Aventura Total

Hi All,

We just returned to Bogota after one of our most memorable weeks, travelling through various cities within Colombia. It’s difficult to know where exactly to begin with this entry; the experiences we shared with other travelers this past week were complex and beautiful. We met up with a few couples from England and Australia, and a few solo travelers from California, South Africa, Spain and Israel.

Our week began embarking on yet another bus from Bogota to the city of Tunja. Tunja is riddled with gorgeous 16th century churches and museums depicting Tunja’s history. We visited a few of the churches and took a tour of the Founders house which still exists. The founder is the only founder in Colombia who after conquering Tunja chose to reside there instead of returning to Spain. All other conquers in Colombia at that time would always return to Spain but not this one. The art painted within the walls of his home were so odd. The paintings depicted animals that reside in other parts of the world, although the depictions were quite laughable. The elephant legs were springs and the bear had a tail of a cat with claws of an eagle and was no larger than a raccoon with razor sharp teeth. The depictions were solely based on other people’s encounters that got passed down top the artist

Villa De Leyva was our next stop which was only 45 minutes away from Tunja. Upon finishing the tours at Tunja, we took a bus and arrived at Villa de Leyva late that afternoon. This place has a very quaint and safe feel to it. The ‘artesanias’ here are very nice and the surrounding geography is stunning, this entire region was under water millions of years ago as we found out on our horseback ride.

Raul is one of the kindest locals we have met. He owns a few horses and has contracted with the local tourist agency, ‘Colombian Highlands’ to offer 3 hour trips all around Villa de Leyva. He was very informative and one could tell of his earnestness to please those that chose to travel with him. From the get go Raul grabbed my camera and insisted he take pictures so that both of us would be in them. First stop was at a natural spring with gorgeous aqua green water where we stopped for a quick dip. Next stop was ‘El Fossil’ a baby Kronosaurus that was found just decades ago which dates back millions of years. This museum also included many fossils of ammonites, sea creatures which appear like snails. We then moved on to ‘El Infiernito’ which we later found out is incorrectly referred to. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived to Villa de Leyva they termed this place ‘El Infiernito’, implying to the locals that this place was the work of the devil and built this reputation as a marketing ploy to convert the locals.

This place was used by the indigenous group Muisca, to determine various astrological movements so they could accurately plan their harvests. The Muisca believed earth to be a female figure and that the sun was the source of life. The tall stone structures are actually phallic symbols if you look close enough. The Muisca created these as symbol of fertility so that the sun would help the female earth produce more nourishment. Needless to say this place had a very mystical feeling to it and goes to show the Muisca’s perceptions of time and energy were quite advanced as one may think.

We finished the trip at a winery that is owned by a German couple and made our way back to the main plaza. We tipped Raul because of kind heartedness and knowledge and he insisted we meet his little boy and take a few of his rocks from his personal collection he has accumulated through the years. The day finished with a great fondue meal followed by dancing at one of the local watering holes were we met with Julio, a senior marketing manager for a pesticide company here in Bogota, we talked about how much success could be had from the exportation of the ´papa criolla´ and planned to stay in touch to see what opportunities may arise.

Wednesday morning and were off to San Gil, the EXTRME adventure capital of Colombia. The 6 hour bus ride was not exactly the most comfortable but felt quite safe. We were required to stop at a random military post where there were about 20 soldiers with big machine guns ready to search the passengers and the bus for any contraband. The soldiers required women and men to be separated and searched through our bags. This may sound quite a bit more intimidating than it actually was. Realistically though, there was almost a sense of relief to know there are multiple stops like this all over the country and we expect to run into a few more during our trip. We arrived late that afternoon and opted to call it an early night for the adventures that await us the next day.

Walking down the Rio fonce where national white water rafting competitions take place we saw a company called ‘Adventura Total’ which offers paragliding sessions. I’m sure you all know where this is going. After paying 35 US dollars, getting weighed and signing our life away, next thing you know where in a 60´s Volkswagen bus full of other travelers ready to try something were not exactly sure what it entails. We arrived at some tobacco farms and walked up a small pollack with the crew and set up for what would be both our take off point and landing pad. Luckily we weren’t the first ones to go, but Pedro from Spain was. His take off was classic, we were all expecting the guides to provide us with words of support to calm our nerves and some bits of advice, but no... one second Pedro was strapped into the tandem seat, and next the parachute was in the air dragging Pedro down the hill for a few seconds until take off was established... we were next!! The flight was absolutely exhilarating!! It was like a roller coaster with no rails. The take off and landing were the scariest times. We thought were going to be the next big internet hit on YouTube as our parachute crashes into the ground.. JUST KIDDING, parents. We went out with all our new friends that night as well as the paragliding instructors.

The next day we checked out of our hotel and checked into the hostel where all the people we went paragliding with stayed at. A new group of us today did ‘torentisomo’. Torentismo is basically repelling, but down a water fall. The water fall we repelled down was called ´Las Cascadas de Juan Curi´. The falls are 180m high. Honestly, this sport was a bit more frightening at first than Paragliding because your body completely rejects the idea of stepping backwards over a cliff with thousands of tons of rushing water below your feet and only being attached to a small rope at the waist. Once we were over the cliff, water starts pounding on your body and the descent feels like forever, it’s extremely surreal to look both sides and see that you’re hanging hundreds of feet in the air and water screaming by you on all sides.

Late that afternoon we travelled to Barichara - El Pueblito Mas bonito de Colombia - a national monument. We then continued to the town of Guane. Guane’s total inhabitants equal 280 people! It felt like quite the ghost town when arrived. We took a short tour of the museum there and learned how unique the indigenous tribe Guane is to that region.

Today there are not anymore Guane’s left. What made this indigenous group so unique was that they were extremely tall, fair skinned, with blond or brown hair. When the Spanish conquistadors finally reached them where they resided in Los Santos - The highest point in the Chicamocha valley, they were stunned to see how different these people were than every other tribe they had conquered. There is a theory that the Guane were actually part of the Vikings that claimed that land before the Spanish, and then inherited a new nomadic life style. The hieroglyphics created by this group are not understood by any historian. The Guane had made a promise that they would rather die than ever be captured by a Spaniard. They definitely came through on that promise. When the Spanish approached them on that fateful day the entire Guane tribe, women, children, and men all approached the edge of the cliff and all jumped to their demise. The Spanish then went to retrieve the bodies and found that an eagle had actually impaled a man through the chest. There is a statue dedicated to this man and all the Guane in the middle of San Gil. For aesthetic reasons, as you can see in the picture, the eagle was reversed.

We felt very safe in San Gil. There are no street peddlers and every one is so amicable. Give a smile, receive a smile in San Gil. It’s great to see a community where people truly enjoy the presence of each other. The parents here put trust in their community as you see brother and sister holding hands walking down the street running errands for their family.

We’re finally back in Bogota but are ready to leave again tomorrow, super early to Cartagena. We have about an 18 hour bus ride in front us and more adventures we can’t wait to discover. In conclusion, the travelers we met are wonderful people with adventurous spirits we share. Some have professions such as teachers, or investors. Others are students, and some are just lone travelers seeking some of enlightenment. We’re grateful for having met these people and know we’ll meet many others. Until Next time, Chau!

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