BOGOTA

Ten minutes for a change because even when the city looks a little like my native Caracas (it has a small mountain in the East which looks a little like El Avila Mountain that surrounds Caracas), the weather is different, it is colder and grayer, temperatures sway between 8 and 20 degrees Celsius. Moreover, it is over 1600 Mts above sea level, causing many to suffer from altitude related ailments upon getting off the plane.

    Finding a plane ticket is not as simple and more so in these times. I finally found a confirmation for a ticket from Caracas to Bogota via Avianca, which departed right on time for our hour and a half plane ride.
 

WHERE TO STAY

    I arrived to the Hotel Cité, which was recommended by a friend. This boutique hotel is very well located and caters mostly to a business oriented clientele. Other small boutique hotels in Zona Rosa such as Morrison and Charleston also share this business like audience in its common areas and guests.

    The hotel faces a park called Parque El Virrey. All rooms have views towards the park. There are rooms that are further away from the street (Carrera 15), which are also the more quiet ones. At the other side of the park there is a little coffee shop that makes you feel as if you were sitting a little sidewalk cafe in Madrid.

    In Bogotá, streets that go from East to West are called “Calles”, and those that go from North to South are called “Carreras”, and then it is followed by the house/restaurant number. It is a simple system designed to help people move around the city with ease, it seemed to work for us once we grasped the difference between “Calles and Carreras"

    You need a friend who is living there or a “Cachaco” (Bogota Native) who can recommend you the newest and trendiest places, that way you will be able to make the most out of your time in the city, because Bogota has excellent restaurants and it is very nice to walk around. Without a doubt, I think having a friend who lives in the city that you’re visiting is nothing short of a great privilege.
 

WHAT TO DO

    In terms of the touristic side of things, it is of essence to visit the Centro Histórico. You can get there on a cab, and then walk around the Plaza and surrounding colonial streets. I got off the cab right in front of the Museo de Botero which is literally his own. He exhibits some of his own art work, and additionally he exhibits pieces from his own personal art collection including artists from all over the world of great artistic value.
    Next to the Museo de Botero is the Museo de Arte del Banco de la República and La Casa de la Moneda. Then we took a short cab ride to Museo del Oro, which you shouldn’t miss. It is very well set up and has an interesting collection featuring extraordinary colocnial pieces of gold made objects which are zealously protected by seemingly indestructible walls. Once you leave the Museo del Oro, you can walk through the small streets and reach the Plaza de Bolivar and the Catedral de Bogotá. 



I did not take the cablecar to Monserrate. Since the hotel had such great views of the city, I no longer felt the need to queue to get to the top of the mountain.

    After my cultural time, I went back for lunch at the Zona Rosa area. I was not wrong to follow my friend’s recommendations. Di Lucca of Calle 85 was delicious. It's an Italian restaurant with a street terrace that is only separated from pedestrians by a thin transparent wall, which allows you to see and be seen. I suggest that you choose well who you will have lunch with, since you’ll obviously be prone to gossip if you find yourself with the wrong person. At night, we went for dinner at a Peruvian restaurant called Rafael. Excellent menu and ambiance! 

    There are lots of restaurants in Bogota, and I had little time to enjoy them all. However, I think that four nights is a good time to spend in the city of Nariño, so you will have to choose from the long list of “amazing” ones that people will recommend to you.

    In an attempt to fight off our fatigue after the long day, we went back to Zona T (Zona T is inside the Zona Rosa area), These two pedestrian streets intersect forming the shape of the letter from which the area gets its name. We did a little bar hopping which resulted in a temporary amnesia probably caused by a mix of high altitude and “aguardiente” tasting which prevented me from being able to remember the names of the bars we stopped at. Do not hesitate to explore this area by yourself, it is great fun, safe and totally worth it.

    

 

The next morning we felt a little hungover due to the previous night’s excessive partying,  so instead of walking  we called an Uber (actually Uber is not legal in Colombia) to the Parque del Museo del Chicó, and from there we started walking down by a street full of antique shops. Then passed by the Andino Shopping Mall, and finally ending at the popular  Parque de la 93, which is surrounded by restaurants on all four sides. I’ve heard that in warm evenings they set up a large screen and host an outdoor cinema, where attendees bring their own pillows and blankets to enjoy a movie and then head to one of the restaurants for dinner. We rested for a bit at Gato Negro where we tried the lulo juice (lulo is a local fruit) which served as an appetizer before heading to lunch at Club Colombia one of the Harry Sasson's restaurant located not far away at Cl. 82 ## 9-11.

Club Colombia is a large colonial house crowded on its two terraces. I wanted to have an “ajiaco”, a typical Colombian soup, but we ended up deciding for the chicharrones and the empanaditas. For the time the main dish arrived, I had had such a number of these empanadas and chicharrones that I coud have gone straight to the dessert menu. Sooo much food!!

Nevertheless, that night we ventured out for yet another meal, this time in a charming neighborhood known as Usaquen, which reminded me of an area in Caracas, Venezuela known as El Hatillo. We almost froze in our little excursion; since temperature did not exceed 10 degrees Celsius at any point in our walk. We arrived at the restaurant Cebichería La Mar by the same owners of the famous restaurant in Lima, Peru. The restaurant is very modern, with very high ceilings, huge elongated flower vases with boldly arranged white flowers. Food was exceptional. Shrimp, calamari, octopus and of course sushi prepared in exquisite manner and with the best ingredients from a far away sea.

We also had lunch at Bandido, in the street where the art galleries where, Cl. 79b #7-12. I enjoyed the local atmosphere, It's not all touristic. A good place for a relaxed meal in a climatized terrace with those large heater lamps. Good  wine list mainly french wines, and food with a French cuisine touch.

That evening, we decided to go back to Zona T. Where? Wherever… we walked in between shops and bars. Cool vibe and everything felt trendy. 


Our last day in Bogotá was a Sunday, and we decided to get a little bit away from the city up to Zipaquirá to visit the Catedral de Sal.  Something I had never seen in any of the places I had visited before. I loved the special lightning that there was inside that dark vault, which is almost two hundred meters below the ground. It was worth the traffic  jam that we had to endure to get there, especially near the cemetery. 

When people around the town in Zipaquirá try to convince you to eat at a close by restaurant, don’t let them convince you! Instead, go to Andres Carne de Res in Chia that is on the road back to Bogotá . I had heard so much about this place before that I doubted going because I was afraid it would be way too touristic. But no!! I was wrong. It is fantastic, and Sunday is actually the best day to go. (Bear in mind it is only open from Thursday to Sunday) The food is delicious, every single plate we order was great. We were recommended the Lomo al Trapo, and it didn’t disappoint either… make sure you order it. Another incredible fact is that the place has capacity for 2000 visitors. But have in mind that this is a place to drink and have a fun lunch, boring people abstain from going.
 And the decoration and the music...

Finally, I have to tel that I found Bogotá as being quite costly. The restaurants were expensive, as well as the shops, including local designers such as lovely boutiques  Pepa Pombo, Bettina Spitz, Bendita Seas and  everything in the Andino and El Retiro Shopping Malls. I searched for a souvenir shop to buy gifts to bring back home. Not easy but at the end  I did find something at  El Market, a  store filled with local arts and crafts and traditional Colombian foods.