Spain Avenue (Spanish: Avenida España), formerly known as the Avenue of the Exhibition (Spanish: Avenida de la Exposición) and then as Alfonso XIII Avenue (Spanish: Avenida Alfonso XIII) until 1931, is an avenue in Lima, Peru. It extends from east to west in the districts of Lima and Breña along 7 blocks. The tracks of the Metropolitano extend along its route between Paseo de la República and Alfonso Ugarte Avenue.[1]
The avenue's inception began in the early 20th century, as the city of Lima expanded westward.[2] The avenue's 3rd block begins at the site of the former Lima Penitentiary, today the Lima Civic Center.[2]
From the late 1940s to the early 1990s, the avenue's intersection with Garcilaso de la Vega was the location of the former U.S. Embassy[3][4] until its move to Monterrico due to being targeted by the terrorist group Shining Path on several occasions,[5] as well as by the MRTA, who bombed the embassy on February 14, 1990.[6]
It starts at its intersection with the Plaza Grau and the Paseo de la República with a circulating direction from east to west. Between Paseo de la República and Avenida Garcilaso de la Vega, the avenue passes under a bridge, near the Civic Center. The 4th block of the avenue houses the art deco-style building of the Provincial Sub-Prefecture of Lima.[2]
The intersection with Garcilaso de la Vega is the location of the Clínica Internacional since the 1990s[7] and of the Casa Matusita, a house known for the popular belief of being of the paranormal type.[8]
Embajada de los Estados Unidos de América [...] Dirección: Av. Wilson s/n. Lima
Ante esta situación que fue de dominio público, a pesar de las recomendaciones para que se guardara la mayor reserva, intervino la Embajada de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica, a cuya sede de la avenida Wilson, hoy Garcilaso de la Vega, acudimos con Clyde, el jueves 18 de mayo de 1967, de lo que dan cuenta algunos diario [sic] como La Crónica, en su sección judicial del viernes 19 del indicado mes.
En la década de los ochenta, Clínica Internacional es adquirida por la familia Brescia, quienes le dieron un gran impulso a nivel tecnológico y de infraestructura. Luego se compró la antigua sede de la Embajada de Estados Unidos y finalmente la esquina de jirón Washington con avenida España que pertenecía a la familia Olaechea, y que es hoy parte de las oficinas administrativas en su sede de Lima.