About Columbia

Columbia is a country that is noted for its natural beauty, great tropical beaches and historical sites, and the Bogota club is noted for its hospitality. Bogota is the capital city, founded in 1536.  It has about 8,000,000 residents.  Located in the Andes Mountains at 8,500 feet of altitude, it has year-round spring-like weather.  It offers many sights, including 42 museums such as the famous gold museum. 

Further down this page see endorsements from people who recently visited there.

UPDATE: Also see John Whaley's article he wrote after returning from Columbia, and the articles on Cartagena and tips for traveling to Columbia.

Movie: If you click on the link below and then go to the middle of the page you will see a section entitled Vive Colombia, and under that Vive Colombia (Ingles). Click on the link under that last label and you will get an English language video about Colombia. 
www.colombiavivewa.org

Itinerary for Bogota, Columbia 

Revised 5/21 from ED Cuqui (with flight information from Ray Enstam):

Monday June 4th
Group arrival at El Dorado Airport. 

Continental flight #2448 from Dallas Love Field to Houston International (IAH) leaving at 11:30 AM on June 4. 

From Houston: Continental #883 leaving at 3:50 pm, arriving in Bogota (BOG) at 8:50 PM.

If you are taking another flight, plan to be there by 8:50 PM to meet the group at the airport; let Ray Enstam know what flight you will be taking. Hosts will be there to welcome you.

Tuesday June 5th - Free morning
The hosts will take the ambassadors going to Cartagena to the Travel Agency La Marina at Hotel Andes Plaza between 9 -12 am to pay for their trip. 

6:00 - 9 pm - Welcoming Ceremony, Pot luck dinner and Colombian folkloric program. 
Place: Carrera 11 Bis # 124 A 11 . 

Wednesday June 6th 
8 am to 7 pm - Bus trip, Visiting Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá 
Visit Plant Crown Colombiana (all cans for beverages)
And Roses plantation in Tocancipa.
Lunch at Universidad La Sabana
Visit to New town of Guatavita 

Thursday June 7th - Bogota
10:00 am -Visit to Museo de Oro (Gold Museum) 
11:00 am -Visit to Churches on the 7th street
11:30 am -Walking to Plaza de Bolivar (Bolivar square)
Lunch with hosts on your own 
2:00 pm -Botero Museum (Fernando Botero, painter and sculptor) 
3:30 pm -Visit La Guaca, pre-Colombian jewelry plant 

Friday June 8th
7:30 am to 8 pm - Bus trip to Boyacá State 
Visiting Boyacá Bridge, City of Tunja and Town of Villa de Leyva. 
Lunch at El Duruelo, # 1 hotel in town 

Saturday June 9th 
Saturday June 9th Free day to spend with hosts 
9:30 am - Visit to Emerald Store Galeria Minas de Colombia
10:00 am - Climb to Moserrate by cable car or to the highest building of Bogota called Colpatria; the view is marvellous - see the city from the 48th floor
12:00 - Visit to Corferias, “La feria de las colonias” (all regions of Colombia showing their products, services, state projects, tourist plans and all of these with a festival environment.
6-9 pm - Farewell party Dancing and Pot luck dinner - Auditorio Edificio Calle 47 Carrera 23 # 47-51 third floor.

Sunday June 10 
10:00 am - Visit Colpatria view point (if you didn´t climb to Monserrate)
12:00 - Visit Los toldos de San Pelayo in Usaquen (flea market)
1:30 pm - Hacienda Las Margaritas with hosts to have lunch Restaurant with International Show (optional) 

Monday 11 to Thursday 14 

Optional Trip to Cartagena 3 days 2 nights 

The price for this optional tour will be US $396 for a double, US $447 for a single.  This includes round trip airfare, airport transfers, hotel, 3 full meals per day, open bar, snacks, taxes, beach towels and tents, discotek, etc. The fee will be payable our first morning in Columbia to a local travel agent - cash or credit card.  

There are also several optional city tours costing 25, 35 and 50 pesos. The best is the 50 pesos because it includes the Old City. The van carries six people so the price is about 9 pesos per person (US $4.60 per person). 

This extension leaves Bogota on June 11 and returns on June 13th. The Bogota club will provide an extra day of hosting upon return from Cartagena.

Return Flight (June 11th or June 14th)

Continental flight #882 leaves Bogota at 8:00 AM arriving in Houston at 1:08 PM. 

Continental flight #2923 leaves Houston at 3:30 PM arriving in Dallas Love Field at 4:37 PM. 

Check flight times before leaving to be sure they have not changed.

Top

BUS TRIPS INFORMATION

Tour to Bogota surroundings, Wednesday June 6th 
The beautiful savannah or plain, on which Bogotá rests, has splendid landscapes, a variety of climates, fertile lands for agriculture, flower plantations and cattle. This day you will be visiting:

SALT CATHEDRAL In Zipaquira. Located just 52 Km from Bogotá, with a spectacular design, the Salt Cathedral constitutes an impressive engineering work that covers 8,500 square meters underground. Inside are the 14 Stations of the Cross and a huge cross over the High Altar, carved into the rock and lit from the back.

JAIME DUQUE PARK. It is a recreational and educational park. It has a giant relief map of Colombia that shows the main cities and its geography. The symbol of the park is a big copper monument of God’s hand holding the world. The money paid there goes to support an orphan institution.

GUATAVITA: One hour from Jaime Duque Park. A pretty village that in 1968 replaced the original one, buried under the Tominé Dam. 

Tour to Boyacá State
BOYACA BRIDGE: The most significant memories of the struggle for Colombian Independence are recalled amongst the green fields, the blue sky and the fresh breeze of Boyacá State. This is the scene of one of the most decisive battles for Independence.

TUNJA: An ancient colonial city, capital of the state. Dating from 1540. You will have a look at the main plaza. 

VILLA DE LEYVA: Is truly a treasure, built for the recreation of viceroy and grandees. Its climate is almost unbelievably mild and pleasant. There are nearly as many hotels and Inns as there are houses. The discovery of fossils is common in Villa de Leyva and its vicinity.

About Columbia

A Message from Colombia

by Cuqui y Cesar Ardila, The Friendship Force of Bogota, Colombia

(in Spanish on FFI website; translated by Ray Enstam)

We have had the opportunity to host a great number of clubs that visit Colombia for the first time. The truth is that in the great majority of the cases they return to their countries quite amazed. First, because Colombia sells itself - the hard part is convincing the ambassadors to get into the airplane. And secondly, because in many cases the image that those who do not know this country have of it is so distorted and out-of-date, the positive impact of the contact with reality is even greater. As in many cases, the reverse face of a weakness is a strength.

For this reason, our club has to make an effort to be proactive in communication, pointing out our assets and talents, but without omitting the problems and challenges of this country. It is true that we cannot control international opinion, and it would be wrong to deny the dark side of our reality. But we can do a better job in guiding the clubs of the Friendship Force towards a richer and more sophisticated understanding of the complex Colombian reality.

When we visit a club we take with us the friendly face of Colombia, one that speaks to them of a happy people who are making progress in spite of the difficulties, the one of those Colombians who arise every morning with a smile on their face and determination in their heart to build a better country.

Top

These Clubs Enjoyed Bogota

Editor’s Note: Both The Friendship Force of Bogota and Cali, Colombia are extraordinary clubs in a country with a history of political unrest, but as an ambassador you will never see anything but smiling faces and magnificent countryside. The
following excerpts from recent ambassadors portray a very different picture than those you might have seen in the media.

********

From: "Heide & Helmut Suhren" <hhsuhren@ewetel.net>
Date: January 4, 2007 9:24:47 AM CST
To: <rubyreviere@earthlink.net>
Cc: <ffardila@cable.net.co>
Subject: Impressions about our outbound exchange FF Bogotá

Dear Ruby, (ED from Houston)

With this e-mail you get a message from an unknown person and for you an unknown Friendship Force Club. Let me introduce myself and the club I represent. My name is Helmut Suhren; I´m the president of the Friendship Force of Varel / Germany. My wife Heide and I were hosted from the couple Cuqui and Cesar Ardila during our exchange to Bogotá in the time from 13th to 19th of Oct. 2006.

Cuqui and Cesar asked me to write you my impressions about this exchange, because we were one of the last groups that visited the FF-club in Bogotá.

Let me start with a sentence about our hosts: All the members of our group of 14 ambassadors had wonderful hosts. All were very satisfied and all the members of our group felt very welcome. The Bogotá Club organized a great program, very varied and all the highlights were happening really fast. We not only saw the City; also other places in the mountains were visited and we really had not much time to relax, but on the other hand nobody would like to miss any place or anything. (Our slogan: We can relax at home!) 

We always had the feeling of safety because in the country is a good presence of well-armed police and army.

Of course the food sometimes was a little strange for us but nobody has had serious problems with the food; all was delicious!

When we sum up this exchange: It was a great exchange and we are looking forward to the re-visit of our new friends from Bogotá next year in Germany.

Our club always would go to Columbia again.

When you want to have more information, please feel free to ask.

In friendship
Helmut Suhren

Top

********

Other comments:

"Enjoy Colombia!

Take an exchange to Bogota! Go on, you don’t know what you are missing when you are influenced by the misleading bad press this city often receives. Of course, Colombia has some problem—but they do not extend to the Friendship Force members and their homes and activities. Although many of the reports of trouble are headlined “Bogotá,” the areas involved in any unrest are far, far from the capital. In today’s political environment it seems that a trip to Colombia might well be just as safe as going to London, for instance.

If you haven’t met any Colombians, you may not know that they are right up there with the warmest, most hospitable people in the world. They sing, dance and laugh at the drop of a hat—and sometimes all at the same time. Their music is incredible and the dance is exciting and inviting— you’ll discover rhythm you never knew you possessed. The food is wonderful, the land is beautiful and there is much to do and see.

During a visit to a restaurant in the countryside, we were given a wonderful round of applause when the patrons found that we had come to their country to find out for ourselves what Colombians are and what they stand for— amazingly touching. "

— Author unidentified

********

“You have an opportunity to include these “faces” on your growing list of Friendship Force friends. After all, it’s to countries such as Colombia we are especially called so that we can reach across those barriers which divide us.”
— Bobbie & Robin Mulholland, FF Adelaide, Australia

********

“During the 14 days in Colombia, we had no problem with safety . . . Our friends know the danger. They protected us and we always felt very safe. We recommend an exchange with Friendship Force Colombia. It will be an unforgettable experience that will be very different from other exchanges.”
— Günter Lohse, FF Kiel, Germany

********

“The welcome party was at an outdoor restaurant owned by friends we had met on our first visit. Wherever we went both in Bogota and Cali we had such a warm welcome especially when we were seen for a second time. One of our members, who had traveled on most of the club exchanges since our club started, said that it was the most exiting and welcoming exchange she had experienced.
— Brian and Ann Peters, FF Derbyshire, UK 

Top