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In the summer of 2009, Nicolas Rapp decided to take a break from his Art Director job at The Associated Press to attempt a one-year overland travel around the world in a 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser. He was back in New York in February 2011 after traveling 15 months and 37,000 miles.

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  • Weekend in the mountain metropolis

    Posted on February 1st, 2010 Nicolas No comments
    Street of old Bogota

    Street of old Bogota

    Modern Bogota

    Modern Bogota

    Soup with eggs and milk

    Soup with eggs and milk

    Bogota is the third-highest capital in South America. In the upcoming weeks, we will visit the highest – La Paz, Bolivia – and the second highest – Quito, Ecuador.
    We arrived in the city Thursday afternoon, and decided to stay until Sunday. Unfortunately Frank – who we were coming to visit – was dispatched to Haiti to cover the events. We were still able to take advantage of his hospitality, and settled in the AP bureau, located in the northern part of the city, an upscale residential and business area.

    Fixing a flat tire in front of the AP bureau in Bogota

    Fixing a flat tire in front of the AP bureau in Bogota

    The same night, as well as Friday night, we went out in the Zona Rosa, a neighborhood where you can find upscale watering holes as well as outlet where highlights of American cooking such as McDonalds and TGI Fridays can be found.

    La Candelaria

    La Candelaria

    We spent the weekend in the old part of the city, called La Candelaria, a quarter of restaurants, churches and museums.
    The city is bordered by a mountain range on the east, and has grown along the north-south axis, the south part being the lowest income area. At night, temperatures drop under 50F (9C).

    Plaza de Bolivar

    Plaza Bolivar

    In the old city, we visited the Plaza de Bolivar, and went east deep into La Candelaria and its museums, my favorite being the Botero Donation. The museum features paintings from the Colombia most famous artist as well as works from its European counterparts.

    Typical Botero painting

    Typical Botero painting

    We continued our exploration of the city and visited the Iglesia de San Agustin, a necessary stop in my mind, even if not mentioned in guidebooks, with it’s beautiful paintings (sorry, no pictures allowed).

    Iglesia de las Aguas

    Iglesia de las Aguas

    On Saturday, we went up to the Cerro de Monserrate, a church overlooking Bogota, accessible only via cable car and funicular. The view of the city from the 3,160m-high (10,400 ft) peak is splendid and worth the detour.

    Bogota view from the peak

    Bogota view from the peak

    It was also nice also to stroll along Carrera 7, the main shopping street of the city, bordered by more modern buildings.

    Crowded street in Bogota

    Crowded street in Bogota

    Like Cartagena, Bogota, with no shortage of cultural and leisure venues, looks to me like a city one could live in. What a contrast with cities in Central America, which seem in many ways more exotic. So far, the violent reputation of the country seems to be behind, and Colombia would be an ideal touristic destination, especially if you can spend at least two weeks exploring beaches and mountain ranges.

    La Candelaria

    La Candelaria

    We left Bogota on the Sunday morning, and continued on our way south to Neiva.

    Leaving Bogota

    Leaving Bogota

    At the end of the day, as we were getting closer to the city, we stopped at a farm where people were nice enough to let us spend the night. We heated up tamales, and went to sleep with our best friends, the mosquitoes.

    Few miles before Neiva

    Few miles before Neiva


6 Responses to “Weekend in the mountain metropolis”

  1. This was a wonderful post! I have been following your journey since the beginning and I am enjoying it so much! I wish you great luck and wonderful discoveries in the future. I can’t wait to see what the road brings you!
    Please post more pictures of this delicious local cuisine you are trying! Also, do you have a Flickr account or a photo account where you can post more pictures?

  2. So glade you had a spot to stay and also look the truck over like the flate tire. what a great place I really like you blog and how much you put inot them. The layout is great and formate as well. Your humor is funny as well ” and went to sleep with our best friends, the mosquitoes.” God Bless my friends.

  3. We enjoyed the modern picture vs the older Bogota street. We liked the old street picture with the mountains in the background.
    Glad you are still finding people to help you along your way. May the human race keep showing it’s best face towards all of you. It helps restore our faith in people.

    Safe travels, Dan, Lisa & Bryce

  4. Like most, I’ve been following this trip from the beginning and I feel like I’m on this journey with you. Canon pics are spectacular. Thanks for the wonderful trip and tip and detail.

    best wishes and travel safe. Shirley

  5. Hi! Checking up on your progress! Looks like you put on a few miles after leaving Bogota. Now I’m trying to guess where your next stop will be. Let’s see, I believe Pasto, That looks to me as one of the larger cities. (Still tracking you guys by the weather channel maps).

    Looking forward to seeing where you camped last.

    Marti

  6. Bogota certainly looks like a vacation destination. Your pictures are great as always Nick. I look forward to your posts continuously. I’ ll buy you and Nadia a round of beers at Brooklyn Brewery when you guys get back. Truck on.