Treasures of Colombia – day 3

We left Colombia’s National Monument town of Villa de Leyva to head back to Bogotá, which we will be visiting tomorrow. Our less jet-lagged bodies are now enabling us to appreciate the terrain along the way. It has surprised us how mountainous but fertile the landscapes are. Mountain peaks roll down steeply to green fields scraped out of rough and craggy land, interspersed at times (some might consider unfortunately) with polytunnels. Colombia is rich in a diverse range of fruit and vegetables, and we witnessed many workers toiling in the fields. Colombia’s temperature is fairly stable throughout the year, which is beneficial for its fruit and vegetables, many varieties unique to the country.

Our first stop was the Boyacá bridge. At first sight some may not recognise the significance of this site.

The Battle of Boyaca on the 7 August 1819 was a decisive battle that ensured the success of Simon Bolivar’s campaign to liberate New Granada (modern Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Venezuela) and is considered the beginning of the independence of the north of South America from the Spanish colonial rule. It was interesting to see that in addition to the Colombian soldiers there were troops from the British Legion (England, Ireland and Scotland) in this battle and the independence campaign in general. Unsurprisingly, the 7 August is a public holiday in Colombia.

Our next stop of the day was the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá, which was originally a salt mine. Millions of tons of rock salt had been mined at this site over the centuries. Miners had, in the past, carved out a sanctuary in which to pray for their safekeeping. This was followed by the creation of an underground church in the 1930s, and by the 1950s a bigger construction which was to become the Salt Cathedral. By the 1990s concerns were raised that the cathedral was located in a mine still active. Ah, those old health and safety worries putting a dampener on things eh? The mine was closed.

However, a competition followed to build a new cathedral taking safety measures into consideration. The winner was architect Roswell Garavito Pearl who brought in structural changes, recreating a new cathedral 200 feet underneath the previous one. Adaptions were made to the corridors carved out by the miners. In their place came 14 stations of the cross (many with kneeling positions carved from granite); a dome; and three naves. A further four huge columns represent the four evangelists.

The salt cathedral was not what I had expected, thinking the interior would be white. Instead it was predominantly black caused by the impurities of the salt which are removed when processed for industry or consumption. However, one can only wonder at the lengths the architect and workers had gone to to create this underground monument, which has a capacity for 8,400 worshippers. Services are held each Sunday. Today, the mine comprises 200 metres of tunnels. But mining techniques have moved on apace elsewhere and fracking is the order of the day. The cathedral also assists the town as it is a popular tourist attraction.

One of the 14 Stations of the Cross, each carved from salt

The Dome

The finale of this enlightening day has to be the viewing of a mural of this year’s Tour de France winner Egan Bernal, who grew up in the town to Zipaquirá, no doubt riding its mountainous countryside. Twenty two year old Bernal is the first Colombian to win this gruelling 3,409km event. Well done to him.

Copyright: Words and photos Sue Barnard & John Cruse 2019