Breathless In Bogotá

There are many places we've visited over the past year which have taken our breath away, but none quite so literally as Bogotá. Set 2,640 metres above sea level, the altitude in the Colombian capital was very difficult to adjust to, leaving us rather short of air.
The city is bursting with museums and we'd planned to see as many as possible but after traipsing around just one, we were forced to head back, feeling sick and light headed. Unfortunately, we didn't choose the best one either. Though 'The Gold Museum' sounds glamorous, we didn't learn anything except that seeing one room full of golden artefacts is the same as seeing one hundred.

The route back to the hostel was a pretty one. Away from the main roads, Bogotá is full of of charm; the kind you'd expect from a small village, not a city. The narrow lanes are unevenly cobbled and the terraced buildings distinguish their boundaries with vibrant paints, a different colour to their neighbours'. Some have even used the walls of their home as a blank canvas for street art masterpieces. It was still early afternoon when we arrived back at the hostel but a few hours later, we were already in bed; the combination of the long journey the previous day, very slight jet lag and everything we were doing seeming to take ten times as much effort. The following day, we woke early to see the city from the Monsserate viewpoint in the morning light. At a further 2,350 metres upwards, most people opt for the cable car or train to take them to the top but we decided to walk; stupid really, considering I was still out of breath just from climbing the three runged ladder of my bunk bed. It would have been a challenging hike even in perfect health but with our light heads and heavy chests, it was near impossible. We had to stop for breath every few steps whilst dozens of Colombians overtook us with piteous smiles. It was pretty frustrating to feel so useless and I wished we could have worn signs on our heads saying: 'Not Unfit, Not Used to Altitude!' An hour and a half later we'd made it though and we were so happy with ourselves, we quite literally felt on top of the world. From the peak of this hill we could see the whole of Bogotá and we were shocked to see its full size. We'd been staying in the centre which felt tiny for a capital city but the suburbs spread for miles and miles. It seemed a shame at this point that we didn't have time to explore the city more but we'd booked a bus for that afternoon. However, we did have a couple of hours left in which to squeeze in a well deserved lunch so practically ran down the hill, straight into a cute and quirky restaurant café. It's common in Colombia for eateries to offer set lunches which are even better value than their regular menu. We barely understood what the set dishes were but we were feeling adventurous and figured that with three courses and a drink for the equivalent of £2.50, we couldn't really go wrong! Luckily it was just as delicious as it was cheap.

From what I've seen so far, I like Colombia a lot but I'm looking forward to discovering more of the country, this time at sea level on the Caribbean Coast!