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Other entries in Villa de Leiva

Viva Zorro! (Updated)

We just made the last bus from Tunja to Villa de Leyva by the skin of our teeth. Villa is a 400 + year old colonial town in the department of Boyacá famous for it`s timeless beauty and for being the setting of a horribly addictive Colombian soap opera about El Zorro. Think capes, swords, horses, smouldering looks and lots of steamy rutting.

We arrived at night tired but glad to have made it. We got a lift to our hostel, Colombian Highlands, cooked ourselves dinner, drank rum then collapsed in a heap. It wasn`t until the following morning in the light that we really saw just how beautiful this place was. The hostel, looking more like a hacienda, was perched on a hillside overlooking the town. We took a nice walk following a waterfall to the top of the hill behind the hostel and sat in awe of the view of the valley - deserts to the south, town in the centre and lush rolling hills to the north.

Not content with our exhausting little climb we then rode four hours on horseback with our guide Raúl. I say we rode, but it was pretty much a gallop. Starting at the arrid south of the valley we arrived at a series of emerald green lagoons surrounded by reeds and cacti. After a brief, freezing swim, we rode on past giant rocks to the greener north. These were fossilised coral from when this area formed a sea bed. Our next stop was to see the fossil remains of a Kronosaurus, a huge marine reptile they unearthed 30 years ago. There were millions of fossils of fish, shells, leaves everywhere. Then a short gallop to a Muisca burial ground. Here, in a clearing were huge rocks carved into phallic symbols set around a tomb. Essentially, a big field full of willies in which Laura and I ran around giggling like kids. There was also an ancient calendar made of many stones aligned with the phases of the sun, but it wasn`t nearly as funny as the willies. Then more trotting around (with Laura now complaining of horse-ass) to a local vineyard to sample wines. I had no idea Colombia produced wine of any kind so this was a pleasant surprise. Another undiscovered gem in this wonderful land.

After our little Zorro episode we hobbled into town and settled in a bar on the square for a couple of beers and a bit of flirting with the nice waiter. We moved on to another little bar nearby which strangely, but to my unbounded joy played indie and rock. It was surreal to look out onto the beautifully lit Plaza Major whilst listening to The Clash. We left when the music got romantic and the ugly men started wanted something back for the drinks they bought us. Stumbling back up cobbled streets in the rain, the sight of  Laura half baked, in knee length socks and her 2 quid, neon pink thrift-shop rain mac had me crying with laughter. A cross between Pippy Longstocking and one of  Trojan`s finest,  zigzagging her way up the hill. It was at this point we decided to spend more time in Villa de Leyva..

On our last day we walked around the town. I learnt that it was founded in 1572 and I don`t think it`s changed much since. The whole place has been rightfully declared a national monument. The white colonial houses with tiny doors still lead to beautiful hidden courtyards, but now they house restaurants, internet cafés and souvenir shops rather than the home of some distinguished señor. Stunning all the same. I was suprised to see that the soap opera film crew had been allowed to paint the façades on the main square all manner of different colours. They have to paint it all white again when filming finishes in a few months but still, the power of the soap here is something to be reckoned with. We met up with Raúl again, and 2 israeli guys and 2 american girls ( I born in Colombia like me) and took a trip to La Periquera, a series of waterfalls in the lush mountains of the north. Some wicked views, fun river crossings, good food and a couple of aguardientes later and we were back chilling in the hammocks.

Our way out of Villa de Leyva was a looong bus ride up to the carribean coast. This had me hopping around excited at the prospect of more diving. The aim was to persuade Laura that she didn`t want to lounge on the beach, but rather fool around at the bottom of the ocean with the biting tentacled things. I took a litre of rum with me to achieve this but left it on the bus. Estúpida.  

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