Advertisement
Published: July 21st 2008
BOGOTA Bogota has plenty to offer. The city center is beautiful, and walking throughout is easy and relatively safe--just
"no de papaya" and you will be fine (in other words use common sense). The Plaza Bolivar is a beautiful spot for travellers and tourists alike: the Prima Catedral, el Palacio Narino, the Bolivar Monument, the Palacio de Justicia, and other government buildings can be found here. Around the area, one can find a number of museums. I visited some of them last year--Casa de Botero, Casa de la Moneda. Others, like the Police Museum, are close by.
Transmilenio is a great service, though most of the time you will have to fight your way just to be able to climb on. With a recent hike in price--now at 1500 Colombian pesos--most people are not happy with the service, price, or crowds (the common nickname is 'Transmilleno" a play on words that ends meaing
crowded). It makes a stop at the Museo de Oro, a must see. In front of the museum a nice artisans market provides moderate priced goods. Head west, through the alley of the church, and you will stumble upon the book market. I found "Los Detectives
Villa de Leyva, Colombia
Plaza looking at the beautiful morning sky.Salvajes" by Roberto Boleno in Spanish, which I had not found anywhere.
Monserrate is east of the Museo de Oro stop, and the "J" bus can take you there; walk ten minutes east, and the Quinta de Bolivar, U de Andes, and the entrance to Monserrate are there. I had not visited Monserrate last year, so that trip was first on the list this year. Janneth and I went on the Monday after I arrived, a holiday in the country, and we took advantage of the crowds for a safe walk up Monserrate. It is smarter to go on a holiday or weekends because during the week less people are present, and robberies have been known to happen during the week.
The walk takes about an hour, and the views that it provides are great--if walking up a mountains side isn't your cup of tea, use the "teleferico." Atop you can attend mass, walk around and see the 12 stations, or go into the numerous artesan shops or food stalls--though they are a bit expensive compared to other areas in the city. The typical thing to eat is chocolate and tamal. Janneth and I went with the tamal
and beer--the walk made us thirsty, and we weren't feeling chocolate at the moment.
The north of Bogota is trendiest area of the city. Shopping, eating, and drinking that competes with other major capitals. In front of the Centro Comercial Andino (a mall) is the "T zone" a two block area of bars and expensive restaurants--not to mention beautiful women. The Irish pub in the area has its own brewed beer; worth a visit. I was not able to vist Parque de la 93, but I was told it was a great area for "rumba" and eye candy.
North of the Museo de Oro, a 20 minute walk, you can find the Museum of Modern Art. Quite boring on the outside, but an extremenly interesting building on the inside. Very cool architecture. The day I went, only one artist was on display--on all four floors.
Walk a bit more north and you will stumble upon the planetarium and the bull ring. The season for bull fights (
corridas) is in Janauary, so if you care to watch the ritualistic killing of bulls, January is your time in Bogota. East of the bull ring you will find the neighborhood
of La Macarena. The main street in this area is littered with bohemian cafes and international eateries, but the prices are more like those in the U.S. and in Europe, so bring money if you care to drink some beer.
The National Museum, north of La Macarena, was once a panopticon. It now houses the national treasures, and it provides a wonderful history of people in Colombia beginning 3000 years ago, to the conquest, to independence, to today.
If you ask for La Florida, a famous bakery, don't miss the opportunity to drink their chocolate, delicious; it is not too far from these museums mentioned above.
VILLA DE LEYVA The town is beautiful. It is a six hour drive from Bogota, and well worth the distance. Janneth, her sister Maria, Janneth's niece Yuli, Maria's partner Manuel, and I went for a weekend adventure.
El Puente de Boyaca is on the way there, so if you can, a stop is well worth the history lesson. We stopped and took our tourist photos in the area.
We walked to the Pozos Azules. There we met Sandra, the person in charge. After sweet talking, she allowed
Monserrate
View of Bogota us free entrance to the place. After an hour walking around, we headed back to Sandra to talk and drink beer. The rain came, and we headed to the building where the bathrooms are. We passed the afternoon with Sandra while we waited out the rain, and drank beer after beer.
We ate at a restaurant in fron to the bus terminal, with our drunken state, the food was marvelous. Some shopping, aguardiente drinking, and walkin around capped off our first night in Villa de Leyva.
The next day we went museum watching and more shopping. The day was beautiful. On the drive back to Bogota, we stopped in Raquira. A tiny town known for its crafts, a must see if you have the time.
Villa de Leyva still has the look of a colonial town. Almost all the building are painted white, with brownish-reddish shingles. The streets are cobbled, and the atmosphere of the town is wonderful. Many foreigners make the trek out here, and Sandra a local we met, who gave us a free entrance to the Pozos Azules and free beer, enjoyed the people from all over the world who came to visit the
Monserrate
On the walk up to Monserrate little town.
We stayed at Estancia el Olivo--check out their website for a cool video on how to get there. The place is beautiful, and they allow pets. We took Nitro and Tobias.
Our first stop was los Pozos Azules. If you walk, right in front of the entrance, you will find a small shop. If you stop, the owner will talk with you about anything and the beer is cheap, though a bit hot. Los Pozos Azules are beautiful and well worth the visit.
The town also offer the Cronosaurus, a bit further down the road where the Pozos Azules are, along with an ostrich farm, around the same area. There is a beautiful waterfall, but we didn't get to see it.
The center of town, and its plaza, is beautiful. Walking through its streets, entering stores and museums are great. You can also find several places that offer horseback riding and eco-tours for those interested.
We ate at "El Buen Gusto" on our last morning, great service and food, located on the southwest corner of the plaza.
VILLETA An hour and a half outside of Bogota, to the west on
the highway Bogota-Medellin, the town of Villeta offers great hot weather, a weekend scape to the city of Bogota and its cold air. Though small, drinking, sitting and staring, and swimming will keep you busy enough in the town.
I rented a car, and Janneth and I made the short drive. We arrived early afternoon and went to the hotel El Pacifico. Not the cheapest off places, but it is centrally located, and close to everything--though since Villeta is so small almost everything is close to everything else.
After dropping off our stuff in our room, we headed to the plaza, had lunch and drank beer. A short drive through all the town--provided by a giant slug--provided a nice tour, though extremely bumpy.
At night the plaza is home to a number of clubs and bars, and the "rumba" goes well into the early morning. We drank beer until about midnight, had dinner and went to bed early.
The next day we drank beer pool side and enjoyed the warm weather that Bogota doesn't this time of year. On the way back to the capital, we stopped at La Varas, a delicious restaurant with beautiful views.
Monserrate
On the walk through the 12 stations. MEDELLIN With the same rental car we went to Villeta, I made the drive to Medellin from Bogota. About an eight hour drive, it took me about 11 hours thanks in part to the closure of a bridge over the Magdalena river that took an hour to clear up and a crash that backed up traffic in the mountainside for over an hour. The drive provides beautiful scenary, and it is safe to undertake.
I stayed with a family friend and her family. I drove throughout the city, and it is extremely easy to get around.
The city of eternal spring is my favorite. Beautiful women, great food, and drinks that flow at any time. Almost a total opposite of Bogota--though I greatly enjoy Bogota--Medellin "es la berraquera." Not much travelling this time around. I mostly did fieldwork for my studies.
However, Medellin has plenty to offer. El cerro Nutibara is great park, and atop you can find el pueblito paisa; though an hour is enough. At night it does provide wonderful views of the city. At the centy of the city the Plaza de Botero is fun, and all around you will find great
Tired
Enjoying breakfast at the top of Monserrate shopping, with "el hueco" not being too far away. The Museum of Antioquia is at the Plaza de Botero.
The metro, the only one in Colombia, offers easy travelling from Bello down to Itagui, and the metrocables takes you up to the communes--"no de papaya" up there if you get out to explore.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.213s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 13; qc: 74; dbt: 0.0993s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Matthew
non-member comment
Celebrations
Good Blog, I am leaving to Colombia with my girlfriend for 4.5 months on August 14th. I am very excited about it! In regards to the last paragraph of your blog, I must admit that the lack of Colombia's people forgetting or changing what the international day of independence is can be argued for any holiday of any nation. I feel that your intention is not to ostracize the people of Colombia, but rather make note that people are forgetting what they are really celebrating. Honestly, I can say I've never attended a party on Memorial day here in the United States that actually had anything to do with the meaning of the day. I have friends who have served and passed away that I always remember on Memorial day, but do you think I am in the wrong for not taking personal responsibility for the well being of our troops? Am I in the wrong for not being a counselor to troops who suffer from PTSD? I really do appreciate your blog, I just felt that it ended in a way that says; “Colombian’s don’t celebrate for the right reasons” when I feel it’s more along the lines of; “The world doesn’t celebrate for the right reasons” I have now added Villete on my list of places to go while I am there! God Bless, Matt