Bogotá, Colombia. TCC Territory #17. May 31-June 7, 2026
Loved my time here!
Bogotá sits in the middle of Colombia at around 8600 feet in the Andes Mountains, and its mild climate felt wonderful after weeks of hot and humid Central America and San Andrés. The temps are the same year-round in Bogotá, 50s in the evening and 60s in the daytime. It rains when it wants to and is often overcast. My kind of weather.
I spent a couple of days acclimating, then took a walking tour through Candelaria, the city’s historic district. Lots of beautiful graffiti art.
Next came a climb of Monserrate which stands over the city at 10,341 feet. There’s a cable car, a funicular, and a popular hiking trail. I did the trail, which contains over 1600 uneven stone steps. I felt pretty good on the way up considering I hadn’t climbed anything in over a month, but the descent was not kind on my knees. There’s a sanctuary on the summit that was originally built in the early 17th century, so the mountain attracts pilgrims as well as trekkers.
Also checked out the Gold Museum which displays a massive amount of the pre-Columbian shiny stuff. Along with the displays come a wealth of archeological information. Highly recommend if you visit Bogotá.
Toured Zipaquirá’s salt cathedral, an underground Catholic pilgrimage site originally built by salt miners pre-1930s and then expanded throughout the following decades. Saw a tiny bit of the Spanish Colonial town itself. Quite picturesque.
Toured the working coffee farm of La Campesina, a female-owned business. That was such a delight! I learned everything I could want to know about how coffee is grown, the different varieties, the different regions, etc etc. Got to pick some beans myself. Did you know that the blond roasts have twice as much caffeine as the dark roasts? I always thought it was the other way around.
Things I love about Bogotá:
Colombians put cheese on/in everything. A popular drink is hot chocolate with chunks of cheese in it. You let the cheese soften in the hot beverage and eat it out of the cup with a spoon.
Colombians eat a big breakfast and lunch but very little if any dinner. Just like me!
People are generally warm and friendly. I arrived on Election Day, and the country is divided into two parties with strong supporters. One of the parties also supports Trump…indeed, Trump made a statement supporting that candidate while I was in Bogotá. Therefore, depending on whom I spoke with, I got either an enthusiastic “I love Americans” or a slightly guarded but not unkind attitude. There were street protests one night against the pro-Trump candidate. Got some footage of it from my balcony.
Regarding safety. Bogotá is not quite walkable for a foreigner. It is if you know the city well, since the neighborhood can be fine on one side of the street but dangerous on the other. I was told where it was and was not safe to walk. Also, “No dar papaya.” This translates to “don’t give papaya” and means never let your guard down or make yourself an easy target. Absolutely do not walk around with your phone in your hand. Etc. I did not give any papaya, I walked only where I was told it was safe to do so, and I was in my lodgings well before nightfall each day, so I never felt in danger.
Also – take prearranged rides via Cabify and Uber or other, more expensive, private services only. Never hail a taxi from the street. Kidnappings and robberies are not uncommon. A “driver” can pick you up, then take you to a distant location where his buddies will show up and 1) demand you unlock and then hand over your phone and 2) take you at knife/gunpoint to ATMs and withdraw all your money. I took Ubers only and was fine. Though one of them suspiciously changed their license plate to “unknown vehicle” on the way over to pick me up. Needless to say I canceled that ride and ordered a different one.
There is a teeny bit of anti-American sentiment in some small factions only because some Colombians do not want their country aligned with Trump. I did see one graffitied wall saying “Yanki go home” – but my personal experiences with the people I spoke with were all positive or, at worst, neutral.
I could have happily spent a few more days in Bogotá doing a couple more day tours or visiting more museums. I have reservations in Quito, Ecuador though, so off I went on June 7. It’s actually June 7 as I write this, and I am sitting in the Lima airport since my original LATAM flight was canceled. Got a different one to Quito at the last minute, with a huge out-of-the-way layover in Peru. LATAM did right by me and worked quickly to help me rebook. My new flight required a 2am exit from my Bogotá lodging though, so I have had little sleep and hope this post makes sense. My grammar is probably lacking, but I’m glad to be coherent at all right now. Anyway, I’m grateful for my time in Bogotá, and I wish I had more time to spend on the Colombian mainland.
