Visited the capital of Colombia for the Christmas holidays. It took time to adjust to the altitude of Bogotá. Having lived in Colorado, we thought we were well acclimated to environs a mile above sea level. In a city another mile higher than that could be surprisingly wearing.
The city was well-set for the oncoming Christmas holidays. We took a cable car the top of the nearby Monserrate peak. The sanctuary there was decorated for the holidays. Most interesting was that most of the decorations were made of recycled materials – the “bloom” of the illuminated flowers are plastic soda bottles. Then, as the sun set, we saw the golden lights of Bogotá come to life below us.
We took a two-wheeled excursion from Bogotá Bike Tours and saw parts of the city we would never have visited on our own. We toured (and sampled) at the Central Market, saw the murals in the Candelaria district, and ended with the opportunity to play the Colombian national sport, tejo – because what could be more rewarding than drinking beer and throwing lead weights at packets of gunpowder.
In all seriousness, Bogotá Bike Tours did a fantastic job of showing us the vibrancy of the city. We would never have known to go to these locales and, through their expert guidance, we got there in one piece and learned something whether we wanted to or not. While the initial hill to/from the tour shop HQ is a bit daunting, the rest of the ride was fairly level. It is wise to keep an eye on the road in front of you – I dodged a missing manhole cover – but they have a minder to ensure no one gets lost or has mechanical issues
Toured the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá outside the city. As the name implies, it is a salt mine that was converted into a subterranean cathedral in the 1950’s.
The Museo del Oro (Museum of Gold) and its collection of pre-Columbian artifacts is not to be missed…
… as is the colorful Andrés Carne de Res restaurant outside the city in Chia. The restaurant was decorated in a kaleidoscope of random, colorful items wrapped in string lights and bathed in the aroma of an open grill. The food is amazing and the menu is more like a magazine mated with a child’s activity book.
