Bogotá
Bye Bogotá!
Well our last few hours in Colombia was anticlimactic. We had a delightful breakfast at the hotel restaurant before taking a walk. It was nice with the large avenue and tree lined sidewalks. We left at noon in a really nice taxi and had a fast food meal at the airport. It was our first one of the trip, so I think we did a good job of avoiding them. As always InterJet was great and we made good time. Time for bed and a 3:30 AM wakeup call.
Usaquén Market
Today we are taking it easy because we will be traveling tomorrow back to Mexico City and then back to Belize after a short nights stay. That being said we’ve moved up to a quieter part of the city called park 94, which feels like it could be anywhere with large avenues and 3-5 story modern buildings. The upper neighborhoods outdoor market was awesome with really unique things which reminded me of a farmers market. Today’s highlight though was lunch, the Lamb and sauces were amazing and I honestly think it has been my favorite meal.
Orchestra and another Monserrate visit.
We didn’t do too much but walk around downtown again this morning and have another BBQ meal for lunch. As always the meat was done awesomely and the guacamole was to die for. The winner of the day though was attending the Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra at the national university. You know how excited I get about classical music when I travel, so glad we had an option too! After we took the tram, suspended cable car, up to the church lookout again. We had an amazing city night view, and enjoyed a spiked coffee. Tomorrow we change hotels yet again to experience our last full day in Bogotá.
Salt mine and lunch
Today we ventured outside the city to go on a little adventure. Zipaquirá is a nice village town by Columbian standards with a salt mine close by. We started the tour on the side of the mountain and went 590 feet down! Now the old shafts are a showcase of Jesus but learning about the process was still cool. The countryside here is awesome and I saw a few large estates just waiting to be bought and renovated. Lunch was another delight this time I got kabobs of beef, chicken, and large shrimp while David had the filet mignon, all were cooked to perfection! Oh, News Alert I can now link my camera up to my tablet via WiFi, so no more pictures of pictures that come out blurry!
Monserrate, Emerald, shopping, and a band!
I’m feeling so much better now that I’ve cut out our siesta time! We started our day with a tram ride up to the lookout that was pictured in yesterday’s view, as always I urge you to give Monserrate Bogotá a google, the view was phenomenal, and a picture of it from my camera just won’t do it justice! After we took a tour of the only emerald museum in the world, it was informative and a truly unique experience. For lunch we both had the local soup and boy was great with much flavor. We shopped a bit and returned to the hotel. I was going to rest but as I opened the window I heard band sounds. Low and behold a group of teens were practicing in the park, I got dressed again and ran down to catch a few sets. Oh and our picture, in case you’re missing us. The beer here has so much taste and flavor it too is not to be missed, along with the hot cocoa, and coffee of course!
Gold, fat, mint, and a new location
You must be wondering why the mash of words well I’m excited to announce we did three museums today consisting of gold and other metals found in this region, an artist from Colombia that specializes in making things large, and finally the history of the mint and coins here in the region. My favorite was the gold museum which had three floors of artifacts in great condition. The artist Fernando Botero was kind of wired with paintings of really thick people and things but the house it was in was oh so awesome. Finally before checking into our new place downtown we took a tour of the coins and mint machines that kept Colombias commerce going. Tomorrow we hope to even further explore downtown and more exhibits.
La Candelaria Exploration
We started our day a bit late because I have a slight cold. Nothing too bad last night was sore throat and today was just a runny nose. That being said I still went out today and saw the museum of Colombia to find our about their history. For lunch we stopped at a French restaurant and I had a decadent asparagus/crab soup while David got a steak covered in cheese sauce and wine. Between the two we took to the street and walked a good mike or two. The old town area has large parks, governmental buildings, and churches all centered around a main plaza going out a few blocks.
Chapinero, Bogotà Columbia!
Todays flight was on time and the view during was flawless, can’t wait to share a capture or two when we return home. We got through customs\immigration with our Belize passports without problem, we made sure before booking of course. We quickly checked in and walked around for a few hours taking in the tree lined streets, parks, and the hustle-bustle. Finding a nice sport for drinks and food was easy the first was pub themed with great empanadas, later we had a three cheese mushroom soup and prosciutto. We ended the night with hot chocolate and just watched the people, taxis, and busses pass.
Ginja~Pops 