In Passing snapshot - The Palace Guards

The "Casa de Nariño" is Colombia´s presidencial Palace where you will see the Presidencial Guards at watch ath the gates dressed in they traditional garb.

The trip to Colombia - Obleas Mick Jagger

What´s Mick doing in Bogota? first I gotta tell you what an "Oblea" is.
An Oblea is a Colombian version of a wafer, round in shape and thin, normally sandwiched with arequipe caramel ( a sort of Dulce de leche) or jam.
Now This smart man took advantage of Mick Jaggers visit to his stand and branded his Obleas "Mick Jagger"

If you happen to walk by it do´nt miss the opportunity to try them out.

The trip to Colombia - Bogota - Museo del Oro

The natives in America did not atribute economic power to gold but instead it was used for sacred ornaments, in Bogota you will find one of the biggest pre colombian gold collections in the world at the "Museo del Oro" holding more than 50.000 gold artifacts spread over three floors.

Also some hispanic religious ornaments like "La Lechuga" a richly decorated monstrance from the time of the colony, called the lettuce for its green colour given by the amount of ametists it carries.

The trip to Colombia - Hotel de la Opera

Right beside the Cristoval Colon theatre in the Centro histórico de Bogota you will find the "Hotel de la Opera" a Colonial manor turned Hotel.

If your budget allows you it is a magnificent place to stay in Bogota.

If not you can allways have a drink or a meal at the resto that sits on its terrace and take in the spectacular view of the old city, I tried the picada bogota which is a selection of finger food treats.

The trip to Colombia - Bogota - Plaza Bolivar

The Bolivar square is one of Bogota´s most Iconic square the site of all the state, munipal,religious and judicial power.

There you will see beautifull architecture with each side adorned by the Cathedral, the Palacio de Justicia, the municipal Palace and the Congress, besides the thousands of pigeons that gather there to be fed.

The trip to Colombia - Bogota - La puerta Falsa

A must go in Bogota if you want to taste well prepared Bogotan food is " La puerta Falsa" a micro restaurant right beside the cathedral at plaza Bolivar.

you can go for breackast or lunch, ( there are only two items in the linch menu, Tamales or ajiaco soup) I had the typical Bogotan breakafast, pictured above which consists of chocolate and bread as well as a tamal and changua a soup made with milk eggs and bread, very stommach friendly and hearty.

depending on the tme you arive, there might be a wait cuzthe joint is really tiny, but it adds to the show to see the waiters juggle dishes to climb the stairs to the top floor, where I reccomend seating.

The trip to Colombia - Bogota - Moving around

Bogota used to be one of the worst cities around the world to move around and it still is outside the transmilenio, which is Bogota´s public transit sistem.

As you will see the tree wagon buses replicate a subway on the surface and its operation is identical, you have stations to hop on and off and make transfers, same as a subway. All you need to do is buy the card for 5000 pesos ($ 1.5 american) and load it up with credit for 2500 pesos s a trip.
Even from the airport you can catch them and save the rip off taxi fares.

The trip to Colombia - Bogota - Centro Histórico

Being  a city of 7 million inhabitants you will find a lot of Contrasts in Bogota from skyscrapers to the "Centro Histórico" which is very well kept in all its Colonial charm.

lots of coble stoned streets that go up and down will bring you through artisan markets, bars and coffe shops all geared towards tourism of course.

Take your time to admire the details on doors, windows and balconies, and take advantage of sunshine when available cuz the normal weather here is clody and foggy.