Bogota Day 313 28/07/2015

After another leisurely breakfast on the hotel's balcony we walked though the La Canderleria district in order to go to the funicular which would take us up the Cerro Monserrate. We read mixed reports in Lonely Planet about the safety of walking there and as the receptionist at the hotel was non committal (she said it was ok for her to walk there) we decided to go for it. Whilst a couple of blocks were run down we soon got the the huge Los Andes University unscathed and walked up the first part of the hill to the funicular. This runs in the morning and in the afternoon the cable car takes over. After paying the 37000 COPs return fare we boarded the carriage and we were soon hurtling up the slope with the city below us opening up its expansive views over a 1700 square km area. The end point is at 3200m, an ascent of nearly 600m. On arrival the mist started to descend and with it drizzle started to fall. However we still had good views right across the city and the valley beyond. At the top of the hill is the impressive church which we wandered around leisurely both to take in the impressive architecture and paintings (including the famous Senor Caldo (Fallen Christ) statue) and to shelter from the rain. At noon prompt we descended the hill in the cable car, spying out our route to go back into the centre of Bogota which looked only a short walk. Halfway back we stopped at a very bohemian cafe and enjoyed a couple of Colombian coffees (best we have had to date). Back in the centre we headed to the Museum de Oro (the one which was closed yesterday) and spent the next couple of hours looking at the many exhibits across all three floors including some very impressive craftsmanship of gold symbols created in pre-Hispanic Colombia. We decided we had room for a little more culture so after an uninspiring lunch at the Bogota Cafe on the main street, we headed back to Plaza  Bolivar to visit the cathedral. Our bad luck continued as it was again closed so next stop was a chemist in order to stock up on malarial tablets for when we hit the Caribbean coast next week (it was strange being back in a chemist and not asking for contact lens solution for Diane - thanks to Di's Dad!). We needed 12 packs of 10 tablets each and as the shop only had 5 in stock, two of the shop assistants kindly went to two other chemists nearby to get us the right number (this is true to form, all Colombians we have met have been very helpful at bus stations, in the street, in shops etc). As we paid cash for these we had to visit the ATM and we chose BBVA as we thought we could get the maximum amount out (£300). However we could only get out £70 which is really starting to annoy Simon as it costs £1.50 every time to get money regardless of the amount. This necessitated us having to get two more lots of money out with the resulting cost. When we get home we are going to tot up how much we have incurred on our travels getting our money out and ask Bank of Scotland and IF how much profit they have made. Not expecting much joy but give us something to do whilst job hunting! The rest of the afternoon we did more planning and on the evening enjoyed a tasty Mexican meal at a restaurant just around the corner ensuring we were back in the hotel well before 9pm!

Reassuring or worrying........?

 

Looking down over the city from the funicular

Iglesia Monserrate 

The huge metropolis 

Coffee stop 

Exhibits at Museo Oro 

Pre-colombian headphones 

An amazingly intricate sailing ship 

Bogota Day 312 27/07/2015

We had a leisurely start to the day and enjoyed breakfast on the hotel restaurant's balcony overlooking the narrow street. We chatted with an English chap, Alastair, who had just arrived the previous night from London and then was flying straight up to Cartagena that afternoon. He also planned to do the Lost City trek on the Caribbean coast and after a couple of weeks umming and arring we finally decided we would look to do it when we were in Santa Marta in a week's time. After dropping our washing off at the nearby laundrette we walked around the narrow district of La Candelaria where we were staying. It was very Spanish colonial in design as this was the founding district of the city which was known as Santa Fe before the Colombian revolution in the early 19th century. Whilst the streets were very busy with people popping in and out of their offices (lots of people in suits) and tourists you couldn't help yet again notice the strong police and military presence with the semi assault machine guns and mean looking rottweilers fully muzzled. There is still the threat of terrorism in Colombia although at the time of writing the main guerrilla group, FARC, have signed a ceasefire with the government and talks are underway. Seeing all the military and police gave us mixed feelings; both reassurance but also a sense of unease. We found a bank 3 blocks away from our hotel and frustratingly could only get a maximum withdrawal of 300,000 COPS (£70) before walking through the district of the famous Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, heading towards our destination of the Museo del Oro (Gold Museum). On arrival we saw it was shut as it was Monday so we walked along one of the main streets towards the main square, Plaza de Bolivar. The street was a strange mix of colonial architecture and horrible 60's and 70's office blocks making it seem a bit tired and scruffy; the fact they we also digging up the road contributed to this appearance. The plaza was huge and was surrounded by the Presidential Palace, Palacio de Justicia and the Capitolio Nacional. All these buildings were post independence in style, almost classical Greek, which made the large 19th century neo classical Catedral Primada, on the fourth side, really stand out. Behind it were the 600m heights of the mountains giving it and impressive backdrop. Our luck of being unable to get inside the key South American churches continued as we found the gates shut tight; maybe we hoped it was just for Monday's! We found a pleasant cafe nearby for lunch then headed to a museum which we saw was open just down from our hotel; the joint Casa de Moneda and also the Museum of Botero. It was free to enter and the museum had a beautiful courtyard in the centre. The exhibits in the Moneda showed the history of Colombia both in colonial and post colonial days through the different coinage and notes issued. It was very interesting and had lots of the machines displayed that were used to make the coins; it reminded us very much of Potosi. We then walked through to the Botero musuem exhibiting the strange works of Colombia's most famous artists, Fernando Botero. He is an evangelist of all things chubby depicted in the numerous paintings and sculptures of all things fat, mainly people. The sculptures were miniatures of the ones we had seen in Medellin a few days before. As we said very strange but quite compelling! We were then quite cultured out for the day so we headed back to the hotel and complied a list of things we needed to sort including the lost city trek, accommodation for the next 2 weeks in Colombia as well as sketching an outline of our final month away in Panama and the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico. We also started to put out some feelers for a used Touareg car with some VW dealers for purchase when we get home. Dinner that evening was at a quiet but pleasant restaurant just around the corner of our hotel, making sure we were back in our room before 9pm when the police "clock off" and it's not the best place being out and about after then.

Bogota catedral 

Plaza de Bolivar

Simon Bolivar 

The inner courtyard of the Casa de Moneda 

Looking up to Cerro de Montserratt 

Botero Museum 

An example of his art 

The colonial streets of La Candelaria 

Bogota Day 311 26/07/2015

We'd booked tickets for the 0800 bus to Bogota and, after breakfast, headed to the northern bus terminal by taxi. The southbound side of the dual carriageway that runs alongside the river was closed to cars with access only to bikes and runners/walkers. No doubt Nairo Quintana's success in the Tour de France has encouraged a few more people out on their bikes along with club riders and what looked like a race. We boarded our bus just after 0820 and set off just before 0830, initially heading north and climbing up into the mountains. As with other bus journeys we were 'entertained' with films, dreadful American horror/thriller movies dubbed in Spanish with the volume very loud. All a bit too much at 0830 on a Sunday morning! The journey to Bogota is 426km along winding mountain roads before dropping down to sea level, crossing a huge bowl and then climbing up again through winding mountain roads to reach Bogota at 2600m. The scenery was lovely, very lush and green until we dropped into the arid bowl where we stopped for lunch and 'enjoyed' the full heat of the day. Most passengers tucked in to cooked meals but we opted for crisps and coke again, staying away from the hideously sweet candy (we'd thrown our previous purchase away). Unfortunately the air conditioning on the bus either didn't work or couldn't cope with the temperatures and we swelted in the heat as we continued through the lowlands, glad when we finally started climbing again and the temperature on board dropped slightly. The roads were very busy again with juggernauts (so much for hoping it might be quieter on a Sunday) and we frequently came to a stop as the lorries cut across the road on the hairpin bends or slowed as they crunched they gears heading slowly uphill. We eventually hit the outskirts of Bogota around 1800 and the bus terminal just before 1900, 10.5 hours after leaving Medellin. Taxis are all well organised and you have to get a ticket prior to getting into your allocated car. We headed off north through the city to La Candelaria district and our hotel, Abadia Colonial, where we'd booked to stay for three nights. We checked in and were handed a large DHL parcel containing enough contact lens solution to last Diane until we head home, courtesy of Diane's Dad. It had travelled from the UK to Miami and on to Panama before reaching Bogota, clearing customs 3 times along the way. We decided to have dinner in the hotel's Italian restaurant, a very enjoyable meal washed down with a nice glass of Montepulciano, the first Italian wine we've had in a very long time. We were both exhausted after the long bus journey and headed off to bed early wondering what Bogota had install for us tomorrow.

Thanks Dad!

Medellin Day 310 25/07/2015

After a leisurely breakfast at the InHotel we went to drop our laundry off only to find it closed and despite the very kind guy from the pharmacy across the road ringing to find out what time someone would arrive we gave it up as a bad job. We dropped the laundry back in our room and set off downhill to get the metro which runs north to south through the city. Medellin (pronounced Medejin) was once the world's most murderous city, centre of the worldwide cocaine trade run by drug lord Pablo Escobar. Until his death in 1993 the city was a no-go area for foreigners, not that you can image any would have wanted to visit. Today cut flowers, coffee and textiles provide the income stream. The city is set in a large mountainous green bowl and as South American cities go is very attractive (from a distance!). We got the metro to the north end and then headed uphill on the cable car to Santo Domingo, which gives great views back down over the sprawling city, and then another to Parque Arvil, a huge park of wilderness which includes miles of hiking and biking trails. We decided to head back down to the city to visit some of the local attractions. As we headed back in the cable car you could see the local airport, located next to the bus station that we arrived at yesterday and in the heart of the city. Given the mountainous area and notorious cross winds it must make for a very spicy landing and take off. We got the metro to the station near Plaza Mayor although never actually found the plaza (the map we'd been given by the hotel was great for the metro, useless for finding our way around the city). Instead we headed to Plazaoleta de las Esculturas, which we did find, in front of the Museo de Antioquia. It's also known as Plaza Botero with 23 of the artist's large bronze sculptures dotted around the square. We had lunch, a very dire affair and the worst meal we've had in a long time, in a nearby cafe and decided to head to the botanical gardens given they have such a good write up in Lonely Planet. The streets were really busy and the weather hot so we got the metro to avoid the 2km walk, conserving our energy for the gardens. The gardens were only small and although not unattractive, they were no comparison to the botanical gardens in Edinburgh. After a short walk around we headed back on the metro and walked back up the hill, slowly, to El Poblado stopping at the BBC (Bogota Beer Company) for a drink on route. Simon was very impressed by the quality of their beer and is looking forward to sampling more in Bogota. In the evening we went to a pizzeria nearby the hotel. It was a very busy restaurant with a buzzy atmosphere, OK pizza's although very pricey for what it was.

Looking across the rooftops of El Poblado

The cable car heading up to Santo Domingo

Looking back down over northern Medellin 

Heading across the tree tops to Parque Arvi 

Chaotic traffic scenes near Plaza de las Esculturas 

Botero's bronze statue in the plaza 

A lovely pint of beer from the BBC 

Medellin Day 309 24/07/2015

The 0600 start wasn't too bad and we were at the bus station at 0730 prompt after the usual routine of packing, breakfast and taxi journey. Our bus to Medellin was scheduled to leave at 0800 but we were still sat waiting to get on board as the clock passed the hour. The driver and mate soon appeared, loaded the luggage and we set off just before 0830. It doesn't seem like we'll ever understand how the bus times work here! The journey was quite slow as we left Cali but we were soon on open road although the road conditions weren't as good as we've recently experienced. Cali is located in a huge bowl which we soon headed out of and up into the mountains again. The scenery was lovely, passing mountainous and fertile lands. We drove through the Zona Cafetera, the major coffee growing area. Colombia is apparently the world's third biggest exporter although it grows poor quality beans used mainly for instant coffee. We stopped just after 1300 at a purpose built mixed of restaurants and take aways along with a number of other buses heading either to Cali or Medellin. We shared an interesting lunch of chorizo platter and empanada washed down with coca cola. Still feeling a bit peckish we bought what we thought was a giant cookie only to find it was some type of solid dulce, hideously sweet and certainly something that any dentist would have a view on! Back on the bus we continued north, slowly as we wound our way up and down the mountainsides often in queues of traffic behind huge juggernauts. We finally arrived on the outskirts of Medellin just after 1700 and joined the rush hour traffic eventually arriving at the south bus terminal just after 1800. After buying our onward tickets to Bogota for Sunday we jumped in a taxi only to find the driver didn't want to take us so we got out and waited patiently for another taxi to turn up and checked that he would take us to El Poblado, the area we were staying in. We could only assume that the first driver didn't want to head into the busy traffic but we weren't really sure. We checked in at the InHotel, showered and headed out to get something to eat. El Poblado is full of bars and restaurants, most of which seemed very rowdy and all serving burgers of some sort, mainly pork. We finally found a Colombian restaurant nearby the hotel and enjoyed a nice meal although it was debatable how traditional the food was (Simon had steak and chips!). We headed back to the hotel, tired after a long day of window gazing, reading and snoozing on the bus.

The scenery on route

Lunch stop 

Our luxury bus 

More scenery 

Cali Day 308 23/07/2015

We were planning to head to Cali today, 140km north of Popayan and along the Pan American highway towards Medellin. We had read that the journey would take c2 to 3 hours dependent on mode of transport so decided to travel in the morning and spend the afternoon sightseeing before heading on to Medellin the following day. We had breakfast at La Plazuela, packed, checked out and got a taxi to the bus station just after 0800. When we'd previously asked one of the bus companies about bus times to Cali we were told that they go every hour on the hour. We planned to get the 0900 bus only to find out they went at half past the hour and there wasn't one until 0930! So instead we bought tickets with Velotax for a minivan scheduled to leave at 0845. We left at 0830 with the minivan full. The one downside of the minivan is you can see out of the front window and witness the drivers road tactics. Clearly double yellow lines don't have the same meaning as they do back in the UK! As we headed north the mountains receded although we were still at c1500m. Sugar cane crops where in abundance in the surrounding fields. We arrived in Cali, Colombia's 3rd largest city, just after 1100 and after buying our tickets for our onward journey to Medillin, headed to our accommodation in the old colonial district of San Antonio southwest of the centre. We checked in at the Posada de San Antonio and were provided with info on local cafes and restaurants and also the local attractions which we could visit by foot. We decided to head out to get something to eat at a very pleasant local bakery/cafe and then walk around the sites. We headed first to El Gato del Rio on the banks of the Rio Cali. It appeared to be some permanent exhibition to cats although we weren't sure of the significance of it! We walked along the river to reach the Iglesia La Ermita which looked from a distance like it would be more fitting in a Disney movie. From here we passed the Teatro Jorge Isaacs into Plaza de Calcedo where Catedral San Pedro is located. Across the road from the cathedral 3 old guys were playing salsa music, which Cali is famous for, from a street cart. We continued on to Iglesia San Francisco before wandering back towards the old town, passed several museums and Iglesia de la Merced to return to San Antonio. We'd been told that the walk up the hill behind the guesthouse was worth it for the views over the city, even in the heat of the day, so we headed off and reached the top and Iglesia de San Antonio. The views were excellent overlooking the terracotta roofs of the old district of San Antonio before it merged into the new city centre landscape which was a mixture of 18th and 19th century grand buildings and 20th century modern (and less glamorous ones!). On the way back we stopped off for drinks (a german type beer for Simon and another frappaccino for Diane) at a bohemian cafe, Maconda. We spent the rest of the afternoon chilling out at our hostel's courtyard which had a pleasant and lively fountain in the centre. That evening in search of something different we headed over the road to a Lebanese restaurant called Pita Majita, which was a good recommendation from our hostel as we had a very tasty dinner. Back at the hostel we were pleased that they had turned off the fountain as the noise may have kept us paying a visit all night which wouldn't have been good as we had a 0600 start. We enjoyed Cali, it's a pleasant enough city and worthy of a stopover but were glad we had only stayed the one night as we felt we had seen everything there of note.

Posada de San Antonio

 

The inner courtyard 

El Gato de Rio

More cats along the Rio Cali 

Iglesia de Ermita 

Plaza de Calcedo 

Catedral San Pedro 

Anyone for salsa? 

The rooftops of Cali 

Iglesia de San Antonio 

The flags of Comobia, Cauca and Cali  

Popayan Day 307 22/07/2015

After a leisurely breakfast we headed out to walk around the town. It's a small colonial town famous for its white facades, second only to Cartagena as Colombia's most impressive colonial settlement. It became the most important stopping point on the road between Cartagena and Quito. Despite its lovely appearance and numerous churches and monasteries, strangely, it's not a popular tourist destination. We wandered through the old town to Iglesia de San Francisco, the towns oldest colonial church. Sadly the roof of the church collapsed during an earthquake in 1983 killing hundreds of worshippers. We arrived to find it closed so continued on to Puente de la Custodia, a stone bridge built in 1713 to allow priests to cross the Rio Molino. About 160 years later the Puente del Humilladero was built alongside the old bridge. From here we headed to Iglesia La Ermita, Popayan's oldest church. It was closed! By now we were in serious need of caffeine and stopped at Cafe Madeira for refreshments. We made a few purchases at the local drug store and strolled back to the hotel through Parque Caldas to drop them off, just avoiding the rain shower. For lunch we headed to Mora Castilla, a very small cafe serving traditional foods. We shared champas and lulada to drink and empanaditas de pipian and patacon con queso to eat. Drinks and food were delicious. Afterwards we walked around more of the old town streets before deciding to try our luck and see if Iglesia de San Francisco was open. Luckily it was however there was a service on so unfortunately we weren't able to go on an organised tour around the church. Still it was good to at least see the interior from a distance. We went in search of a bar that apparently plays local music but couldn't find it, instead we stopped at a lively bar/pool hall and enjoyed a cold Club de Colombia whilst watching the Tour de France. We'd not seen many restaurants around the town and in the evening we decided to eat at the hotel restaurant, which had appeared to be quite busy yesterday. Tonight it was very quiet! The food was OK although they appeared to have run out of wine and had to pop to a paralliada across the road for 2 bottles of beer!

Iglesia de San Francisco 

Puente de la Custodia 

Puente del Humilladero 

In need of caffeine 

Parque Caldas 

The justice building by Parque Caldas 

Lunch 

Typical colonial street 

One of the towns many university buildings 

The clock tower 

Iglesia de San Jose opposite our hotel