Colombia: Boyaca
Boyaca is a department north of Bogota. It is famous for its history in the independence war against Spain, its hospitability, iconic ruanas, and its beautiful colonial archiecture. Many of the villages have been selected as the most beautiful villages in Colombia and often described as a place where time has stopped. Villa de Leyva, only a few hours’ drive from Bogota, is the famous one many people visit, or Paipa is the one for a relaxing spa trip. I decided to visit the smaller, more obscure, and therefore more awesome villages farther East.
Getting there:
You can fly or bus or drive here, but the best and cheapest way would be to bus. Normally Colombian buses from large cities have good air conditioning, seats that lean back quite far, and often times wifi. Sogamoso, one of the bigger cities in the Boyaca village area, is quite small so my bus was dingy, but still the best option! The drive there was 7 hours, but I got to stop by to grab a bunch of food and see stunning landscapes albeit for fleeting moments.
The 7 hour road is long but filled with multiple stops! Grab a papa rellena — a fried ball of potato outside and meat, rice, and eggs inside, almojabanas, maduro chips, etc etc and see what there is at every stop! Most of the stops have the same set of things for sale.
Sogamoso:
This is a good central location to stay in to visit many of the villages of Boyaca. There were two hostels here, and the biggest two things to do is go hiking the Paremo de Oceto and visiting the sun temple. In general, the town seemed pretty deserted. And in Boyaca overall, in contrast to what I had heard, I felt almost unwelcome in the area. Perhaps because these villages get so few tourists that they are wary of us, but I did not see or feel any of the warmth that was advertised in this area. But one family I met on the bus to Sogamoso did invite me over to stay over at their night if I didn’t already have housing plans!
Mongui:
Click for the drone video of the town!
This village was chosen to be the most beautiful town in Colombia. You can take a bus from Sogamoso avenida del sol bus stop for just a 4k pesos, and they come fairly frequently so you don’t necessarily need a timetable. The trip lasts about 45 minutes. This village is also known for handmade soccer balls! At some point Mongui produced 50% of all soccer balls used in the nation.
Nobsa:
This town is very close to Sogamoso, and to get there you have to take a bus from the main bus terminal for 3,300 pesos. This town is known for its line of stores and workshops where they knit and make ruanas. A ruana is a poncho like article of clothing but made out of thick wool. I bought one for $25! Love Colombian prices. Also, I met another sweet lady on the bus to Nobsa, who offered me lunch at her house!
Iza:
This village — I read on a different blog — was supposed to be beautiful, welcoming, and have people making ruanas. I took a bus (3k one way) from the avenida del sol bus stop for ~30 minutes. Maybe because I was there on Ash Wednesday, I don’t know, but not many people were in the streets and I felt like I was getting looked at funny. Anywho, I tried visiting all the ruana related shops but they were all closed, and I ended up getting some expensive subpar pork meat for lunch at the main square. I also grabbed some dessert apparently Iza is known for (I forget what they called it oops) with a cup of tinto like a true Colombian.
The whole drive there, though, was beautiful and reminded me a lot of Tuscany.
Laguna de Tota:
Click for the drone video of Lake Tota!
This lake is a bit further down south from Iza from Sogamoso. It has the beach at the highest altitude in the world, and all the locals suggest visiting this lake! The ride here was beautiful, and you can get off at the top of the hill. You walk down the hill (meant for people to drive down). Here you can waterjet and do some water sports for a fee, but the water is clear and cold. Because this is at altitude, the beach itself isn’t super hot, and not that crowded.
A local suggested the restaurant at the top of the hill for a good trout dish (trucha, the specialty of this region). Comes with a great view! You can walk up the same hill and walk further down the street, or there was a hill that may have been private property that you can take from the far end of the beach. You can wait in front of the restaurant for the bus back to Sogamoso — last bus at 6:30pm!
Duitama:
Click for the drone video of the pueblo!
This is another one of the larger cities in Boyaca and though the rest of the city was unspecial, online it looked more appealing with its Boyacacense village (Pueblito Boyacacense)! I thought it was an integral part of the city but the pueblito is an immersive experience “park” that you pay 1k pesos to visit. During my visit, all the shops were closed, but the park itself was really well decorated with a different part being the architecture of a different village style in the Boyaca region.
