My Visit to the Capital (Bogota)

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October 2nd 2007

Published: October 2nd 2007

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el salvaje

At Plaza de Bolivar

Janneth with her niece Yuli.

(August 22, 2007 through August 30, 2007)

I left midday for Bogotá on Wednesday August 22; the plane ride of under thirty minutes was not even long enough for me to get a nice nap before meeting up with Janneth and her family. Earlier I woke up feeling sick not only with a stomach ache, but also with cold like symptoms. Apparently, most of the members at my sister's household also woke up with the same symptoms. The problem was blamed on eating lentils, with pork, too late the night before. Whatever the reason may have been, I had a continuous runny nose and uncontrollable sneezing during my eight days in Bogotá.

It was the first time I had visited the capital, and I was much more excited for other reasons than to explore this city of eight million souls. A fine beef broth--prepared by Janneth's mother--awaited me upon arrival to her house, with a side of rice, in order to calm my stomachs. I don't know if it worked, but it surely tasted delicious. After making visit with her parents, Janneth gave me some medicine and I slept the whole afternoon into the early evening. We didn't go

At Plaza de Bolivar, Bogota

out the first night in Bogotá, rather we spent it looking at old family pictures, along with Janneth's niece, Yuli, and her mother.

We spent the next morning around Janneth's neighborhood, in Barrio Marsella. I explored the neighborhood, Janneth as my guide, and we made our way to Plaza de las Americas, a mall in the area. Janneht, Yuli, and I ate lunch at Dona Elvia's house--Elvia is a neighbor, a great friend of Janneth's mother, and Janneth's best friend's mother. We sat and visited the household, and the three of us (Janneth, Yuli, and I) were soon off to the center of Bogotá to see the famous Museum of Gold. Mostly pieces of gold made by the many indigenous cultures within Colombia, the museum provides quite an exhibit of material found in the archaeological record--which to this day many have not been unearthed. The popular pieces are that of the raft of the legend of El Dorado, quite beautiful, and the Poporo Quimbaya, an art piece of a ceremonial device. The museum, to me, glosses over the information of many of the pieces, and information, that it brings up--for example, that of old myths pertaining certain pieces--the museum

Muse de Oro

One of the non-gold pieces at the Museum. This piece resembles many of those found in San Agustin.

does not provide full information. Also, certain pieces, that are called patrimonial pieces of the country, are locked up in the museum after they were ransacked from burial places.

After we strolled through the artisan market that is directly in front of the museum. A lot of beautiful crafts are found here, and you can certainly find what you are looking for. We then sat and enjoyed an almojabana and a pastry along with lemonade in front of the all the emerald merchants that stand across the street from the church of San Francisco.

After resting a bit, and getting already into the mid-afternoon, we headed to Plaza de Bolivar. It is located in the heart of the historical area of the city, and provides a great view of Monserrate, on a clear day. The buildings around the plaza are also beautiful--The Palace of Justice and the Catedral Primada de Bogota are some of the buildings to be found here. From there walked up towards the Museo Botero, which also shares much of the building with another museum of various art and the Casa de Moneda. The entrance is free, and worth the hour and a half walk

La Catedral Primada de Bogota

to see all that it provides. We ended the night in this historic area, known as La Candelaria. The area is mainly known for the colonial buildings that are still prevalent and the new bar scene that has sprung due to the influence of college students around the area. Well worth the walk, and the area is quite diverse in tastes.

From La Candelaria, we took the bus down to Janneth's sister's house to drop off Yuli. The public transportation in Bogotá is improving, but one of the biggest gripes from the people is the Transmilenio--both the crowds and prices. The crowds is what I had a problem with that night. In an attempt to get in one of the buses, because Janneth and Yuli already had barely fit into the bus, I was forced, not only because I didn't want to wait there by myself, but also by the crowd behind me, on the last step of the bus. Half my feet were barely inside, and my heels were hanging out. Already used to being in a bus hanging from the door, from my time in Colombia, I was not expecting the door to close in on me.

Plaza de Bolivar

Me trying to pose.

While the doors began to close, an old lady pushed me and made her way on the bus as well. The push from the old lady surprised me, and I stumbled to gain balance, as the door closed on my right foot and almost took my shoe off. Looking at people from below, and literally hanging on to people for balance, Yuli and Janneth's only response was to laugh at my predicament--I would have also laughed. Pushed by numerous mid-sections from random people, my face at times pushed against the door's window, while trying to hold on to the hinges of the door from above. Not knowing that they were greased up, my face ended up black. I washed at Janneth's sister's house, and we went back in taxi.

The next day we left late out of the house, and first headed to La Nacional, the national university where Jannth graduated. Quite different from many universities in the United States, the university is closed of to the public, though I was able to sneak in without a university issued ID. The campus is quite large, but cold, and many of the students where very distant to one another--at least

At Plaza de Bolivar

A view of Monserrate

that was my perception. A quick snack outside the university of fried plantain and different meats on top, we headed to Maloka--where Janneth had done her thesis work. This is a museum, mostly designed for children, to understand general science and the world around us. Adults also have a lot of fun with in this space--very much like the Science Museum in London. A cup of coffee at the mall across the street from the museum ended the night.

Zipaquira was our destination the next day The town is small, and is mainly know not for the salt mines that are located just outside of the town, rather it is known for the Cathedral that the miners built in the old salt mines. But before we headed into the town, we also had to eat fritanga, famous in many places in Colombia. Fritanga is a platter that holds bite size pieces of different kinds of meats, as well as potatoes and plantains. The platter mostly consist of, but not limited to, fried pork, chicharron, morzilla (stuffed intestine with rice and blood), beef, sausage, and pork fat. It is served in a huge plate, and everyone at the table shares

Museo Botero, Bogota

in the eating--drank of course with beer or a combination of beer and Colombiana--a Colombian soft drink.

Known as Colombia's first wonder, the salt cathedral in Zipaquira is truly an amazing work of art in the space provided. The entrance to the cathedral is the old entrance to the mine, and as one walks deeper into the mines, the visitor is presented with the 14 Stations of the Cross. The art work and sculpturing of the crosses and other material were done directly onto the walls of the mine. The tour lasts about an hour.

Another hour and a half away is another small town, known for their cheeses, Ubaque. The cheeses were delicious, the drive was wonderful, and once we got back, a surprise BBQ was made for my arrival by Janneth's brother. That night we spent it drinking tequila, the bottles I had brought from Merida, aguardiente, and beer. Food was delicious, and as Janneth so often told me, the corn in Colombia definitely tastes much better, wow!!

On Sunday we headed to Guatavita, another small and famous town outside of Bogota. The houses are all white, and just outside the town is the lagoon

Museo Botero, Bogota

Botero's rendition of The Mona Lisa

where the legend of El Dorado originates--a lot of gold is to be found at the bottom of the lagoon, but no one has ever been able to get it. It was a cold and damp day, so most of the stalls were closed, and the tourist crowds stayed away. We went to bed early that night, as the next day we were leaving early for Giradot.

Janneth's family owns a weekend house in Girardot. It is a town in 'tierra caliente', and I was glad to see the sun once again. The road to Girardot is the highway that connects Bogota and Cali--and it wasn't until I got back to Medellin that I found out that I had driven on the same roads overlooking the same cliffs where my father had died in his accident, just outside of Sylvania. Had I known that I don't know how I would have driven through the area. Janneth even told me as we drove through the cliffs that she hated them, and pointed out many black stars on the road; a spot where some one died.

Monday was spent all afternoon at the military club where Janneth's brother has membership.

All Greased Up....

All my face--here just my chin after being cleaned--had been covered by grease from the extreme, to say the least, crowdedness of the Transmilenio.

We took advantage of the facilities and cheap food. We arrived into Girardot late at night, and ate a nice meal before heading to a local bar to celebrate Janneth's cousin's birthday who had come along with us with her husband. Tuesday we walked the town, and traversed the popular bridge that was for the old railroad. After another visit to the military club late afternoon, we headed to bed early to relax, and get ready for the drive back on Wednesday. Wednesday was my last night, and the whole household enjoyed and endless amount of aguardiente. Everyone, except for Yuli, got drunk, and the conversations lasted all night. Maria, Janneth's sister, was the only one to suffer, as she only slept for two hours, and had a horrible time at work.

We did nothing exciting on Thursday, drove around town doing various errands Janneth had to do, and then off to the airport, and our goodbye...

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