El Cocuy National Park, Boyacá (and a little lamb)

Posted on January 10, 2012 by
Sunset Cocuy National Park

Sunrise at Lagunillas, El Cocuy National Park

A few months ago I jumped at the chance to go on a 5-day trekking adventure in Colombia’s El Cocuy National Park in the Department of Boyacá (about a 10 hour bus ride from Bogotá). It was hard, it was grueling, and the food was most definitely not the high point, but having the opportunity to kick off 2012 in the middle of one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to was truly amazing.

Laguna Grande de la Sierra seen from the top of Pan de Azúcar

On the evening of December 29th, Juanma, Amy and I took off with Carlos our gung-ho mountaineering guide from Caminatas Deportivas (check out his Facebook page here and take advantage of his day hikes around Bogotá) . I knew it would be hard and it was – we endured the nerve-wracking 10 hour bus ride (both ways), a 17 hour hike on the first day, horseback riding up and down steep mountains, camping in extremely cramped and cold conditions, snow trekking, regular trekking, climbing and too much canned food, among other things, but we survived to tell the tale. Hallelujah!

Every time I reached the top of a mountain, out of breath and exhausted, a new wave of energy swept through me as my eyes met the most breathtaking views I’ve ever seen in my life. Snow capped mountains, turquoise-colored lakes, sweeping landscapes and beauty  in every direction.

El Púlpito del Diablo/The Devil's Pulpit

Should you choose to visit – and I highly recommend you do – there are several options for accommodation. If you aren’t down for camping, the Hacienda La Esperanza is a great spot. Its hosts, Don Marco and his wife Astrid, are incredibly kind and know the area well. Their home is a cozy and very rustic 100-year old house, Astrid’s cooking is exactly what you need after a long hike, and there is electricity which is nice – especially if you want to take a hot shower and recharge your phone or camera. You can opt to get to the snow-capped mountains or lakes by foot, horseback or jeep.

And now for the best part – a little lamb.

As I mentioned, food was not the reason I chose this trip but there was one moment where I did get very excited about food and that’s when Don Marco Arturo’s arrieros (farm hands/cowboys/trail guides) carried a whole lamb into the courtyard for butchering. Don Marco happens to raise award-winning sheep and his guests often have the pleasure of enjoying a little lamb once in a while.

Lamb at Hacienda La Esperanza, Cocuy, Boyacá

So when I saw the lamb I thought: should I ride up to the Laguna Grande de la Sierra for two nights of camping and more canned beans, or should I  fake an injury and stay at La Esperanza eating lamb – lots of lamb. Fortunately, some of the lamb was going to be prepared for us anyways on the day we returned…so, that would be my reward for climbing, trekking and riding around like a pioneer woman.

Laguna Grande de la Sierra, El Cocuy National Park, Boyacá

Laguna Grande de la Sierra

We arrived back at the Hacienda two days later and were greeted by Astrid and a glass of refreshing aguapanela with mint. Shortly after that I was having some of the most delicious lamb ever – and not just because I was starving and absolutely done with canned food for a long, long time. It was juicy and tender and I could have eaten the entire leg. (Lunch at the Hacienda costs $10,000)

Lamb, papa chorreada (boiled potatoes covered in a cheesy tomato sauce - very typical), rice and spinach casserole

And that was that. We hopped on a bus to Bogotá and now we’re back and it all feels like a dream. Someday I’d like to do it all over again and I’d only make a few adjustments – a bigger tent, no 17 hour hikes, a cook to prepare real food while I’m out trekking, and definitely more of Astrid and Don Marco’s hospitality and lamb, of course…

haciendalaesperanza@gmail.com

Contact #’s: (57 1) 310 209 9812 / 313 473 0990

Beauty surrounds us. -Rumi

Posted in Boyacá, Colombia, Travel | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

TEJO: Colombia’s national sport

Posted on December 20, 2011 by

A couple of weeks ago I went to an end of the year party and we didn’t go dancing or riding around town in a chiva. Even better. We went to play Tejo. This Colombian sport involves hurling a heavy piece of metal towards a clay target laced with packets of gunpowder – yes, tiny explosives.

I dare say tejo is now one of my favorite sports. For one, it’s ancient. Indigenous people from the departments of Boyacá and Cundinamarca have been playing the game (then known as turmequé) for over 500 years, only back then they used heavy discs made of solid gold called ”zepguagoscua”.  And then came those sweet old Spaniards with their horses, diseases and gunpowder. After that, small explosives were added to the game. And then there’s beer, beer, and more beer. This sport has fun written all over it.

Aim at the little pink triangles filled with gunpowder!

Did I mention there’s a lot of beer? It would be entirely too much work for a waitress to be taking beer orders every minute so instead the solution is to bring out an entire basket. We were a big group so it actually did make a lot of sense. Most places don’t charge you for the lane – as long as you buy a basket of beer, the lane is yours. Although drinking beer goes hand in hand with playing tejo, this game actually does require a lot of skill and practice. Only three of us (yes, I was one of them) actually hit the target and were rewarded with a small explosion.

And then there’s the food – this is a food blog after all. However, I wouldn’t say food is the highlight of this outing but one does work up an appetite. We ordered an assortment of boiled potatoes, plantains, chicken, beef, and morcilla and we devoured it all with generous spoonfuls of ají to spice it all up, and washed down with beer, of course.

You can play tejo in the city and in the countryside, outdoors and indoors, and any way you  choose, I bet you’ll have a great time. Below are two videos: one is in Spanish and seems to be from the 70′s and the other is a Lonely Planet video that shows a slightly more professional setting for playing (there’s not a beer in sight).

tejo, turmequé, boyacá

Statue of an indigenous man playing tejo in the municipality of Turmequé, Boyacá

Posted in Bogotá, Boyacá, Colombia | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

MASA: fresh out of the oven in Bogotá

Posted on December 5, 2011 by

MASA opened on a very auspicious day – 11/11/11 – and is now offering such an overwhelming array of baked goods that you might just end up overeating – it’s very possible and I say that from experience. It’s impossible to not want to try everything.

Silvana is a CIA-trained chef (that’s the Culinary Institute of America) who returned to Colombia after a stint in New York city to open this spot with her sister Mariana. The place has only been open a few weeks and has already been nominated for Best New Restaurant by vive.in.

Breakfast and brunch are perhaps my favorite meals.  An assorted bread basket, an airy frittata with asparagus, an egg, bacon and cheese sandwich, a fresh fruit salad, coffee and juice – it’s the best way to start the day. As far as the juices go, I’ve become a huge fan of the Chicha de Patilla – watermelon juice, with chunks of watermelon and a secret ingredient.

 Then lunch: a warm bowl of soup, a sandwich, a salad? So far everything I’ve tried has been fresh and satisfying, including the take-away salad I picked up last week for lunch. Or the spinach soup, open-faced smoked salmon sandwich, and sinful chocolate cake I had the week before that.

And then dessert. You’ll notice something at Masa – that little voice in the back of your head whispering ever so softly: chocolate chocolate chunk cookies, home made doughnuts, a giant slice of chocolate cake, carrot cake, almond croissant, pistachio tart, cupcakes? I don’t know about you, but the little voice in the back of my head is very, very persuasive.

Aside from the food, the space is warmly decorated with a communal table and ample covered outdoor seating with a heater so you can watch the activity in Bogotá’s Zona G. The carefully selected music  playing in the background also lends an important touch to the making of a really welcoming spot.

I see a bright future for Masa and the young girls at the helm of this operation, and I for one look forward to being around as they perfect every detail, a finger-licking work in progress, and add to Bogotá’s growing, diverse food scene.

Calle 70 # 4-83

Tel: 211.0899

www.somosmasa.com

http://www.facebook.com/somosmasa

Posted in Bogotá, Desserts, Eats | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Arepas in Tena, Colombia

Posted on November 24, 2011 by

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting a very small town called Tena, about an hour and a half outside of Bogotá (via la Mesa). There isn’t much to see in Tena but the surroundings are beautiful, the weather is warm and yellow corn arepas are cooked on a slab of rock. Good stuff.

Posted in Colombia, Eats | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Tropical Passion – chocolate + tropical fruit

Posted on October 13, 2011 by

I finally got a taste of Tropical Passion’s gorgeous bites of chocolate and tropical fruit  last week at the annual Feria de Gastronomía here in Bogotá. 

I bought a mango one to try and began nibbling on the top part when the stand attendant made a wise suggestion – eat the whole thing, please, in one bite. Of course, that’s the way to go if you want the heavenly experience of smooth chocolately filling and slightly tart fruit leather melting in your mouth. Oh wow…..heaven.

TROPICAL PASSION was definitely the highlight of the entire fair. Below are the different gift boxes available directly from Tropical Passion or from their distributors.

Tropical flavors include: Mango, Mora, Guanábana, Papaya, Tangerine, Guava, Coconut, and Pineapple, among others.

Telephone: (571) 533 8263
Cel:  (311)  531 8590
Email: info@tropicalpassion.com.co

Also sold at other locations listed here on Tropical Passion’s website.

Posted in Bogotá, Colombia, Eats | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Hearts of Palm with an attitude

Posted on October 7, 2011 by

Posted in Colombia, Humor | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Lechona: When pigs go to heaven

Posted on September 26, 2011 by

Lechona at a friend's birthday party...

Lechona is by far one of my favorite Colombian dishes. It comes from the Department of Tolima and involves a whole pig – stuffed with rice, yellow peas and lots of bits of porky goodness. It is my go-to hangover meal, but i’d eat it on any given day. As with everything, there is good lechona and there is bad lechona.

I usually get mine at Carulla. Yes, I can just hear some of you gasping in horror. Carulla? The Colombian version of Publix or Kroger or Tesco or Cole’s? In other words, just your run-of-the-mill supermarket. Yes, but if you ask me, they have a pretty damn good lechona.  I don’t know who makes it or where it comes from but it’s good, not too greasy and you don’t have to look at the piggie’s head. Even Don Juan magazine agrees with me…

The lechona’s skin is crispy and delicious so long as you don’t let them microwave it – otherwise it’ll become chewy. Ask the server to heat it on the griddle and it’ll be perfect.

There are tons of places where you can get lechona and many are delicious, but convenience is key especially with Bogotá traffic. Some say that the best lechona is at the football stadium, some go to far away neighborhoods to choose from hoards of lechona hawkers, but chances are you have a Carulla  within walking distance and you can taste some of Tomila’s pride without any hassle.

There are too many Carulla’s to list addresses but if you ask around I’m sure you’ll find one nearby…

Posted in Bogotá, Colombia, Eats, Gastronomy | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments