8][9][10][11][12][13]}

Sectors

Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions)^[14] and subbarrios,^[15] are further subdivided into smaller areas called sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.^[16][17][18]

Special Communities

Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Lajas: El Papayo, El Tendal, Sector Sabana Yeguas, La Haya, Las Cuevas, Los Jovillos, Maguayo, Piñalejos, and Tokio.^[19][20]

Climate

Lajas features a tropical savanna climate (Aw/As), common for southwestern Puerto Rico. The record high for the town is 103 °F (39 °C).

Landmarks and places of interest

There are five beaches in Lajas.^[31] Some of the main attractions of Lajas are:

• Cartagena Lagoon
• Indian Museum
• Old Train Station
• Old Silver Mines
• La Parguera
• Lajeño Soldier Monument
• Isla Magueyes
• Isla Mata la Gata
• Pineapple Processing Plant Ruins
• Rosada Beach or Playita Rosada
• Caracoles Beach
• Caribe Fisheries
• The Puerto Rico Alien Route, which passes by a landing strip developed by a local from Lajas to welcome extraterrestrial landings.^[32]

Festivals and events

Lajas celebrates its patron saint festival in February. The Fiestas Patronales de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.^[7][33] The festival has featured live performances by well-known artists such as Tito Rojas, and Arcángel.^[34]

Other festivals and events celebrated in Lajas include:

• Kite Festival – February / March
• Festival de Pesca de la Aguja Azul – May
• Pineapple Festival (Festival de la Piña Paradisíaca) - May or June, where up to 50,000 people come for arts, crafts, music and 30,000 lbs. of pineapple^[35]
• Fiesta de San Pedro Festival – June
• Agriculture Fair or (Feria Agrícola Nacional del Valle de Lajas) – June / July^[36]
• Christmas Parade and Artisans Fair – December

Flag

The flag consists of three horizontal stripes; the top one is green, the center one is white and the bottom one is light yellow. A vertical white stripe down the left makes a white cross. In the center of the cross is a ripe yellow pineapple. The cross is surrounded by eleven gold stars; five in the top part and six in the lower part of the cross, in the form of a circle.^[40]

Coat of arms

It is gold with a green band crossing it diagonally right to left; gold stands for the wealth of the land and green for the beauty of the valley, which is a gift from mother nature to Lajas. The band is adorned, at each end, with a pineapple bordered in gold and black. In the center of the band, also in gold, a marine shell. In the top left there is a red cardinal's hat and in the bottom a red anchor with green; the shield has a 3 tower castle, each one with two windows and a door. On the bottom, outside the shield, a banner with the inscription "Ciudad Cardenalicia" (Cardinal City). This, for Cardinal Luis Aponte Martínez, born in Lajas, who was the first and only Cardinal of the Catholic Church from Puerto Rico. The banner and the inscription appear in black.^[40]