El Dorado

El Dorado (pronounced: [el doˈɾaðo], English /ˌɛl dəˈrɑːdoʊ/; Spanish for "the golden one"), originally El Hombre Dorado (the golden man), El Indio Dorado (the golden Indian), or El Rey Dorado (the golden king), is the term used by Europeans to describe a mythical tribal chief of the Muisca native people of Colombia, who, as an initiation rite, covered himself with gold dust and submerged in Lake Guatavita. The legends surrounding El Dorado changed over time, as it went from being a city, to a kingdom, and then finally an empire.

A second location for El Dorado was inferred from rumors, which inspired several unsuccessful expeditions in the late 1500s in search of a city called Manõa on the shores of Lake Parime. The most famous of these expeditions were led by Sir Walter Raleigh. In pursuit of the legend, Spanish conquistadors and numerous others searched Colombia, Venezuela, and parts of Guyana and northern Brazil for the city and its fabulous king. In the course of these explorations, much of northern South America, including the Amazon River, was mapped. By the beginning of the 19th century most people dismissed the existence of the city as a myth.

El Dorado AVA

The El Dorado AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in El Dorado County, California, USA. Wine grape growers in the region produce Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot and are beginning to plant the Rhône varietals. Located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, vineyards are found at elevations between 1,200 feet (366 m) and 3,500 feet (1,067 m) above sea level and some of the best vineyards are planted above 2,000 feet (610 m) elevation. The region benefits from the cool breezes that come off the mountains and push hot air off the vines and down to the valley. The soils of the region are magma based with high levels of acidity.

Established in 1983, The El Dorado American Viticultural Area (AVA, also referred to as an "appellation") includes those portions of El Dorado County bounded on the north by the Middle Fork of the American River, and on the south by the South Fork of the Cosumnes River. El Dorado is a sub-appellation of the 2,600,000-acre Sierra Foothills AVA — one of the largest appellations in California — which includes portions of the counties of Yuba, Nevada, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and Mariposa.

El Dorado (football)

El Dorado is the term used to refer to the era in the Colombia football league from 1949 to 1954, when the league broke away from FIFA.

The DIMAYOR, the organizer of the league, broke away from FIFA after a dispute with Adefútbol, the existing amateur football authority in Colombia. Therefore, all Colombian teams were suspended from playing international football. The Colombian national team was also under sanction. However, FIFA sanction did not hurt the league; instead, the Colombian league reached its golden era during the period.

History

The Colombia football league turned professional in 1948. That year, Independiente Santa Fe had been champion. Later, the DIMAYOR decided to leave the Colombian Football Federation, due to internal disputes, thus FIFA suspended the league and the national team from all the international tournaments.

In 1948, the Argentine Football Association faced General Juan Domingo Perón and began a strike that caused the migration of several of the most important footballers of Argentina to the Colombian league. The Colombian league was saved by two factors: the arrival of Argentinian players into Colombia, and as the Colombian league was not affiliated to FIFA, the Colombian clubs were not required to pay transfer fees under FIFA rules. Alfonso Senior, the chairman of Millonarios, decided to bring several Argentine players taking advantage of the condition in which they were.