Bogota, Colombia
After our amazing adventure and the equatorial temperatures of the Galapagos we arrived at El Dorado International Airport, March 10, 2014 and much cooler weather. Our Hotel de la Opera, located in the historic “La Candelaria” district, had sent a driver to meet us. We had beautiful accommodation, with a view from the window of Monserrate. The hotel is adjacent to “Teatro de Cristobal Colon”, the National Theatre and Opera House, inaugurated October 27, 1892. Unfortunately, during our stay in Bogota, it was closed for renovations and reopened in July, just four months after we left. It had been closed since 2008. On the opposite side of the road is the Palace of San Carlos, built in 1585. It has had many different occupants, but is now The Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Map of La Candelaria with Hotel de la Opera
“La Candelaria” is the historic downtown neighbourhood of Bogota and is home to government, museums, old churches, universities, libraries and other old buildings, in architectural styles of the Baroque period, Spanish Colonial and Art Deco. The cobbled streets are narrow, with very colourful buildings and were not built to accommodate motorized vehicles. In the Botero Museum housed on 11thstreet you can view the paintings and sculptures of world-renowned artist and sculptor, Ferdinand Botero, along with his collection of Picasso’s, Chagall’s, Monet’s and other celebrated artists. Botero’s art is all somewhat satirical and many of his paintings seem to be very obese people. However, these people were not fat, we were told that he painted them with “voluminous disproportionalism” in order to make us, the onlookers, laugh. He most certainly achieved that goal. He also painted “his” versions of other famous paintings such as the Mona Lisa and her enigmatic smile. Botero began his artistic career, after his father died of a heart attack when he was just four years old. At the age of six, we were told, he started drawing and selling pencil portrait sketches of patrons at the local racetrack, to help out with the family finances. From his humble beginnings he developed his own style, which is now highly prized and sells for millions of dollars. Ferdinand Botero, is at this juncture almost 84 years old. In an adjoining building, across the courtyard, is housed the Museum of the Mint, a numismatic collection of coins depicting the history of Colombia and the place where the first gold coins were struck. There are many museums in Bogota, but one of the most important and truly amazing was the Gold Museum, Museo del Oro. This museum houses the largest collection in the world of Pre-Hispanic gold work, including the famous Muisca’s Golden Raft, found in Pasca in 1969, which represents the El Dorado ceremony. This ceremony is where the heir to the chieftaincy assumed power with great offerings to the gods. He stood in the centre of a raft adorned with gold, surrounded by the principal chieftains who were also adorned in gold.
La Candelaria is the vibrant heart of the old city. It is now considered a safe neighbourhood with throngs of university students coming and going to classes, or visiting the libraries. There are many tiny “hole in the wall” places to eat here called Aguapanelarias or Mecateaderos (a place to meet with friends for an Aguapanela and a snack) that have exceptionally good food. La Puerta Falsa, of course, being the most famous for its Aguapanela (a drink, be it coffee, hot chocolate etc., with a base made from sugar cane) with almojabanas (Colombian Cheese Buns), which are eaten for breakfast or an afternoon snack. La Puerta Falsa was the only Aguapanelaria to survive the fire of April 9, 1948, which destroyed all the others in this same block. There is very little room to sit in any of these establishments, especially during the day. When I say very little room, I mean that the establishments themselves are like the very small front room of a very tiny row –house, which are packed wall to wall with people, but it is worth it. We dined at two of these places in the evening, in the same block, the food was delicious and the cost very reasonable. Ajiaco, a chicken, corn and potato soup/stew is famous in Bogota, very, very, delicious and filling. The ears of the corn, are cut into pieces and cooked whole, the kernels are not removed. In September, after our visit, Anthony Bourdain met Hector Abad at La Puerta Falsa for ajiaco, tamales and hot chocolate with cheese.
A very short walk down the hill from the Hotel de la Opera is the main square of Bogota, “Plaza de Bolivar”. In the centre stands a statue of Simon Bolivar (a Venezuelan Statesman who led South America’s independence from the Spanish). On the north side of the square is the Palace of Justice, housing the Supreme Court. On the south side is the National Capitol building, seat of the Columbian Congress. To the east is The Primary Cathedral of Bogota and the Holy Chapel and to the west, a French style building, “Palacio Leviano” which is the Mayor’s seat. Situated in the northwest corner is a small 16th/17th century colonial building, Casa del Florero, also known as the “vase house”, from where, on July 20, 1810, Bogota patriots took to the streets to declare their independence. In the southeast corner is the Colegio Mayor of San Bartolome, formerly a Jesuit university, now a secondary school.
The Palace of Justice is the third and current building on this site. The first built in 1921 was destroyed by fire in 1948, the second was destroyed by the guerilla movement M-19 in 1985, during the Palace of Justice Siege and the site was left untouched until 1989 when the third building was erected.
The National Capitol building was started in 1846 but not completed until 1926 due to political instability.
The Primary Cathedral of Bogota was built between 1807 and 1823 and the Holy Chapel in the 17thcentury.
Iglesia de San Ignacio is a beautiful Jesuit Church, adjacent to the Colegio Mayor of San Bartolome. Construction began in 1610 and was completed in 1691 and has recently undergone renovation. The church is very famous for its Holy Water. While not directly attributed to San Ignacio de Loyola who founded the Jesuit Church it is widely assumed that Jesuit Holy Water is more potent than regular Holy Water for its curative powers.
Iglesia San Agustin is a Colonial Church with a magnificent Baroque interior.
Iglesia del Carmen was built in 1927 and architecturally probably the most striking church, in Bogota. It is Gothic in style and was declared a National Monument in 1993.
A stroll down 7thAvenue brought us to the more modern part of the city. Nestled among these new buildings are some more old churches, Iglesia de la Veracruz being one of them. This church is quite plain and its interior somewhat austere, not elaborately decorated as most of the churches in Bogota. It was built around the mid 1500’s and is probably the oldest building in the city. It is also known as the National Pantheon for all the heroes buried within.
Emeralds are a major symbol of Colombia and it has, without doubt, the most beautiful in the world, therefore, it would be remiss not to visit the Emerald Museum, located at the top of The Avianca Building. This is not a Museum as such, but rather a private collection of emeralds both cut and uncut with some still embedded in rock. The start of the tour is in a small theatre where you watch a video showing the different mines and mining techniques, followed by some tableaus of mine excavation. After this a lady tours you around the various showcases and explains more about the emeralds themselves. There is also a shop where you can purchase the gems.
Seventh Avenue, once known as Royal Street, was constructed in the 16th century to connect Plaza de Bolivar with Plaza de San Francisco. Many important buildings were constructed along this avenue until they, along with the tramway, were burned in 1948. The destruction and burning was due to retaliation, of the assassination of Jorge Eliécer Gaitán. In the second half of the 20thcentury another resurgence in building took place. 7th Avenue is pedestrian only in many parts, where families and tourists alike enjoy the vibrancy of the street vendors, clowns, musicians, actors and dancers, in this now safe environment. Peaceful political demonstrations still take place here, from time to time, and from here they head to the Plaza de Bolivar. We walked along 7thAvenue several times during our week in Bogota and at no time felt uncomfortable. However, caution should always be taken in any big city, anywhere in the world, especially late at night.
Of course, a trip to Bogota would not be complete without a visit to Monserrate. We walked from Hotel de la Opera, through the streets of Bogota, arriving at Avenida de Jiménez de Quesada and followed the Eje Ambiental, which ultimately leads to Monserrate. Avenida de Jiménez de Quesada is built over The San Francisco River and was transformed into a promenade, with native trees, a brick paved Plaza and the Eje Ambiental running through the centre. The “Eje Ambiental”(environmental axis) looks as though it has a purpose, maybe part of the river underneath, but it is purely ornamental as it gently cascades, meandering along its sloping course, with its only purpose being to please. We finally came to the end of the promenade and then climbed a steeper part of the hill before we reached the funicular to take us to the top. There was a long queue for tickets but it moved reasonably quickly.
We were transported up the mountain, Monserrate, which has an elevation of 3,152 metres above sea level (10,341 ft), by the funicular. After alighting we passed by a garden of torch lilies where numerous hummingbirds, of different species, were drinking the nectar. From here we walked up the hill passing many sculptures depicting Christ’s walk with the cross. At the top is the Church and Shrine to “El Señor Caído” (The Fallen Lord), which was built in the 17th century and is a pilgrim destination. Most pilgrims choose to climb up the mountain. It is an awesome site, both inside and out, with magnificent views of the surrounding mountains and overlooking the city. Atop one of the mountains sits Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Gualdelupe which has no funicular, an unpaved road, sits at an elevation of 3,300 metres above sea level (10,827 ft), but unfortunately we did not have time to visit. Apparently, it has a simple sanctuary, originally erected in 1656, but destroyed four times by earthquakes. A specialized guide is recommended for this trip.
This was not the end of our visit in Bogota. We spent one of our days at Guatavita and Zipaquira which will be covered in the next blog………………….See if we get out of the salt mine……………………………..!!!!!
Teatro de Cristobal Colon - The National Theatre
Hotel de la Opera adjacent to Teatro de Cristobal Colon
Hotel de la Opera - Internal Courtyard
Barbara & Jim - the roof top restaurant
Hotel de la Opera
Hotel de la Opera
Palacio de San Carlos - Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Opposite Hotel de la Opera
Schoolchildren opposite Hotel de la Opera on an outing
Typical street in "La Candelaria"
Iglesia de la Candelaria
View from "La Candelaria" to Plaza de Bolivar
La Puerta Falsa Plaque - The False Door - "Cafe"
The False Door - Mecateadero (Cafe)
National Capitol Building
National Capitol Building
Colegio Mayor San Bartolome
Primary Cathedral & Holy Chapel
Simon Bolivar Statue
Palacio Leviano
Plaza Bolivar - Llama Rides
Palace of Justice
Iglesia de San Ignacio
Colegio Mayor San Bartolome - "School is out"
Courtyard garden - La Candelaria
Barbara with a Presidential Palace Guard
Presidential Palace Guards
Iglesia de San. Agustin
Iglesia de San Agustin
Santuario Nuestra Señora del Carmen
Santuario Nuestra Señora del Carmen
Pre-Hispanic Mask - Gold Museum
Huge Uncut Emeralds - Gold Museum
Gold Museum - Pre-Hipanic artifact
Gold Museum - cat
Gold Muisca Raft
Barbara with young girl in National Costume
Botero Museum - Courtyard
Jim at the Botero Museum
What a body!!!!
The Thief - Ferdinand Botero
The Workshop - Ferdinand Botero
Mona Lisa - Ferdinand Botero
The Bathroom - Spot the Peeping Tom
Terra Moto - The Earthquake - Botero
Botero Museum Courtyard
Botero Museum Courtyard
View of Montserrate from Botero Museum
7th Avenue - Street Vendor selling Mamoncillos -
a tangy tropical fruit
7th Avenue - Street Vendor selling Coconuts
Iglesia de la Veracruz
View from The Emerald Museum, Avianca Building
Jim alongside the (Environmental Axis)
Eje Ambiental de la Avenida de Jiménez de Quesada
Street art - Avenida de Jiménez de Quesada
Church and Shrine of El Senor Caido - Monserrate
Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Gualdelupe
Torch Lilies and Hummingbirds at Monserrate
Torch Lilies and Hummingbirds at Monserrate
Torch Lilies and Hummingbirds at Monserrate
Torch Lilies and Hummingbirds at Monserrate
Crucifiction Sculpture - Monserrate
Crucifiction Sculpture - Monserrate
Crucifiction Sculpture - Monserrate
Crucifiction Sculpture - Monserrate
Barbara at Monserrate
Inside the church at Monserrate
Inside the church at Monserrate
View of Bogota from Monserrate
View of Plaza de Bolivar and La Candelaria from Monserrate
Monserrate
Monserrate
Monserrate
Monserrate
Monserrate
Funicular at Monserrate
Crucifix at the Base of Monserrate
