Day 3- Next steps (11/7/25)

 

I had a very good night’s sleep, in 3 distinct instalments, each with it’s own very lucid dream. Interestingly, each dream came to a natural conclusion before I woke up. It was like my brain finally making sense of things and allowing me to move on.

I was awake before my alarm. I went and had a coffee in the garden under an umbrella despite the rain. My Uber driver arrived about 15 minutes early and I had only just got out of the shower. I checked out and met Juan, the driver outside. Unlike Ubers in the UK- which are nearly always brand-new cars, Juan’s car made mine look like a Bugatti. He swerved in and out of the Bogotá rush hour traffic, whilst watching a YouTube video about car interiors.
We had a chat about my trip and about city life in general. I couldn’t resist but to ask him in Spanish “A que hora terminas?”, that obligatory question that you have to ask every taxi driver; What time do you finish?

Ubers are not actually legal in Colombia, but they are still the preferred method of moving around the cities here. As such, you have to sit in the passenger seat to keep the pretence going that you are not in an Uber, but in a friend’s car.

The bus station at Bogota Salitre is the largest and most central of the numerous bus stations they have. From here you can get a bus to just about anywhere in this vast country, assuming you don’t mind a 22 hour ride to Cartegena. There is no national railway for passengers, probably due to the mountainous landscape. So, buses and airplanes are the preferred mode of transport.
I had decided to do this journey on the cheap, so I booked a seat on a bus to Villa de Leyva that was not the most direct route. The downside of this was that the journey took about 4 hours instead of the 2-3 hours that the other routes take. The upside was that the journey took us through the mountains and some absolutely stunning views. I took some photos, but they just don’t really capture the breathtaking scenery. We passed through farmland where cows and horses were roaming everywhere, even on the grass verges by the side of the road.

An elderly woman was sitting next to me. I shared my large packet of chicken flavoured crisps with her, and she shared with me her small jar of mixed nuts and dried fruit. We tried to maintain conversation but her accent was very strong and she insisted on talking very fast, despite my polite requests to slow down.
The bus journey was £8 well spent as far as I am concerned.

When we reached Villa de Leyva, she said that she had called a friend who has an unofficial taxi, who would give us a lift to our respective destinations. In a mix up with communication and my lack of small peso notes, he ended up with a much more generous fare than the trip deserved! I was a bit annoyed with myself at first but then figured that I had only spent £12 on getting from my Hostel in Bogotá to my Hostel in Villa de Leyva, it all evens out. I have made a note to myself to make sure that I always carry plenty of small notes in the future.

At Hostel Renacer I discovered a sanctuary of calm. It is set in the hills just outside of town and has incredible views of the Andes and the surrounding farmland. All around the grounds there are various places where you can just sit and enjoy the natural environment. I really need this after the activities of the last few days. I am just going to relax around the Hostel tonight because tomorrow there is some kind of festival and a market going on in town.