Colombia travel blog by Mark Berman -
May 2018
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Between a bullfighting ring and the Tominé Reservoir sits the small town of Guatavita with its whitewashed buildings and red-tiled roofs some 70kms
north-east of Bogota. The reservoir, completed in 1967 flooded the original town of Guatavita and the new town was built on higher ground. This is a very similar
story to that of Old Peñol in Guatape where the old town was flooded to create the Peñol-Guatape Reservoir in the late 1970's (near Medellin). There
is actually a life-sized replica of Old Peñol in New Peñol! Guatavita was rebuilt as a replica of a Spanish colonial town hence the bullfighting
ring (Plaza de Toros) and architectural style as a theme throughout the town such as its white houses, clay tiles, wooden doors and windows, archways, bridges,
stairs and cobbled streets. A mix of pre-Columbian, Andalusian, colonial and contemporary styles, a place that invites you to walk through each of its spaces
and discover the architectural details that make it unforgettable! City Circuit North of Bogota
I arrived in Guatavita from
Zipaquira - 90mins by bus from towards the west. Guatavita would be my
final stop on the 4 city circuit I had traveled north of Bogota - they being
Tunja,
Villa de Leyva, Zipaquira and Guatavita! As well as seeing the town of
Guatavita itself I also wanted to go on a tour to the sacred lagoon.
To See In Guatavita
The Indigenous Museum (Museo Indigena) is one of the places to visit while in Guatavita and
has a display of ceramics, old photos and models of indigenous villages etc. The museum is located beside the Plaza of Arts and Crafts (Plaza de los Artesanos) - an
area with shops and stalls selling beautifully woven Andean shawls and other warm woolen clothing. On the other side of the plaza is the white church with its tall
tower - Parroquia Nuestra Senora de los Dolores inaugurated in 1991. Guatavita also has a theatre - Teatro San Jose and has some good restaurants much like Villa
de Leyva does with a more international flavour, but they seem to close a little early. I was lucky to find something to eat at 7pm, but I did and it was very
good! Photography is fun in Guatavita, of course it's a place to be creative with angles and with the interesting shapes of the buildings. Black and white could
work here!
Lake Guatavita Tour
To the side of the main carpark in the center of Guatavita is the office to book a tour to the Cacique Guatavita Lagoon, tours leave throughout
the day. This is the sacred lake of the Muisca people who offered gold to the Gods in a powerful ritual and the birthplace of the legend of El Dorado - a mythical
tribal chief. The lake was discovered in 1537 and with various unsuccessful attempts to drain the lake to retrieve the gold (very little gold was able to be
retrieved) in 1545, 1580 and between 1898-1929, the lake was designated protected in 1965. From the carpark in Guatavita the bus will take you to the lagoon and of
course bring you back. Once you arrive at the entrance and after paying the fee, a guide will take you through the reserve and up to the lagoon. Along the way you
will stop several times for the guide to tell you the stories and about the events of the Muisca people and how it all relates to the lagoon at the top. During
the walk you can take the opportunity to enjoy the flora beside the pathways.
4am Bus to Bogota
From Guatavita I wanted to get south to
Bogota and I didn't want to get stuck
in rush hour traffic so I took the earliest bus out of Guatavita at 4am, the trip takes 1hr at this time. I did intend from Bogota to head south-east to Villavicencio but the road was closed due to landslides. Instead I headed west to
Girardot - 3hrs 30mins by bus.
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Guatavita dome glows at night, the foreground wall has a religious drawing.
Stone fountain and gardens in the church grounds in Guatavita.
Guatavita, a town built in 1967 in Spanish style that has a lake and sacred lagoon.
Monument to the Muisca people and culture, an indigenous God in Guatavita - Plaza la Cacica.
