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Published: April 6th 2010
The only way to leave Leticia safely is to fly; there is still a guerrilla presence in the south of the country and the roads are impassable. The airport was slightly different to Heathrow, with 2 departure gates in the same room, questionable security checks and what appeared relatively easy access to the single strip runway. Oh well, a cheap and convenient way to travel, and within 2 hours we were touched down in the Colombian capital, having left the heat and humidity behind and into relatively cool conditions, being 2500metres above sea level. Having arrived in the early evening and with over 2 weeks without a decent bed, it was a perfect opportunity to grab some food and take advantage of the massive, comfy bunk beds in the spacious room at Alegria’s Hostel. It would be the first time in 2 months when a quilt was not only supplied, but also required!
Day 1 in Bogota had been earmarked for a day of sightseeing, getting it out of the way before the weekend, where we were looking to experience the Colombian nightlife we had heard so much about. It was a productive day, starting off in the Gold Museum,
which showcased the Colombian’s discovery of…gold. It was interesting to a point, but after half an hour of looking at different pieces of gold, it all looks pretty much the same and I was ready to move on. The Police Museum was far more interesting, aided by the free tour, conducted in English by a current serving officer. It was not supposed to be a tribute to Pablo Escobar, however a lot of Colombia’s recent problems have stemmed from him and his cartels and provided plenty of material to keep the tourist ‘entertained’. It certainly illustrated quite vividly with some of the pictures we saw, how violent Colombia’s past was, with one picture sticking in my mind more than others - that of a mother with a bomb locked around her neck, which would only be removed if she paid the extortionate ransom for her kidnapped son. Obviously she couldn’t…and unfortunately the inevitable happened.
Walking around the city in itself was pleasant enough with some interesting architecture, primarily situated in the tourist zone, known as the Candelaria. There is a government building in the main square, which from a distance appears to have ‘things’ crawling over the front of
it. On closer inspection, these ‘things’ are giant ants, which are there to apparently protect the building. Whoever managed to get that signed off must be a pretty smooth talker - to say they are an ‘eye saw’ may be being a touch harsh - but they are certainly not something I‘d want on the front of my house!
That night was full of surprises! Firstly, my two dining options were not accessible - firstly, the Indian restaurant wouldn’t deliver to our part of town, and secondly, our number 2, a middle eastern restaurant, was closed. We opted for a Mexican restaurant close to the hostel, which was mediocre at best, and not very Mexican! We returned to the hostel to find that the owner was in the process of throwing an impromptu party - there were local elections on, which meant an alcohol ban throughout the weekend - though you could drink indoors. It was a good way of getting people together and the owner generously handed out the odd free beer - all gratefully received! The final surprise was seeing Myles and Andy, the 2 aussie guys I met in Uruguay, sitting in the reception area. They
were just checking in and had the same plans as me for the next couple of weeks, which was strange as I was to email them in the next couple of days. Not the first time I have just run into people unexpectedly, and I doubt it’ll be the last! After a few more beers and a good catch up, it was time to retire to the comfort of the beds!
The next day we checked into the Musicology Hostel which was just around the corner. It had been recommended as a ‘party’ hostel so we thought it a good place to meet people, which it proved to be. Feeling a bit dusty that morning, the day was pretty relaxed, going for a late lunch with Andy and Rodney, a Dutch guy who I got to know earlier in the day over a game of poker…and who had taken my money with some ease! That night I met Emy, an aussie girl who the 2 lads had met at Carnival and who would be joining us on the trek to Ciudad Perdida (the Lost City), which we had decided to do together. Unfortunately, the local elections meant that nowhere
was open, which meant no drinking in town and no chance to experience the nightlife of Bogota. We were still able to drink inside the hostel and a nice little crew had formed in the bar upstairs, where the murmuring of a party in another part of town became the main conversation. And so, at about 22:30 about 40 gringo’s took to the deserted streets of Bogota, (something that I imagine is a big no no in any travel guide) in search of a party that nobody seemed to know too much about. Comforted by the ‘safety in numbers’ rule, we eventually found the location after and were let into a house, rented by a short little Scottish fella, with long hair and a handle-bar moustache and who taught English in the city. One of the bedrooms had been converted into the DJ booth and the kitchen into a bar, selling beers at a very reasonable price. Another hostel turned up after about an hour and by midnight there must have been at least 100 people partying in the house. It was a very surreal moment indeed! Here I was, drinking beer and listening to familiar music with fellow English
speakers, in the rented house of someone I barely knew. I could have been anywhere in Europe at that moment, or more likely back at Uni, however I was in the middle of Bogota, in the middle of Colombia…hilarious!
On the Sunday, Andy and 1 walked around town for a while and looked into the Botero (a Colombian artist from Medellin) museum, famous for proportionally exaggerating people in his portraits and objects in general i.e. making them fat. I’m not really one for museums or galleries, but I genuinely enjoyed the experience, probably because it was easy to see what I perceived as a less serious side to art. We later rode the cable car to Montserrat, the famous lookout point 3030 metres above Bogota, giving a spectacular view of the whole of the city, which is far bigger than I originally thought and home to some 7.5 million people. Although it was a bit overcast, the view as darkness descended was really impressive, as the lights of Bogota came to life.
On Monday 15th March I planned to meet up with Edna, the girl I met during my first week away in Rio and who lived in
Bogota. She kindly offered to show me around and was happy for me to bring a few people from the hostel. She took us to the salt cathedral, which was located in a place called Zipaquira, a quaint little town a couple of hours out of Bogota. It was nice to leave the city and provided my first opportunity to experience the Colombian countryside, where the roads quickly turned more and more dusty, the houses more run down and the image I had of Colombia becoming more and more a reality.
Zipaquira is small enough to walk around in half a day, enjoying the plaza, alleyways and pleasant little streets cafés and restaurants dotted around. The cathedral is built into the underground salt mine and is an impressive work of architecture, showing the 14 stages of the Cross en deep to the lower levels of the mine, from where salt is still mined today. As the majority of the group I went with spoke Spanish, the tour we went for was in Spanish, which was of little help to me, although Edna did a good job translating as best she could. I got the gist of it, but was
more impressed with what I was actually seeing, as opposed to why I was seeing it. I don’t think it will be the highlight of any travel trip, but makes for an interesting half day and was good to see another part of the country.
We had some late lunch before taking the bus back to Bogota, where Edna wanted to show us a couple of buildings before taking us for a ‘famous’ hot chocolate. Apparently the café had been there for years, serving the same thing, which was why it was so famous and must admit the selection of cakes and pastries were very tempting. However, we were there to try something else! We were served a large mug of hot chocolate - very nice - as well as a roll with 2 pieces of cheese. Nothing too abnormal there, until Edna started breaking off the cheese and putting it into the hot chocolate, waiting for it to melt and then eating the stringy cheese with the bread. Different! I thought at first she was on a wind-up, trying to get the tourists to do something stupid, but she was being genuinely serious…so when in Rome…or Bogota. I
wouldn’t say it was the nicest combination I have ever tasted and not sure when the next round will be, but it certainly wasn’t horrible!
We finished the day with some more information about Edna’s capital city, a place she is extremely proud and passionate. A thoroughly enjoyable day and a pleasure to spend with her.
(For those using this as a research tool, we offered to pay for Edna’s taxi home from La Candelaria, which is where the majority of hostels are. She was adamant that she did not feel safe taking a taxi alone from this area, so if you are a lone female, you may want to reconsider before taking a taxi here. I found her insistence against taking the taxi quite alarming, especially as she was very streetwise and very pro Bogota. I don't want to alarm anyone, especially as I never experienced any trouble in Bogota and took taxis without trouble as part of a group, but just thought I should highlight this.)
After 5 nights in Bogota, we checked out on the 16th March and Andy, Emy, Myles and myself took a flight from Bogota to Santa Marta…back to the coast,
the heat and the sunshine!!
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