So after a whirlwind 48 hours or so in Surrey and London, seeing the family, dropping off the Indian guidebook and buying a South America one (Footprint, 2011) I got up at 2.30am on Thursday to start the next leg of my journey.
The flights (changing in Paris) were uneventful, apart from doing an unscheduled 20 minute tour of the various CDG airport terminals when our bus driver seemed to get lost. Fair dos to him, it is a big airport.
Unable to sleep on the Paris-Bogota leg, I killed the hours by watching three films (127 Hours, Tamara Drewe and something so forgettable I´ve already forgotten it), eating too many sandwiches and Haagen Dazs and trying not to argue with the guy in front of me who kept jerking his seat back, then forward. Then back, then forward. Ad infinitum.
I eventually landed at 4pm Colombia time (9pm UK) and got a taxi to the Cranky Croc hostel, driven by possibly the most irritable man since Basil Fawlty. Any slowing of traffic and the septegenerian (at a guess) was audibly sighing, visibly gripping the steering wheel so his knuckles turned white and occasionally belting out the odd ´hombre!´to other drivers.
I said a cheery goodbye to him at the hostel (duly ignored) and checked in. The hostel is in a beautiful 300 year-old building and run by a couple of Australian brothers. It has a good vibe, free coffee and Wifi, and appears to have more toilets than beds. What more do you need?
Straight away I got chatting to various folks from various far-flung countries (so different to staying in private rooms in India) and had a couple of drinks before crashing in an exhausted heap in my dorm room. The only other thing to note was the weather: rain and cold.
I didn't have time to do research of Colombia/SA before I came out here, and have since learnt that Bogota has a microclimate which means sunny days are rudely interrupted by rainy and cold days during the (northern hemisphere) winter. More on the rain later.
This morning I woke early, had breakfast in a cafe down the street (served by another moody Colombian. I hope this doesn't become a trend...) and started reading The Motorcycle Diaries. Cliche? Moi? After that, and on a friend's recommendation - thanks Phil! - I decided the best way to see the sights AND fit in a bit of much-needed exercise was a bike tour.
At 10.30am I went to the bike tour place, picked out my wheels, and met my two companions for the day - Priscilla from the US and our guide Mike:
We spent the next 4-5 hours covering all the main sites in Bogota, stopping frequently so Mike could explain the context and history of what I now know to be a fascinating and politically-charged city. We started off in La Candelaria district - which is also where my hostel is - and took a route through poor areas, rich areas, commercial areas and, somewhat bizarrely, the red light district.
We visited a vibrant fruit market for some tasting...
...and the city's largest cemetery, housing the graves of several ex-presidents and some scary tombs...
I also went inside my first ever bullfighting arena:
About halfway through the tour the rumble of thunder and claps of lightening drew closer, and the rain came. It was Noah's Ark time as streets got semi-flooded, pothole depth became a guessing game (risky business on a bike) and we donned some fancy orange ponchos:
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, etc. Unfortunately it failed me this morning when I decided to wear shorts and trainers for the tour. Towards the end of the day´s cycling, my trainers had taken on more water than the Titanic and the shivvers were setting in.
Weather aside, it was a great day´s cycling and a rewarding start to my time in Colombia. I couldn´t have hoped to have seen nearly half of what I did on foot, and got a real insight from Mike on what makes Bogota and, to some extent, Colombia tick.
Earlier in the day we had passed several museums, one of which was the Botero museum. I decided to go there after the bike tour.
Now before I go on, I should explain that I'm not the world's biggest art fan and I don't generally do museums or art galleries. However, the Botero museum blew me and my soggy feet away.
Fernando Botero is widely considered Colombia's greatest artist (no, I didn't know either) and he specialises in drawing and sculpting 'big-boned' people - mainly women like this cheerful looking dame:
He donated all his famous works to the museum as well as several pieces from other world-renowned artists. Walking through the rooms of the cavernous building, I saw original pieces from Monet, Renoir, Picasso, Degas, Lautrec, Matisse, Lucien Freud, Henry Moore and more. Here are a few that caught my eye:
All in all, a really good first full day in Colombia. Bogota is European-like in parts, with busy businessmen mixing sharing the streets with university kids and middle-class shoppers. I have read, and heard, a few scare stories about muggings and other nasties but so far so good and what´s travelling for, if not to take you out of your comfort zone a bit?
Tomorrow is another day in Bogota before I fly to Medellin on Sunday. After five sunny weeks in India, the cold and rain here is something I won´t be sad to leave, but Bogota has already surpassed my expectations. Hopefully more of the same tomorrow.
Before I go, here are some more photos from the day:
The flights (changing in Paris) were uneventful, apart from doing an unscheduled 20 minute tour of the various CDG airport terminals when our bus driver seemed to get lost. Fair dos to him, it is a big airport.
Unable to sleep on the Paris-Bogota leg, I killed the hours by watching three films (127 Hours, Tamara Drewe and something so forgettable I´ve already forgotten it), eating too many sandwiches and Haagen Dazs and trying not to argue with the guy in front of me who kept jerking his seat back, then forward. Then back, then forward. Ad infinitum.
I eventually landed at 4pm Colombia time (9pm UK) and got a taxi to the Cranky Croc hostel, driven by possibly the most irritable man since Basil Fawlty. Any slowing of traffic and the septegenerian (at a guess) was audibly sighing, visibly gripping the steering wheel so his knuckles turned white and occasionally belting out the odd ´hombre!´to other drivers.
I said a cheery goodbye to him at the hostel (duly ignored) and checked in. The hostel is in a beautiful 300 year-old building and run by a couple of Australian brothers. It has a good vibe, free coffee and Wifi, and appears to have more toilets than beds. What more do you need?
Straight away I got chatting to various folks from various far-flung countries (so different to staying in private rooms in India) and had a couple of drinks before crashing in an exhausted heap in my dorm room. The only other thing to note was the weather: rain and cold.
I didn't have time to do research of Colombia/SA before I came out here, and have since learnt that Bogota has a microclimate which means sunny days are rudely interrupted by rainy and cold days during the (northern hemisphere) winter. More on the rain later.
This morning I woke early, had breakfast in a cafe down the street (served by another moody Colombian. I hope this doesn't become a trend...) and started reading The Motorcycle Diaries. Cliche? Moi? After that, and on a friend's recommendation - thanks Phil! - I decided the best way to see the sights AND fit in a bit of much-needed exercise was a bike tour.
At 10.30am I went to the bike tour place, picked out my wheels, and met my two companions for the day - Priscilla from the US and our guide Mike:
We spent the next 4-5 hours covering all the main sites in Bogota, stopping frequently so Mike could explain the context and history of what I now know to be a fascinating and politically-charged city. We started off in La Candelaria district - which is also where my hostel is - and took a route through poor areas, rich areas, commercial areas and, somewhat bizarrely, the red light district.
We visited a vibrant fruit market for some tasting...
...and the city's largest cemetery, housing the graves of several ex-presidents and some scary tombs...
I also went inside my first ever bullfighting arena:
About halfway through the tour the rumble of thunder and claps of lightening drew closer, and the rain came. It was Noah's Ark time as streets got semi-flooded, pothole depth became a guessing game (risky business on a bike) and we donned some fancy orange ponchos:
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, etc. Unfortunately it failed me this morning when I decided to wear shorts and trainers for the tour. Towards the end of the day´s cycling, my trainers had taken on more water than the Titanic and the shivvers were setting in.
Weather aside, it was a great day´s cycling and a rewarding start to my time in Colombia. I couldn´t have hoped to have seen nearly half of what I did on foot, and got a real insight from Mike on what makes Bogota and, to some extent, Colombia tick.
Earlier in the day we had passed several museums, one of which was the Botero museum. I decided to go there after the bike tour.
Now before I go on, I should explain that I'm not the world's biggest art fan and I don't generally do museums or art galleries. However, the Botero museum blew me and my soggy feet away.
Fernando Botero is widely considered Colombia's greatest artist (no, I didn't know either) and he specialises in drawing and sculpting 'big-boned' people - mainly women like this cheerful looking dame:
He donated all his famous works to the museum as well as several pieces from other world-renowned artists. Walking through the rooms of the cavernous building, I saw original pieces from Monet, Renoir, Picasso, Degas, Lautrec, Matisse, Lucien Freud, Henry Moore and more. Here are a few that caught my eye:
All in all, a really good first full day in Colombia. Bogota is European-like in parts, with busy businessmen mixing sharing the streets with university kids and middle-class shoppers. I have read, and heard, a few scare stories about muggings and other nasties but so far so good and what´s travelling for, if not to take you out of your comfort zone a bit?
Tomorrow is another day in Bogota before I fly to Medellin on Sunday. After five sunny weeks in India, the cold and rain here is something I won´t be sad to leave, but Bogota has already surpassed my expectations. Hopefully more of the same tomorrow.
Before I go, here are some more photos from the day:
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| rocking the socks-and-sandals look as I wait for my trainers to dry |