27.09.-30.09.11

Villa de Leyva

I left SAN GIL on Tuesday, 27.09.11 at 8.30 am and unfortunately after 1 hour we got stuck in a road accident. Nobody knew exactly what was going on but we just saw the ambulance and police driving up and down the road. And while we had to stay in the bus I started chatting to the Columbian guy next to me. We talked about my travels, his country, his job and he gave me some recommendations about my next destination VILLA DE LEYVA.

After 1 ½ hours we finally continued with our journey until we arrived an hour later at a restaurant on the top of the mountains. Pedro and I went for a typical Columbian meal and just when I wanted to pay he told me that he would like to invite me. Wow…first I refused… but after he insisted to pay I thanked him for the invitation. 2 hours later when he got off the bus we said Good Bye and he wished me a nice stay in Bogota where he was from.

I finally arrived in Villa de Leyva at 3.30pm and took a taxi to the "Hostal Renacer". The Hostal was 1.5 km north of the city centre and build on a hill overlooking the town. The house had a huge garden with an outside kitchen und very nice rooms. After I unpacked my bag back I bumped into my German friend Doro who arrived the day before.

Together we walked down to the city centre where she showed me around and recommended me a restaurant. Doro continued shopping and I went for a big lunch at a restaurant right next to the huge "Plaza Mayor".

Villa de Leyva with its healthy, dry and mild climate attracts a lot of local people from Bogota as it is only 4.5 hours away. The town is very close to some wonderful landscapes, with great bird-watching, ancient stone circles, impressive waterfalls, good food and excellent hiking opportunities.

On Wednesday, 28.09.11 I met Anna from Munich and Markus from Switzerland at breakfast. The two told me that they wanted to hire a mountain bike and cycle to the "Pozo Azules", Museum de Fossils and a Columbian winery. Even though that I was still fighting with a cold and a runny nose I asked them if I could join them….and an hour later we cycled through the beautiful landscape of Villa de Leyva.

Two hours later we arrived at the "Columbian Winery MARQUES" where we first joined a tour and then bought a bottle of wine with some cheese, salami and crackers. We stayed there for nearly two hours, sitting in front of the beautiful "finca", enjoyed our wine and talked about our futures in Germany and Switzerland. Puhh….and unfortunately we had to cycle back which wasn't that easy after a bottle of wine in the sun…..but it was fun!

Anna and Markus went to the city centre for dinner and I cooked myself a quick meal in the hostal and started writing my last travel blogs.

Thursday morning, 29.09.11 I decided to extend my stay at the beautiful and relaxed "Hostal Renacer" for one more day and night. I also wanted to relax in one of the many hammocks, update my travel blog, check out the town and buy some souvenirs.

After I had breakfast with Anna and Markus I walked down to the city centre where I then strolled around, walked into nearly every artisanal shop and took loads of photos. In the afternoon I made some calls home to Germany, uploaded some more photos and emailed.

Additionally I convinced Anna and Markus to go to the Thermal springs later on at night. So after dinner at around 7pm we called a taxi which drove us to the "Thermales". We got a bit suspicious when he suddenly turned left on to a gravel road and ended up in the middle of a deep forest. Then he took out his flashlight and asked us to follow him. Mmmh….how strange….but after 3 Minutes we could suddenly see a little house with a candle on the patio and then the taxi driver pointed out the three little hot pools right in front of the house.

While we got changed into our swim gear a man came out of the little house, welcomed us, asked us to pay 6.000 GOP for the entrance and placed some more candles around the pool. Wow….Thermal pools by candle light….how romantic and the best thing was that we had the whole pool for ourselves. An hour later a few "locals" came and joined us …..but we still enjoyed the quiet night under a beautiful sky full of stars.

1 ½ hours later the taxi drive drove us back to the hostel. The other travellers were still sitting in the "outside kitchen" so we joined them for one more beer and a bottle of wine.

The next morning, Friday, 30.09.11 I said Good Bye to everyone and took the bus to TUNJA at 8.30 am and continues from there directly to BOGOTA.