Sogamoso and Surroundings in Colombia

The plaza of Sogamoso, in the province of Boyacá

The cool Bogotá savannah extends well north of the capital and continues through in similar form toward Tunja, the capital city of the province of Boyacá. A bus ride to the north and east of Tunja showed me that this same savannah continued to Sogamoso, also in the province of Boyacá, before finally ending there. Sogamoso is a small city with lots of activity in its commercial district and large central plaza, which honors both its indigenous past with a sculpture honoring the sun god of its ancestors (the last cacique or chief of the region before the Spanish conquest was named Sugamuxi), and the Catholic cathedral of St. Martin of Tours behind the sculpture.

Interior of the church in the town of Monguí

It takes a little less than an hour to take a bus to the nearby town of Monguí, winding slowly through the mountains. Monguí is a really picturesque place situated in the hills, and would be noteworthy for its colonial architecture alone. However, the town has carved a niche for itself in another way: as a manufacturer of soccer balls. In the plaza you can find stores that dedicate themselves to this craft. We went in one store to peek at the workers busily making them and look through all the sizes and varieties available, with World Cup posters decorating the walls.

Flower pots in Monguí decorated with the soccer balls the town is famous for making

Another noteworthy side trip from Sogamoso is to the Lago de Tota, the largest natural lake in Colombia. The cool breeze reminds you that you are at a high elevation - 3,015 meters (9,892 feet) above sea level, to be exact. There are plenty of captivating views and towns surrounding the lake, among them Aquitania, which prides itself on rainbow trout caught in the nearby waters, as well as being a major source of onions. As for us, we were not in search of trout or onions, but rather for some delicious ice cream in the plaza, which capped off the day nicely.

On the shore of Lake Tota

Miami: Visit to Star Island, 1998

For many years my wife and I would travel back and forth between Philadelphia and Bogota and change flights in Miami. We were curious to visit Miami but didn't have the chance to do so until 1998, when our flight from Philadelphia to Bogota had a six-hour layover in Miami.

We left the airport and found a taxi driver who offered to take us around the city for three hours. This taxi driver was originally from Sweden and on his card said that he spoke 14 languages. His Spanish sounded very Cuban, and he conducted the entire tour in Spanish. While he was driving he took a call on his cell phone from his daughter. They were discussing the results of the World Cup that was going on at that time. He spoke to her in Danish and gave her the score of the game: "et - et" (1-1).

Among the places he took us were Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, particularly South Beach, and Biscayne Bay. On the way back from Miami Beach, we stopped at Star Island, home to many celebrities. He drove up and told the guard that he was taking us on a tour, and he was let through. He stopped at the house in the first photo that he said was the residence of Gloria Estefan. (Note: On Google Earth Gloria Estefan's house is now identified as a different house on the island.) The next stop was a house that he said formerly belonged to Julio Iglesias (second photo).

After this trip we felt content that we finally were able to see something of Miami. We returned to Miami in 2003 and stayed ten days.









Visit my webpage on Latinos in the United States at
http://www.latinandcaribbeantravel.com/latinosintheus.html


Other websites:

Caribbean Folk Arts Network (Caribfolk) - Caribbean cultural network: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribfolk/

Raices Culturales Latinoamericanas (Latin American Cultural Roots) - a nonprofit organization I founded in 1991 that presents Latin American cultural shows, exhibits, and workshops: http://www.raicesculturales.org/

Raicesnews - Latin cultural events in the Philadelphia area: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/raicesnews