Short Video: Bogotá

Back in the snow, I have over 2, 000 pictures more to publish and tell stories about. In the meantime, I made this short video:

The song is "Volverte a Ver" by Juanes. It's a song about missing someone you love and I think it applies to Bogotá.

Bogotá is unlike anything you'd ever expect. It's a city of 8 million people and it's always alive. These are just some of the beautiful things you can see there.

Lunch....

For some reason, whenever we get directions people assume we wouldn't want to walk anywhere. We walk as much as we can, but everywhere we've gone, we are told that taxi is the best way to get around. But, it's not the only way.

Bogotá has this bus service called the Transmilenio and we decided to try it today. Despite warnings you'll get about hugging your things close to you and watching out for everyone not in your party, the Transmilenio is just like public transport in any major city. It has it's own lane in traffic (like the T in Boston) and is a pretty effective way to get around. Well, it probably works better if you know where you're headed. We didn't so we had to double back but we had a very pleasant ride and got to see a lot more of the city.

We missed lunch at Quinua y Amaranto- it's actually made fresh and once they run out of almuerzo, they've run out! Instead, I had a mushroom & avocado salad, fresh guava juice, and a vegetable empanada.

It's amazing how important good nutrition is.

Bogota, First Week...The search for good food.

The first few days in Bogotá were a mixed bag. Viewed at night from the foot of Monserrate, the city is beautiful, resplendent. The food, however, wasn't what I expected. (Read: where were the fresh fruits, vegetables and local dishes I'd been looking forward to?) The best places we found to eat were a local chain Oma and a place called Crepes & Waffles. They are both very popular, but the food is definitely Americanized.

But now, success! We found this great place, Quinua y Amaranto, that serves organic food, Colombian-style!!

We made it in time for breakfast, so I had a fruit salad (strawberries, starfruit, papaya and bananas), French bread (fresh) with a delicious strawberry jam, and something called "Caldo de Huevo" but with no visible egg and it tasted delicious. I wanted chocolate but decided on carrot juice instead. It was a good choice because it was made on the spot and delicious.