4 Days in Bogotá
Day 1: Arrival
Coming from the New York metropolitan area allowed us to fly directly into Bogotá via United Airlines. However, we didn’t land until almost 10pm so we went straight to our hotel in the Chico neighborhood of the city. Lucky us, our hotel had a rooftop bar so we were able to grab some quick bites and a local beer upon arriving in our newest destination (and Brian’s 20th country)!
Day 2: La Candelaria – Art
La Candelaria is the historic heart of Bogotá. Here, you have access to some historical museums about the indigenous people that live in Colombia, colonial-era landmarks, shops, art, museums, and of course, local eateries. Most of what you’ll want to see and experience in Bogotá will be in La Candelaria, so it’s not a bad idea to take part in one of numerous tours you can find online for the city. We decided to embark on a Bogota Graffiti Tour, which took us on a weaving two hour tour of La Candelaria and all the magnificent works of art that local artists engage in.
Although the graffiti tour is a fascinating way to explore La Candelaria, there are plenty of other things to see and do while you are downtown in Bogotá! You have the Botero Museum, Gold Museum, Plaza de Bolívar, Iglesia de San Francisco, Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango, Museo Quinta de Bolívar and Monserrate (mountaintop church overlooking Bogotá). Take note with visiting Monserrate that the lines will be long and to plan several hours to get up to the top. You can also walk up to Monserrate but it will take some time!
Day 3: Hike La Chorrera
What is La Chorrera you ask! Well, only the tallest waterfall in all of Colombia! At roughly 600 meters high (2,000 feet), the hike up to La Chorrera is a mildly strenuous but wonderful experience of nature in Colombia.
Located about a 2 hours drive from Bogotá, we partook on another guided tour which included the bus ride and a knowledgeable guide to keep us informed of the ecology of the region. This proved to be beyond helpful given the altitude of the hike and the stops we needed to take. Keep in mind, this hike starts at 2,400 meters (8,000 feet) and proceeds to about 3,000 meters or close to 10,000 feet. Yes, that’s twice the altitude of Denver, Colorado for the Americans in the audience. In the end…. it was absolutely worth the hike!
Day 4: La Candelaria – Food!
You didn’t think we were done with La Candelaria did you! Of course not, there’s so much to do and in the neighborhood you could spend days here, and we did spend days! On day 4 we returned to La Candelaria for a delicious and insightful gastronomical tour. As with any city we visit, we couldn’t recommend more highly a food tour to really experience the culture of that city and to meet some fellow like minded travelers along the way! The food in Bogotá did not disappoint!
After our food tour, we finished the day by checking out Museo Quinta de Bolívar, a memorial and museum in the former residence of Simon Bolívar following the war for independence. This museum was a wonderfully self paced history lesson into the struggles of Colombian freedom and the post war responsibilities and expectations of Simon Bolívar.
