Junkies roaming around

In the afternoon I got on the next bus, which took me to Bogotá, the huge capital of Colombia. More than 10 million people live in the metropolitan area of the city. Many Colombians don't really like the city because of the cold climate, the congested roads, the pollution and the high crime rate.

Around midnight I arrived at the Republica Hostel in the chic Chapinero district. A bit too fancy for me. 2 days later I moved to a hostel in the old town, La Candelaria, where most of the tourists are. But La Candelaria is so old and filthy that I also advise against looking for accommodation there. In Bogota I also saw the biggest number of junkies, especially in the old town. They know that there are a lot of tourists there and have heard reports of some mugged tourists there. Shortly before the Colombia police had raided a very famous area in Bogota where many of this junkies were camping. No without a home, they were just roaming through the city everywhere.

gorgeous graffiti enhance the city

During my first walk through the old town with its small winding alleys I had a little trouble catching my breath. Bogotá is located at 2700 meters altitude. Therefore it is cold. The Colombians call the city "la neverra" (the refrigerator).  In addition, there is more or less the whole time a permanent traffic jam because of all many cars, whose exhaust gases pollute the air even more and the fumes escape hardly due to the surrounding mountains. The old town seems quite run-down, there are construction sites everywhere. Nevertheless, the old town offers a great scenery with the mountains in the background.

In addition, great graffiti embellishes the city everywhere. In a tour I could see the most beautiful of them. In general Bogotá is a very cultural city. On Sunday an important street is closed in order for small stalls to be built where people can sell something or bands can play. I also found the inhabitants of Bogotá to be very friendly.

A marvellous monastery on Monserrate hill

On my last day in Bogotá I visited the Monserrate hill, which rises over 3100 meters directly behind the old town. A cable car brought me up. From the top I had a view of a huge metropolis of almost 9 million people. There is also a wonderful white basilica on the mountain.

In Bogotá there is almost always a traffic jam and no metro, but at least some of the many buses, the Transmilenio, have their own traffic lane which only they are allowed to use and can thus avoid the slow-moving traffic. With just this bus system I went to the airport, everything worked out without any problems. A local friend of mine had given me her bus ticket before, because she was on her way to Germany. An intelligent young woman who even spoke good German.

I took the plane to Cartagena, the famous city on the Atlantic coast of Colombia.