It’s over 15 years since I first set foot in Bogotá and having been in the whirlwind of an Iron Maiden tour back then, all I got to see were armed police escorts, security personnel, hotel interiors and a dramatic open-air concert where we were semi-evacuated for our own safety. Since then I’ve been keen to return and experience a different side to Colombia, one of the most beautiful and fascinating countries on earth, which has long been hampered by a reputation for guerrilla warfare and drug cartels.
However, following the imprisonment of narcotic baron Pablo Escobar almost 20 years ago and the peace treaty of 2016 with the Marxist militias, Colombia has transformed into a vibrantly exciting tourist destination for the adventurous traveller, and over the next few weeks we’re determined to experience all it has to offer.
Sadly though, a late night arrival after a connecting journey via Madrid, combined with chronic jet lag and a stinking cold which is starting to make itself felt, means that our first morning in this city, 2600 metres high in the Andes, doesn’t find us on peak form. In fact the idea of ascending the towering hill of Monserrate, taking us yet another 550 metres to where the air is even thinner, seems rather ridiculous.
But once we’ve had breakfast, our very cheery guide Adriana arrives at our hotel, the family-run Casa De la Vega in the heart of the historic district of La Candelaria, and her enthusiasm is infectious. Ushering us into a car driven by Javier, we drive through the city to the funicular station at the base of Monserrate. Up we travel, crossing the threshold where altitude sickness can start and ascending to the summit where the temperature is noticeably cooler.
Not only are we treated to stunning panoramas of Bogotá laid out before us, a huge city of almost 10 million people founded in 1538, but we are surrounded by beautiful gardens reflecting the rich nature of Colombia, one of the most biodiverse countries on earth. The path that winds through the gardens takes us past statues representing the stations of the cross, leading us on to the large white church on the summit, where Mass is being celebrated.
We refresh ourselves with cups of coca tea and delicious arepas, corn cakes, watching a beautiful hummingbird dining on nectar right next to us, before taking the funicular back down the steep hillside to where Javier is waiting for us.
He drives us through La Macarena district, one of the bohemian areas of the city, full of restaurants and food markets, stopping briefly so Adriana can show us around and as we continue towards downtown Bogotá Adriana points out the apartment she was born in.
Javier drops us off close to our hotel and Adriana takes us into the church of La Candelaria, which has survived earthquakes through the centuries before we enter the very modern complex of museums across the street. The first is MAMU which is a beautifully laid out collection of indigenous history and art, featuring amazing photos of Colombia’s vast range of tribal peoples.
Another of the museums showcases the history of money and the minting process, while a third is dedicated to modern art by Colombian and other South American artists displaying some incredible pieces by a whole host of acclaimed artists we’ve never heard of. Our favourite quickly becomes Luis Caballero Holguín with huge dramatic abstract canvases. But the most famous museum and the biggest draw for tourists and Colombians alike is Museo Botero.
A restored colonial hacienda it features 220 works of art by Colombia’s most celebrated artist, Fernando Botero, whose voluptuous figures are uniquely humorous and powerful. The museum also houses Botero’s personal collection of ‘masters’ which he donated before his death featuring the likes of Picasso, Matisse, Henry Moore, Degas, Dali, Monet, Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec, Miró, Francis Bacon and more. It’s a fascinating place.
Adriana says goodbye until tomorrow and recommends we have lunch at a plant based restaurant called Quinoa y Amarante, which is a beautiful spot serving everyone the same three course menu, which changes on a daily basis. We have a squash soup, quinoa and lentil bake with salad, and sweetened pineapple for dessert with a herbal tea, for just £5 each.
By now jet lag and my cold are really kicking into gear but determined not to crash too early we wander around La Candelaria taking in the murals and street art on the historic buildings. However when we try visiting the Museo de Bogotá with displays and commentary all in Spanish, the disorientating experience of trying to translate and stay awake simultaneously proves too much. So we stop at Selina, a nearby bar for our first taste of Colombian beer, and then return to the hotel to unpack a few things.
We finish the day with a perfunctory bite to eat at a little vegan restaurant called Maria Candela and are in bed before 8pm. I’m still pretty shattered when we join Adriana again the next morning for a walking tour in beautiful warm sunshine, visiting Bogotá’s famous Museo del Oro, with dramatic displays of gold work by pre-Spanish indigenous tribes from across the country.
On the main shopping street, Calle Siete, we stop at the point where in 1948 Jorge Eliecer Gaitan was assassinated. A hugely popular figure amongst the working class he was poised to become the first president of indigenous descent but the elite of Colombian society feared him and his assassination sparked years of violence that led to the formation of FARC, the left-wing guerilla movement, which terrorised the country for decades to come.
At the end of Calle Siete is Plaza Bolívar, surrounded on its four sides by the huge cathedral, the Parliament, the city hall and the law courts. The buildings are all made of the same stone but in very different styles and eras that demonstrate the history of the country. The newest building, the law court, is very modern having been rebuilt after the guerrilla attack of 1984 which led to a huge army reprisal resulting in a civilian massacre and the destruction of the building, all played out live on TV in front of the eyes of the horrified nation.
Next to it, the French-inspired city hall, constructed in the early 1900s is elegantly European. Adriana tells us that Bogotá’s mayor, the second most powerful politician in Colombia, is a woman for the first time, and she is also in a same sex relationship with a hugely popular senator, effecting real change in a progressive society. Adriana is a huge fan of both and very proud that Colombia has the strongest and most well-established democracy in South America, having never fallen to a military dictatorship. It has also lead the way in LGBTQ+ legislation and is considered an extremely positive and forward thinking country.
She leads us through the colourful streets of the historic centre, past palaces and the opera house, to the Apothecary of the Condor, where a modern day shaman sprays me with a traditional rosemary potion for my cold. It seems to work as, after a delicious lunch at a high-end Colombian chain restaurant called Crepe & Waffle, Adriana takes us to a bar called Tejo o Miedo to indulge in Colombia’s national sport, Tejo, which involves throwing engraved hockey pucks at a clay board dotted with explosives…whilst drinking beer!
It’s a lot of fun, as is the follow up game of Rana where we toss gold coins into a board with frogs’ heads made of silver to score points… whilst drinking tequila! I don’t know if it’s the booze, the games or the shaman’s rosemary spray but I’m feeling pretty damn fine.
Coman and I round off the night at a restaurant near our hotel called Origen which serves typical Colombian cuisine in a lovely patio garden bedecked with fairy lights. It’s been a jam-packed 48 hours discovering Colombia’s capital and we’ve loved every minute. Tomorrow we leave the city and start exploring the vast country beyond - but first we need a proper sleep!
