Another Day in Colombia's Wonderful Colonial City in the Mountains

Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017--Villa de Leyva

Breakfast at my hotel is served on a covered rooftop deck with a view of the mountains.  It included a glass of freshly made strawberry water, a plate of sliced papaya and banana, a plate of scrambled eggs, two rather sweet rolls, butter, and a cup of freshly made hot chocolate.  (I could hear her grinding the chocolate beans with one of those wooden pestles like they use in Mexico.)

Speaking of chocolate, this town has a Museum of Chocolate.  Actually, it is a commercial establishment with two locations--a very fancy lunchroom serving meals as well as selling all things chocolate and a small chocolate shop on the main square.

It was cool, so I zipped the legs onto my pants I had been wearing as shorts and put on a flannel long-sleeve shirt to go out exploring again. Today, I managed to find so much more in the city--THREE more squares I had not found yesterday (two cobbled and one with greenery), another church, and lots of shops, restaurants, and hotels.  I found a wonderful bakery with a lady in the back working on fresh dough for something else to go into the oven.  (Too often today bakeries everywhere buy their dough already made and formed and just pop it in the oven.  Even in Paris the last couple of times I visited there, it was hard to find a bakery making their own breads!)

The day warmed enough for me to return to the hotel to zip off the legs again and change into a short sleeve shirt.  Then I headed out of town.  There are a number of things to see in the area, but without a car they are mostly too far out to reach.  But one of the sights that interested me is the Gaudiesque La Casa de Terracota.  It is a unique free form home made from stucco and ceramic tiles and is only 2km out of town.  Although the roads right to the front of it are private, I could still get good views. It is not open to the public except for people taking classes that they teach there. That home and other indications I found (a doctor practicing Chinese medicine, a person with an herb garden who leads yoga classes, etc.) make VdL seem even more free-spirited and special.

There is a great place to hut for fossils and with exhibits of what has been found there and another place with pre-historic stone phallic sculptures and a stone circle, but they were too far down the road for walking.  As it was, I discovered when I got back to the hotel that I had sunburned on the trip.

I spent the afternoon preparing for Bogota tomorrow.   I figured out how to get from the bus station when I arrive to the apartment I have rented by taking one bus and then walking about 15 minutes.  I also researched buses going from Bogota to Medellin, since it will be best for me to buy my ticket for next Tuesday when I arrive tomorrow rather than waiting until the last minute.

The room started feeling cooler, and I heard the wind.  When I went back out, there were several people in the main square flying kites.  It is a perfect place for it with plenty of room and no wires.  I watched for a while, then I wandered some more streets I hadn't explored yet.  I really love this city.

Eventually, I returned to where I had dinner last night.  I ate an empanada for an appetizer, then I got another arepa "sandwich"--a sliced corn patty filled with cheese and seasoned shredded beef (tonight vs. the chicken I had last night), and toasted on a charcoal fire until the cheese was melted, the meat was warm, and the bread crispy.  Finally, it was spread with butter and served hot with a big bowl of salsa!

I've organized things tonight for the trip tomorrow--putting away clothes from today and getting out clothes for tomorrow, plugging in my Kindle and my phone to charge, etc.  I will need to get up earlier than usual so that I can try to arrive in Bogota in mid-afternoon instead of during rush hour.
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I finished reading another book--The Best Man by Richard Peck.  It is actually categorized as adolescent literature, but so much young adult fiction is now popular even with adults.  I read a good review of it somewhere--probably in TIME or Entertainment Weekly where I read book reviews regularly and added it to my list of books to download from the library.  It's been on a wait list for months, but it was available recently.  I enjoyed the story which is told from the point of view of a young boy from the time he is 6 until he is about 14.  I laughed a number of times.  One of the first stories where he is dressed in too-tight blue velvet pants to be the ring-bearer for a wedding, splits the rear open trying to go down the first step and eventually has to go down the steps backwards with his rear showing through the tear is hilarious.  Anyway, it is a quick read and seems pretty true to what life is like in elementary and middle schools today.  I gave it 4 stars out of 5.