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Villa de Leyva: The Vineyard

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

According to my Lonely Planet travel guide on Colombia (edition 1995/97) Colombian wine is “poor, not popular and best avoided”.

I decided to find out for myself, and found this little Vineyard at the outskirts of Villa de Leyva. The business is run by a German farmer, Don Joachim, who decided to settle down here a number of years ago. He started out with 15 different kinds of grapes, and finally decided to continue with two of them: one red, one white. The vineyard produces five different wines, ranging from sweet to dry.

So what’s my conclusion? White wines seem to be difficult in this kind of climate – the taste was not too impressive. The red wines are better, especially the sweet ones. I bought a few bottles of the red wines, so further tests will be undertaken during the time to come.

In general, Colombians are not very much into wine drinking, and the supermarkets do not offer much of a selection. If you want a good wine, imports from Chile is the most common choice. However, according to Lonely Planet there is one exception in Colombian wine production: Viñedo de Puntalarga, not very far from Villa de Leyva and Bogotá. Wines from the world highest situated wineyard – 2.500 meters – are said to be some of the best ones in Latin America. Conditions are similar to Rhine and Alsace, as are the wines. A difference is that the climate permits two harvests a year.

Maybe Colombia has a future as wine producer. But before that happens, more Colombians have to learn about the difference between liqueur and wine…

Anders

Villa de Leyva: Cobbled streets

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

Last weekend I spent in Villa de Leyva, a town of some 5000 inhabitants a few hours north of Bogotá.

Villa de Leyva is a beautiful, extremely well-preserved colonial town, founded in 1572. Nowadays the town is a trendy weekend spot for Bogotanos, but still a lot of genuinety remains. Situated on 2.140 meters above sea level, the climate is very pleasant. Days do not get really hot, and nights do not get very chilly.

The central square of Villa de Leyva measures some impressive 120 X 120 meters. It’s paved with cobblestones and lined with whitewashed colonial houses, and of course the parish church.

The rural colonial architecture, as shown on this photo from Villa de Leyva, largely consists of a simple outer surface. But once you enter a building, you walk into a lovely, square courtyard. Many of those buildings with courtyards have now been turned into either picturesque hotels, like the one I stayed at, restaurants or “shopping malls”.

Handicraft shopping, especially clothing, is a must in Villa de Leyva. And what a relief not to run in to one single street vendor!

Anders

Cartagena: Colonial architecture

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

The Old town of Cartagena is listed by UNESCO as world heritage. The well-preserved old town with plenty of Spanish colonial architecture is the main reason.

At this photo you find one of the more colorful examples of colonial architecture. The building houses a bar/disco called “Mr. Babilla”.

Not only buildings are colorful. Blacks are numerous at the Caribbean coast, since this part of the country formerly was a center for slave trade. This is one of many factors that make Cartagena very different from Bogota where almost everyone is either mestizo (mixed white/Amerindian) or white.

According to statistics, mestizos constitute 58 per cent of the population, whites 20 per cent, mulattoes 4 per cent, mixed black/Amerindians 3 per cent, and finally Amerindians, 1 per cent.

Unlike Peru and Bolivia which have high percentages of indians, or Argentina and Uruguay where whites predominate, Colombia is much more of a racial blend. And yes, the variety compared to what I’m used to in Europe is really striking!

Having spent a few days in Cartagena, I can guarantee that this city is well worth visiting. But the street vendors of Cartagena really know how to drive you mad. It’s understandable that extremely poor people are trying to sell you anything from lobsters to jewelry. However, compared to how tourism industry is run in some other parts of Colombia (and the world), it’s more than obvious that a lot can be done to improve the way things are done in Cartagena.

One of these days there are elections held in this Caribbean city – the locals will choose a mayor to run the place for the next few years. Corruption among politicians, lack of education among citizens and absence of big money are challenges that have to be dealt with.

Cartagena does possess the power of attraction. But will the city be able to fully exploit it?

Anders

Nightlife in Cartagena

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

Caribbean music has many faces. At Paco’s bar a few of them showed up in the shape of a band playing Cuban music.

There’s said to be quite a bit of nightlife in Cartagena. But my short stay didn’t permit a more thorough exploration.

Anders

Sunset in Cartagena

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

A view from the beach in Cartagena as the sun is descending. Even though it’s not summer, the water is very warm.

But enjoy with care – in Cartagena the sea is aggresive and the waves powerful.

Anders

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Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

Colombia’s history is as complexe as it is fascinating. The country’s size, natural resources and geographic position are reasons for the world’s super power, the U.S.A., to show a continous interest in Colombian affairs.

This photo shows a U.S. military airplane at the airport of Cartagena last week. The U.S. puts respectable amounts of money into the war against the Colombian drug production. More recently, the U.S. has got deeper involved also in the Colombian war on terrorism, i.e. the Colombian government’s battle against the powerful guerilla groups in the country. Immense amounts of money flow from Washington. The military presence of the U.S. is quite limited though – less than 1.000 troops and contractors.

The Colombian Army is visible all over. The current objective is to increase the number of soldiers from around 200.000 in 2004 to at least four times as many by 2008.

President Alvaro Uribe’s investment in military capacity and hard line policies against the guerillas seems to give positive effects. Larger areas are considered somewhat safe, and people I talk to agree that the situation has improved.

But still a lot of problems remain.

Anders

Cartagena: Bocagrande

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

Cartagena lives with and from the sea. The city is built on islands and peninsulas, almost surrounded by waters.

Considering that the water is The Caribbean, that’s not too bad at all. Taking a bath is pleasant, and the shrimp dish called ceviche is more than delicious.

I stayed at a cheap hotel in Bocagrande, a part of the city located at a narrow peninsula some five taxi minutes away from the old town. This modern part of the city consists of villa suburbs, apartments, and numerous hotels, fancy and un-fancy shops as well as restaurants.

The beach is quite ok, but if you want a real Caribbean treat you need to go by boat to the archipelago of small coral islands called Islas del Rosario.

New projects are underways in Bocagrande. Climat change and ascending water levels may be a threat, but if you can live with the risk, you may wanna buy an apartment in a skyscraper with Caribbean panorama.

Anders

Cartagena slum

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

Cartagena, or Cartagena de Indias as the city’s full name goes, does not leave anyone without impressions.

After a flight from Bogota, lasting a little over an hour, offering some magnificent views of immense jungle, numerous lakes and the Magdalena River, the Avianca MD83 was approaching Cartagena.

Cartagena accomodates Colombia’s second largest seaport, important for oil exports and trade. Descending toward the airport, it was therefore no surprise to see ships and containers.

But the view of extensive slum areas is breathtaking. The attached photo gives you an idea of how a lot of people in Cartagena – and other cities – have to live their lives. Apart from that, the photo also gives a hint of the local economy: cheap labor and a rough struggle for survival.

At the same time Cartagena represents a hispanic history dating back to 1533. And this history, expressed in the the well-preserved old town and the famous, surrounding walls, represents an enormous potential for the tourism industry. I bet that Cartagena soon will be a common place to visit for many more travelers than today.

Anders

Yesterday I went by air from Bogota to the Caribbean city of Cartagena. Even though the government has put a lot of money into the army, it still feels safer flying, rather than going by bus.

The climate, the culture, the people, the food – a lot of things are quite a bite different here. Cartagena is listed by UNESCO as world heritage, and for sure this city is a beautiful place. I’m staying here a few more days, before continuing the trip. I hope to be back with pictures soon. Apart from that I also have some stories that I’d like to share.

So do stay tuned!

Anders

At the village square

Originally uploaded by Anders L. Hansson.

This past weekend I left Bogota for a couple of days. With some friends I went to a village about one hour away.

A picturesque place indeed – on this photo one of the streets at the village square. The location in a valley makes the climate rather different from Bogota – maybe you could call it subtropical.

For the first time I got a sense of what the internal security problems in Colombia mean in reality. People are very friendly and helpful – but cameras may rise suspicion, and sometimes there are topics that you cannot discuss.

Anders