Photos from trip to Colombia in May-June 2023!

My wife and I were exceedingly blessed to spend a month in Colombia in May and June of 2023, after our 2022 trip was hampered by COVID and other illnesses in our family. We seemed to be making up for lost time with encounters with family and friends, as well as side trips to Santa Marta, Pereira, and Manizales. Below are just a few of the highlights of our trip.

Manizales is a city with pockets nestled in the mountains

The Hotel Irotama in Santa Marta has an enormous pool

The Nevado del Ruiz, an active volcano that was emitting fumaroles

We peeked inside a church in Madrid, a town outside of Bogotá, and witnessed a wedding!

The dizzying view from the top of the cathedral of Manizales

The Museo del Chicó in Bogotá is a former hacienda

Nevado del Tolima in the foreground, Nevado del Ruiz in the background

Plenty of birds to see in Colombia like this Bananaquit in Pereira

Informal gatherings of musicians, like this one in Bogotá, are always fun

The courtyard in the Museo del Chicó in Bogotá is beautiful

In the Laguna de Guatavita park, about two hours north of Bogotá

Like Manizales, the city of Pereira has cable car transportation

The Laguna de Guatavita, site of the Muisca ritual of the cacique or chief, also known as El Dorado or The Golden Man, covered in gold powder and bathing in the lake

Colombian Andes: Eastern Cordillera from Bogotá to Choachí (2022)

On my last trip to Colombia in June-July 2022, I wanted to see the road between Bogotá and a town to the east named Choachí. (For those of you who have been to Bogotá, this road goes between Monserrate and the Cerro de Guadalupe.) This trip only takes 1-1/2 hours, but it goes through an impressive array of landscapes, including this one. Bogotá is high at 8,600 feet above sea level, but the road would reach the "páramo," a high altitude landscape found only in northern South America, reaching as high as 11,000 feet. The plant life in those climates is amazing.

The "páramo" at 11,000 feet above sea level

Upon descending toward Choachí, the climate gradually gets warmer. The luxuriant vegetation gives an indication of being in "tierra templada" or temperate land.

At Choachí, the landscape was bright with sun and I could feel the warmth of the lower altitude.

The center of town was brightly painted and featured some nice murals:

When it came time to return, I sat on the right side of the bus to appreciate the dramatic changes in altitude. I could see the road where I had been only a short time ago.

Upon arriving in Bogotá, I was deeply grateful for having seen an area I had wanted to travel for many years!