Guatavita and El Dorado

The trip that I had been most excited for since I got our plane tickets was this one. It is the origin of the myth that almost everyone is familiar with, El Dorado. El Dorado, or the Golden One, was the idea that brought Spanish conquistadors to the Americas. It drove them violently mad and fueled their cross continent treks to find the sacred site and claim it for the Spanish crown. As one would expect, the myth was more a creation of Spaniards than it was of the natives. The tiny grain of truth in the myth was massively embellished and misconstrued by greedy Europeans looking for what they believed to be rightfully theirs.

This lake is so far up in the mountains the climate is
actually different than the base. 

About an hours drive from Bogota and through a badly maintained dirt road you will reach the Guatavita Park. The drive and early morning start is worth the trip. Entry to the park includes a guided tour to the top of the lake which lasts about an hour and a half. On the way to the top you will learn about the culture of the Muisca including their agriculture, their religious practices, their political structure and other interesting aspects about this not so well known culture. It is important to note here the importance of gold to the Muisca, which is why I recommend visiting the Gold Museum prior to visiting Guatavita. Although the tour includes a visit to a reconstructed ceremonial house with photos of typical gold offerings, it is much better to see them in person at the museum to better understand the quantity and beauty of these offerings.

The connection between "El Dorado" and Guatavita goes back to the earliest days of Spanish conquest and exploration of the Americas. Nobody is sure where the original reference can be found but rumors of a bath of gold began to circulate among the Spanish. Stories of a place so innundated with gold that the locals were bathing in the precious metal caught the imagination of Spaniards looking to enrich themselves and their nation. The stories grew and turned into a tale of a city of gold, where the inhabitants wore, bathed in, ate out of, and used for every other purpose the fantastic amount of gold available in the Americas. The truth of "El Dorado" is found somewhere within these rumors.

As we begun to ascend the mountain, our tour guide stopped to explain a rather deep pass in the mountain called "El Dolor de los Muisca" or the Pain of the Muisca. Committed by Spanish conquistadors looking for gold, it is evidence of just how deep they were in gold mania. When the Spanish arrived to what is now Colombia, they were always looking for the alleged city of "El Dorado." Following rumors and information obtain from the indigienous populations, the Spaniards found their way to Guatavita. The reality of this "city of gold" was different than the gold platted metropolis they had imagined. Guatavita was a lake, high up in the mountains, that held ceremonial and religious importance. It was here were new village leaders would be trained and prepared to lead ceremonies in which the leader would be dressed in gold and descend into the lake water where he would initiate the gold offerings to the gods. This "bathing" of gold may have been what sparked the rumors of gold baths by the Spanish. After the "cacique" or leader, finished offering his gold adornments to the gods, the rest of the village would begin throwing their offerings over their shoulders into the lake.

The current day pueblo of Guatavita that is definitely worth
visiting once you make it back down the mountain.

The Spanish were insistent in their efforts to "reclaim" the gold in the lake and began a process of draining the lake with buckets. After three months of labor and little results, the Spanish gave up on this manner of claiming the gold. Their next idea would give the ravine its name. Using enslaved natives, the Spanish began a project of breaking part of the mountain to drain the lake. The Muisca people were forced to demolish and desecrate their honored lake and pathway to their gods. Draining the lake resulted in thousands of pounds of precious gold and emeralds being removed from the lake. Despite finding thousands of pounds, the Spanish wanted more. The construction of the ravine continued for decades.

Moving forward to the nineteenth and twentieth century, the lake was once again the subject of foriegn attempts to remove its riches. German and English mining companies offered to help Colombia excavate the lake for archaeological and hydrological purposes. This time using underground tunnels to find objects closer to the center of the lake, German and English explorers found even more gold and rare emeralds (Colombian emeralds are considered some of the finest in the world). Still using the cleared land area that the Spanish had created hundreds of years before, the mining expeditions would come to a sudden end. As our tour guide liked to remind us, the earth remembers and recovers. That ravine, once a sign of pain and exploitation, would become the site of a major rock slide.

It was an amazing experience to see where the gold that Colombia is famous for came from and the heartbreaking history of its exploitation during the Conquest. If you can survive the drive and the hike, I highly recommend it. It gives you a totally new appreciation for the Muisca way of life and the meaning of gold in Colombian history.

La Candelaria- Bogota: Part 1

La Casa del Marques de San Jorge (Bogota, Colombia),
currently housing the Colombian Museum of Archeology.

I just got back from visiting my second home, Colombia, a country I have visited numerous times, but have yet to know completely. This trip was dedicated to introducing the boyfriend to family and the iconic sights of the capital, Bogota. Even though we spent the majority of the trip visiting places I am familiar with, there were opportunities to know brand new sites and gain an even deeper knowledge of this country I love so much.

If there is one place to visit when you are in Bogota, Colombia it must be La Candelaria district. Located in the north part of the city, at the foot of the holy site Monserate, this colonial era area is the birth place of Santafe de Bogota. When you arrive, you must complete your journey by walking. Touring the area in a car or taxi is firstly difficult because many parts are now pedestrians only, and secondly, unsatisfying because the beauty of the district lies in admiring it's architecture, the historical plaques, and unique features.

Our first day in the city was spent in La Candelaria, my favorite part of the city. We took a taxi and began walking to our first destination, El Museo de Archeologia (the Museum of Archaeology). It is located within the historical Casa de San Jorge (house of San Jorge). The house was purchased by the Marque Jorge Miguel Lozano, a creole aristocrat, in 1784. A merchant by trade, the Marque Jorge had developed a significant level of influence in the Spanish court. His descendants would play a large role in the independence of Colombia. Today, the house is home to a collection of colonial and native art. The deceivingly small house actually masks a large interior and courtyard. Upon entering, you are invited to ascend to the second floor to a large hall hosting colonial art brought over by Spanish conquistadors. The majority of the art is religious and reminds visitors of how conquistadors tried to recreate Spain in the New World and wielded Catholicism as a blunt weapon upon native populations. The majority of the collection in the museum is dedicated to native art and artifacts. The layout is organized by type of artifacts (religious, funerary, food preparation etc.) but also by tribe (Tayrona, Muisca, etc). This organization accurately represents the diversity of the native populations and dispels the misconception that indigenous South Americans were a homogeneous group. Rather the collection highlights the variety of design, techniques, paints, and practices by these unique groups.



Iconic and beautiful, La Balsa de Oro. This intricate
representation of the cacique on his journey to the heavens
symbolizes Muisca mastery of gold and the riches of Colombia.

After this museum, we went walking through the cobblestone streets to make our way to the infamous and original Museum of Gold. Another must see site, this museum hosts among the largest collection of Pre-Columbian gold in the Americas. A museum which is constantly changing and innovating its presentation, the current set up is definitely among its best that I've seen. In almost every one of my visits to my second home country, I have made the visit to this museum. This time I was pleasantly surprised by a new addition to the exhibit. The first section of the museum is dedicated to explaining the craft of metallurgy and the principles of mixing metals. By understanding the delicate and complex art and science, one has a better understanding of how advanced the Muisca society where prior to European contact. There are even some techniques are still not completely understood by archeologists and historians. After this section, the museum begins to present gold pieces according to culture and region. These rooms are dedicated to not only gold but wood crafts, jewelry, and other crafts that are unique to the different tribes that participated in the gold trade. However, the true highlight of the museum is found in the third section. Here you find the singular signature and iconic gold artifact that is instantly recognizable as the representative of Colombian gold, La Balsa de Oro. This piece has captured public and academic interest for years and still commands visitors to appreciate its detail and beauty.

Lastly, we continued our day in the historical district by walking to the equally important Museo Nacional. This former prison that dates back to the early days of the Revolution, holds more treasures of the nation aside from gold. Here visitors will find the proud history of Colombia on display in all its glory and forms. The exhibit begins by acknowledging and recognizing the native people of Colombia and the complex society in existence before Spaniards ever reached the shores of Cartagena. This exhibit then flows into a collection of Spanish artifacts from the earliest colonies. It includes daily household objects to religious icons to gold painted and emerald covered crucifixes and instruments. It is hard to deny the beauty and passion in Catholic art and in Colombia they are present everywhere. However, the focus of this museum is in the revolutionary era collection. Halls are filled to the ceiling with revolutionary paintings of battles and revolutionaries. Simon Bolivar and Francisco Paula de Santander, friends and rivals forever remembered together, are ever present in this museum and remind visitors how influential both men remain to this day in Latin America. The last floor of the museum focuses on Colombia in the modern age and has an entire hall dedicated to reevaluating how our history is remembered. It encourages visitors to confront how multilayered Colombian (and as an extent Latin American) history. It is not the history of one group or religion or culture. Colombia is a mix of African, European, Indigenous, and even Arab influences. What we call Colombian is the result of thousands of years of encounters, not all done in peace. However, the Colombia of today is culmination of these events, the good and the bad, and this museum aims to help Colombians understand the past in order to move forward.

This was the first of our two days in La Candelaria district and the first of a week in Colombia. More posts will follow and explore the history and beauty of the country I call my second, but equally important, home.