Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá — officially named Bogotá, D.C. (D.C. for "Distrito Capital", which means "Capital District"), also called Santa Fe de Bogotá, is the capital of Colombia, as well as the largest and by far the most populous city in the country with 6,776,009 inhabitants (2005 census). Bogotá and its metropolitan area, which includes municipalities such as Chía, Cota, Soacha, Cajicá and La Calera, had an estimated population of 7,881,156 according to the 2005 census.
Bogotá is located in the centre of the country, on the east of the "sabana de Bogotá", 2640 meters (8661 feet) above sea level. Although "sabana", as it is popularly called, is literally "savanna", the geographical site is actually a high plateau in the Andes mountains.
Bogotá is the hub of Colombian business. It has a busy banking, insurance sector, and a Stock exchange. Engineering firms provide services for many regions of Colombia and Central America. Bogotá houses the central governmental institutions and military headquarters. It is the centre of the telecommunications network and has the biggest industrial facilities in the country.
Climate
The average temperature on the 'sabana' is 14.0°C (57°F), varying from -8°C (18°F) to 20°C (68°F). Dry and rainy seasons alternate throughout the year. The driest months are December, January, February and March; the rainiest are April, May, September, October and November. June and July are usually rainy periods and August is sunny with high winds.
Frost usually occurs in dry season. During this period, the temperature falls below 0°C. The lowest temperature ever recorded was -8°C (17°F) inside the city and -10°C (14°F) in the nearby towns of the savanna.
Climatic conditions are irregular and quite variable due to the El Niño and La Niña climatic phenomena, which occur in and around the Pacific basin and are responsible for very pronounced climatic change
Districts of Bogota
North Bogota
Santa Barbara, La Carolina, El Chico, Contador, El Retiro, El Nogal, Los Rosales, Lisboa Antigua, La Calleja, La Bella Suiza, El Lago, Cedritos, Usaquen country
Central Bogota
Chapinero, La Candelaria, El Centro, Barrio Egipto, Teausaquillo
Occidente
El Salitre, Alamos Norte, Modelia, Normandia, Los Heroes
Sur
Restrepo, Ciudad Kennedy, Americas, Galan Ciudad Bolivar
Visit
- Gold Museum El Museo del Oro, [2], Calle 16 #5-41, Tel:(571)2847450, Fax:(571)3432222, [3]. Impressive collection of gold en precolumbian artifacts. Don't miss this museum. Open: Tu to Sa 9AM-7PM and Su/holidays 10am-5pm. Entrance is free on Sunday.
- Donación Botero, Calle 11 #4-41, Tel: 1-343-1331. Collection of paintings donated by Botero to Bogota. Besides work of Botero the collection contains work from Picasso, Renoir, Monet, Dali and others. Entrance free. Open: Mo & We-Fr 10am-8pm, Sa 10am-7pm and Su 10am-4pm.
- Casa de Moneda, next to Museo Botero. Has a collection of Colombian coins and the history of moneymaking.
- Museo Nacional Carrera 7 No. 28-66. Phone: 334 8366 Website: www.museonacional.gov.co E-mail: info@museonacional.gov.co/Tue: 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; Wed and Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; Sun: 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
The National Museum is the oldest in the country and one of the oldest in the continent, built in 1823. Its fortress architecture is built in stone and brick. The plant includes arches, domes and columns forming a sort of Greek cross over which 104 prison cells are distributed, with solid wall façade. The museum houses a collection of over 20,000 pieces including works of art and objects representing different national history periods. Permanent exhibitions present archeology and ethnography samples from most antique Colombian men vestiges, 10,000 years BC, up to XX century indigenous and afro- Colombian art and culture. Founders and New Kingdom of Granada room houses rich Liberators and other Spanish authorities iconography; the round room exhibits a series of oleos synthesizing Colombia painting history.
- Museum of modern art of Bogota (MamBo) · Calle 24 No. 6-00 /Tue to Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Sun from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Exhibits a complete collection of modern art work basically consisting of drawing, paintings, engraved work, sculpture and assembly. Houses work of Colombian masters Fernando Botero, Alejandro Obregón, Enrique Grau and Édgar Negret, among many other together with important Latin American artists pinacotheca. The moderns building, designed by architect Rogelio Salmona, achieves optimum space and natural light management.
- Banco de la Republica Art Collection Calle 11 No. 4-41 Tue to Sat:10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Sunand holydays 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. · Closed on Mon, including holiday Mondays.
Exhibits Permanent Banco de la República Art Collection consisting of nearly 3,000 paintings, sculptures and assembly of Colombian and Latin American masters from the XVI century to our days. Visitors may appreciate a selection of Colombian painters works, for instance Gregorio Vázquez de Arce y Ceballos, the most important Colony painter, Alejandro Obregón, Enrique Grau, Latin American as Rufino Tamayo, David Alfaro Siqueiros and many other globally renowned.
- Museum of Colonial Art Calle 24 No. 6-00 · Tue to Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Sun from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Under Eduardo Santos administration on August 6, 1942 the Colonial Museum containing Viceroy-ship art, silver plates, the Virgin of the Light and the most characteristic Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos collection, among other valuable Colombian culture treasures opened its doors. Declared National Monument National in 1975, Las Aulas Cloister is one of the oldest buildings in Bogotá.
- Hacienda Santa Bárbara, Carrera 7 No. 116 - 05. A 19th century house that belonged to Pepe Sierra, one of the wealthiest Colombians in that time, that became a mall in late 80's. Famous for its cafés (some of them nationally renowned), is not as crowded as other malls.
- Usaquén a rather new "cool" section of Bogota. The main square is the meeting point of the area where you can find pretty nice restaurants and bars. But walk around and find more great places to eat and drink.
- La Candelaria, the historical neighborhood in Bogota.
- La Macarena (Bullfight ring area) is a bohemian neighborhood full of artsy cafes, art galleries and great restaurants.
- Unicentro, a very modern mall with many western retail shops.
- Parque de la 93 which is a trendy section of Bogota with nightclubs, and cafes frequently visited by Bogotas "jet set". Highly recommended El Salto del Angel restaurant.
- La Zona T which is another chic area of Bogota which is surrounded by the upscale malls of Centro Andino, Atlantis Plaza and El Retiro which holds various upscale boutiques such as Lacoste, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Bally, Cartier and much more.
- Maloka Situated in the Upper/Middle Class neighborhood of El Salitre is Maloka which is a science museum one of the only ones built in South America.
- Monserrate a true beautiful panoramic view of the city its only a funicular ride away which will cost about 11,000 pesos round trip.
- Torre Colpatria Bogota's tallest building and one of South Americas tallest buildings is located in El Centro. You can visit the panoramic deck on the top of building on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays make it a must see.
- Catedral de Sal is located in nearby Zipaquira. This is a MUST. You will not regret it. About two hours to get there, you can grab a bus to nearby Zipaquira and go to see the amazing church carved into the mountain. Several artists participated in the conversion of this former salt mine into a Catholic church. The town is small but has at least a few restaurants and many taxis to take you back to the city.