This morning, we left Bogota behind and headed north towards Villa de Leyva. Villa de Leyva is an important historical village of Colombia, about a 4 hour drive from Bogota. It is one of the 17 historical villages, known for its well preserved colonial architecture with its street and squares maintaining their original cobblestones. Many buildings date from the 16th century. It has become very popular with the local Bogotans, and in the past 10 years European tourists which has unfortunately priced out most of the original locals. To preserve its feel and ensure tourism thrives, all new buildings must comply with building regulations to match the colonial architecture, white walls, clay tiles, timber doors, and balconys can only be painted green or brown. I'm getting heritage house listing vibes...
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| Our hotel, a typical building in the village of Villa de Leyva |
Enroute we stopped at Zipaquirá to visit the Salt Cathedral. Known as Colombia's first wonder, the still functioning Roman Catholic church was built 128m deep within the salt mines, and is the most visited "attraction" in Colombia. The entrance began in a tunnel that passes the fourteen (Yes I checked. In some churches it is 14 and not 12) Stations of the Cross, each designed by a local artist and constructed with the assistance of the miners, before continuing on to a dome and finally the Cathedral proper. Julio did a fab job maneuverings us around the big groups of local tourists.
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| New van. Lots of space! |
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| Tunnel entrance to the Salt Cathedral |
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| The 1st Station of the Cross |
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| It was hard to appreciate in the photo just how big that chamber was (ex salt mine) |
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| Every station was different |
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| The main Cathedral |
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| One of the side nave |
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| Chandelier made of metal and salt! |
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| How ripped is baby Jesus... |
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| An optical illusion created by water only about 8cm deep |
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| And of course, where there are tourists, lets make money. Shops in the salt mine! |
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| Somewhere to eat... |
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| Why not have a spa too? |
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| Trying a salt scrub |
By 1230 we crossed into Boyacá Province, and stopped for lunch in Ventaquemada. The diners were all local, and our meal including 5 big glasses of soursop juice only came to a total of 34USD. We tried the beef, chicken and rainbow trout as well as the local arepas and envueltos, a dessert corn made with cheese and sugar. Everything here has corn...rice, soup, dessert, cakes. Lara was certain she would not want to eat corn anymore after she left Colombia. The food was simple but tasty, except we could not finish the envueltos. It was so dense!
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| Rural vistas |
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| Not a bad view for lunch |
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| We just love soursop with milk! |
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| Local arepas. Each area has their own version |
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| Envueltos |
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| Rainbow trout |
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| Even the rice has corn in it |
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| This is what you get when you ask for chili in Colombia |
We had to keep moving as the Julio and our new driver Andreas, wanted to get us to Villa de Leyva by 4pm. On the bus, Julio seemed determined to educate us on everything Colombian. We got lessons on history, social structure, politics, and culture including Colombian folk music from the Caribbean to the Andes! If you were a Colombian who could not dance, you risk not having friends or be destined to be single forever...
Andreas made good time and we arrived at our hotel in Villa de Leyva, Posada de San Antonio, to check in just before 4pm. Julio gave us a brief orientation walk of the village with dinner suggestions. The hotel was rustic and well located being only a block from the main square. It wasn't luxury but neither was it budget. Everything was clean and the bathrooms modern. The furnishings were homely and comfortable, with lovely spaces.
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| Orientationi walk |
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| The very large main square looking a bit ugly from the celebrations of the previous 2 nights. They were in the process of cleaning up |
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| Village founded by Conquistadors. The emblem of Spain... |
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| Our rustic rooms! |
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| The kids rooms |
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| I'm all for towel origami |
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| Crochet bedspread... |
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| The contrasting modern bathroom |
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| The hotel's breakfast area |
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| Common space |
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| The open central garden |
We chose to dine at El Solar de La Guaca. The ambience really was so lovely. I love the open central squares of the Spanish colonial buildings. All the restaurants had live music. Best of all, despite this being a gentrified village geared for tourist, our meal including alcholic drinks only came 69USD.
Villa de Leyva was at 2150m above sea level. A good 500m lower than Bogota. Fingers crossed for better sleep and less fatigue!
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| Walking to dinner |
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| Don't let the smiles fool you. Reluctant posers |
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| The open area of the restaurant |
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| Another very filling meal. Serving sizes in Colombia are decent |
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| The very nice bar |
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| Live music |
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| Mango beet margarita |
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| Lychee lemonade |
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| One of the worst tasting "pizza" I've had. Tortilla base with peach slices...not sure why we ok'd this when Mal suggested it! |
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| Chicharon, or pork rind. Delicious! |
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| Mango and prawn ceviche and the obligatory salad |
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