2012 DELTA TRAVEL GUIDE - (Page 70)

colomBia Bogota Facts • Best time to go: December to March, mid-June to mid-August • Fun Fact: On Sundays and holidays, Bogota offers cyclists and roller bladders 80 miles of car-free roads and 200 miles of cycle paths • getting there: • • • • • Delta ﬂies from Atlanta and New York (JFK) to Bogota entry documents: Valid passport currency: Colombian peso must-try local Food: Ajiaco, a creamy chicken and potato soup, topped with corn, avocado and capers (served superbly at Casa Vieja in Bogota) Best Buys: Clothing and accessories in leather and wool, straw crafts, reproductions of pre-Columbian gold jewelry, emeralds inFormation please: Tourism Promotion Fund in Colombia, represented in Miami by ProExport-USA—turismocolombia.com Founded by gold-seeking conquistadors in 1538, today Bogota is Colombia’s ﬁrst city in every way. It’s the fourth largest capital with the third highest altitude in South America; a commercial and intellectual hub; home to world-class museums, a charming colonial quarter and a vibrant dining scene. Every visitor’s ﬁrst stop is La Candelaria quarter, whose centerpiece Plaza de Bolivar is framed by grand old mansions, the Cathedral and the San Carlos Palace. Ornate churches, ﬂowering patios, crafts markets, lively cafes and the architectural gem, Teatro Colon—open only to those attending concert, opera or ballet performance—are other attraction musts in this historic district. Bogota’s terriﬁc museums include the fresco-lined Santa Clara Church-Museum, the Museum of Colonial Art, and the Donacion Botero housing the splendid 208-piece collection of artist Fernando Botero who donated 123 pieces of his own work, as well as those of an impressive range of European masters from Giacometti to Dali. And, of course, the must-see museum is the Museo de Oro with more than 14,000 gold pieces from most of Colombia’s major pre-Hispanic cultures. Bogota North is the more upscale area of the city, offering the liveliest scenes for restaurants, classy shopping malls and Sunday ﬂea market, as well as a bevy of ﬁve-star hotels such as the Soﬁtel Bogota Victoria Regia in the Zona Rosa neighborhood, Casa Medina in the Zona G, with Harry’s Restaurant, a beefeaters paradise nearby. From Bogota, a day-trip to the salt mine of Zipaquira and its immense Salt Cathedral 450 ft. below ground is a highlight. Longer rides will take you to neighboring Boyaca state and Villa de Leyva, a gem of a colonial town and well worth an overnight stay. Seaside Cartagena, another colonial treasure, turned fun-ﬁlled resort, is just an hour away by air from the capital. ecuador Facts May to December is the cool dry season in Quito • Fun Fact: Visitors to La Mitad del Mundo (the Middle of the World monument), north of Quito and precisely on the equator, have a memorable photo op: straddle the line marker, and you have one foot in each hemisphere • Best time to go: • getting there: • entry documents: • • Quito There’s an idyllic quality about Quito. Nearly two miles high and almost directly on the equator, the Andean capital stretches along the foothills beneath the Pinchincha Volcano and in its dozens of superb colonial churches—La Compania and the San Francisco Cathedralare standouts—where all that glitters is undoubtedly pure gold. This rich treasury of religious art and architecture was recognized in 1978 when UNESCO proclaimed Quito the ﬁrst city on its World Heritage sites list. And nowadays, all eyes are on Quito’s Old Town, considered the largest, least altered, and—following a $220 million-dollar restoration—the best preserved in the Americas. Nowadays there’s a handful of new, deluxe boutique hotels occupying historic mansions, including the just opened 33-room Casa Gangotena, while the restaurant scene is deliciously interesting, too, with such entries as Theatrum, overlooking Teatro Sucre. In the new town, you’ll ﬁnd the arts very modern at Fundacion Guayasamin and nearby Capilla del Hombre, part of the artistic legacy of world-renowned artist Oswaldo Guyasamin. Of course, any day, except Mondays, is a good time to visit the Museo Nacional del Banco Central, the city’s granddaddy of all museums, but leave time to enjoy the eye-catching Mindalae Museum, dedicated to traditional arts and crafts. Shopping for Ecuador’s ﬁne crafts is part of the fun of being in Quito and guests staying at the Hilton Colon have just to walk out the door and into Ejido Park, where artists display their paintings at the Sunday art market. Day excursions take visitors by car or train to Cotopaxi National Park for a day of hiking, horseback riding and volcano climbing; to the Equatorial Monument located right on Latitude O; to the cloud forest of El Mindo for superb birdwatching; and to the many colorful Indian markets along the Pan American Highway. The most famous market of all is Otavalo, where plaza after plaza overﬂows with excellent weavings of these highland peoples. • • Delta ﬂies from Atlanta to Quito Valid passport currency: U.S. dollar must-try local Food: Smoothies, blended with milk or water and juices from the maracuya (passion fruit), naranjilla (a cross between a tomato and an orange), guanabana (soursop— a sweet white fruit), papaya and mango; on more solid ground: llapingachos, potato and cheese patties Best Buys: Fine handicrafts, ranging from woven ponchos, rugs and wall hangings to hand-knit, ceramics, and straw goods, including the ﬁne and original Panama hat inFormation please: Ecuador Ministry of Tourism—ecuador.travel D70 january 2012 recommend.com http://turismocolombia.com http://ecuador.travel http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2012 DELTA TRAVEL GUIDE

Antigua; Aruba
Nassau
Freeport; Exuma
Bermuda; Bonaire
George Town
Punta Cana; Santiago
Santo Domingo; Grenada
Port-au-Prince; Montego Bay
San Juan
St. Kitts; Saint Lucia
St. Maarten
Providenciales
St. Thomas; St. Croix
Acapulco
Cancun
Cozumel
Guadalajara
Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo
Los Cabos
Mazatlan
Mexico City
Monterrey
Puerto Vallarta
Belize City
San Jose
Liberia
San Salvador
Guatemala City
Roatan
San Pedro Sula
Tegucigalpa
Managua
Panama City
Buenos Aires
Brasilia
Rio de Janeiro
Sao Paulo
Santiago
Bogota
Quito
Georgetown
Lima
Caracas

2012 DELTA TRAVEL GUIDE