How to Bogotá

How to Bogotá and Me in 2023

July 15, 2023 // 4 Comments

Well, it’s been nearly 4 years. When I arrived back in Bogotá last December, I thought about starting to blog again, but thought I needed to do a long post to bring people up to date with everything that’s happened since I last posted. It’s been a lot. So I procrastinated, even though I felt I did want to write on here again. This morning, I decided I’m just [more]

Things to do in Cali: my trip to Colombia’s salsa capital

October 18, 2019 // 3 Comments

Arrebato Caleno Salsa School - things to do in Cali Colombia

I’ve visited a few lovely places in Colombia outside of Bogota. I’ve been to Cartagena FOUR times (I’ll never get tired of that city :)), Santa Marta, La Guajira, Villa de Leyva, Paipa, Medellin and a few rural areas and pueblos around Bogota. I’d wanted to visit Cali, the Colombian salsa capital, for a while, and this month I finally went! View of Cerro de [more]

Choachi: an undiscovered trail for hiking near Bogota

August 8, 2019 // 0 Comments

Choachi cloud forest, Colombia I grew up in London, so I wasn’t much of a hiker before moving to Colombia. But if you’ve lived in Bogota, you’ll know that restless feeling of wanting to escape the city once in a while. Bogota is surrounded by lush green countryside, several different ecosystems due to the varying altitude, and wildlife-spotting opportunities. [more]

Horse riding near Bogota: an adventure in La Calera [Updated 2024]

July 24, 2019 // 0 Comments

Born and raised in London and with family roots there that go back many generations, city-living is part of my family’s DNA. Horse riding on Saturdays in London when I was a child involved walking around a large sandpit in circles. Needless to say, I lost interest in that hobby fairly quickly. Nowadays I’m living in Bogota, another fast-paced big city, and [more]

Updates to How to Bogotá (and a chance to buy me a digital cup of coffee :))

July 11, 2019 // 5 Comments

Naomi drinking Colombian coffee from Amor Perfecto

After living mostly in Bogota between 2013 and 2018, I left the city last year in March for London and then Spain and only returned last month (in June 2019). So other than the odd update here and there, the blog has been a little neglected these past 18 months, so I’ve made it my mission to start going through and gradually updating the blog’s content [more]

Magic in Colombia: From Gabriel Garcia Marquez to Ghost Stories

July 9, 2019 // 3 Comments

I first started associating Colombia with magical realism during my A-level English literature class at school in 2002. Before Shakira and Sofia Vergara stole his thunder, Gabriel García Márquez (or “Gabo”, as he is affectionately known here) was probably the most famous Colombian in the world. He was a Nobel Laureate and one of the founding fathers of magical [more]

Close encounters with hummingbirds at the Observatorio de Colibries

July 16, 2018 // 2 Comments

Great Sapphirewing Observatorio de Colibries hummingbird observatory Bogota

I entered Victoria Lizarralde’s garden, also known as the Observatorio de Colibries (Hummingbird Observatory), and heard the unmistakeable ‘buzz’ of a hummingbird whizzing past my ear. On a cool, damp Sunday morning I had joined a small tour group led by Andes Ecotours and travelled 45 minutes up into the mountains from Bogotá. We headed for a wooden shelter [more]

Bogota’s La Macarena neighborhood

July 10, 2018 // 0 Comments

For my second post in a series about Bogota’s neighborhoods, I’m writing about the colourful La Macarena. When you’re doing your research about where to live in Bogota, La Macarena is one of those neighborhoods which will come up again and again, along with Chapinero, Rosales, Chico and Parque de la 93. Just up the hill from Bogota’s Centro [more]

Quinta Camacho neighborhood

May 22, 2018 // 12 Comments

Bogota neighborhoods where to live and stay in Bogota Quinta Camacho

I’ve decided to add a section to the blog devoted exclusively to Bogota’s neighborhoods. In each post I’ll talk about what I like about each neighborhood and what they have to offer. I’m starting off the series with my favorite neighborhood: Quinta Camacho. Quinta Camacho neighborhood: Between Calle 67 and Calle 72, and Carrera 7 and Avenida [more]

Things to do in Bogotá when it’s raining

May 15, 2018 // 9 Comments

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to state that Bogotá has received more than its fair share of rain over the last month or two. The wettest times of year in the Colombian Andean region are, roughly, from April to June and September to November (though it’s not an exact science!). During these months it’s common for the day to start out sunny and [more]

Bogotanos: Humans of Bogotá

April 16, 2018 // 1 Comment

It is often said that you can learn much about a place by getting to know the local people. The natives of some big world cities have a reputation for being cold and unfriendly. This is not the case in Bogotá. In most cases, Bogotanos or rolos will try to be helpful. The main difficulty will be the language barrier if you don’t speak Spanish, as not even [more]

The essential things you need to know about healthcare in Colombia

April 3, 2018 // 9 Comments

I wanted to share a post on my experience of healthcare in Colombia so far, but in this post I’ll just give a non-expert summary of how things work here and the different insurance options. Please note that this is just what I have picked up in the four and half years I’ve lived here. Any opinions I give are based purely on my personal experience. [more]

Solo female travel in Latin America: my experiences and why you should go for it!

March 1, 2018 // 3 Comments

Solo female travel - Perito Moreno Glacier

About this time last year, I found out that three women writers I know in Bogotá would be compiling a book of tales about solo female travel in Latin America. Although I didn’t submit a tale of my own, it did make me start to reminisce about my own solo travel experiences as a young woman. I thought I’d write this post to encourage women who feel nervous [more]

Volunteering in Bogotá

February 9, 2018 // 4 Comments

Volunteering in Bogotá could be a great way to meet new people, interact with the locals and get a better feel for local culture. I have heard about a number of volunteer opportunities in Bogotá but when I’ve looked at their websites it’s not always clear whether you need to speak Spanish to participate. Here are a few volunteer opportunities in [more]

Beat culture shock: 10 things to do after moving to Bogota

January 31, 2018 // 5 Comments

Moving to Bogota (or any other place that’s far from home) is a big step for anybody. I first moved to Bogota in October 2013, and I’ve since discovered there are many different reasons why people choose to move here. Oftentimes, as in my case, it’s to join a Colombian boyfriend or girlfriend. Sometimes it’s a case of the ‘trailing [more]

A weekend in Villa de Leyva

January 18, 2018 // 5 Comments

Back in July 2017 we decided to go to Villa de Leyva in Boyacá for a long weekend. A trip to this beautiful little colonial town set in the picturesque countryside of Boyacá is one of those trips everyone visiting Bogota will try to make if they have time. That said, it took me four years to make the journey there! But it was well worth the wait! How to get to [more]

Colombia currency: the Colombian peso

January 12, 2018 // 12 Comments

I had a request recently from someone who wanted me to write a blog post about Colombia’s currency. They had recently arrived in Bogota and had exchanged some dollars for Colombian pesos. At the time of writing, there were about 3,000 pesos to the dollar. This means that if you wanted to change $1,000 US dollars, you’d receive about $3 million pesos. All [more]

Uber in Bogota: the big debate!

January 11, 2018 // 15 Comments

Updated February 2020: In January 2020, Uber announced that it was pulling out of Colombia entirely due to ongoing legal battles. HOWEVER, in February 2020 (just a month later), Uber returned! They finally found a legal loophole. Basically, the service operates in exactly the same way it always has, with the same application – they’re just changing the [more]

Visiting Chingaza National Park in Colombia [Updated 2024]

January 8, 2018 // 7 Comments

I’d wanted to visit Chingaza National Park since I arrived in Colombia in 2013. A guy on my CELTA course at the British Council had waxed lyrical about it for weeks after he visited it with his family, and this aroused my curiosity. Unfortunately though, I don’t have a car and wasn’t sure how to organise a guided visit to the park. So I was really [more]

Where to drink specialty coffee in Bogota

December 9, 2017 // 6 Comments

Now that I’ve been on a coffee farm tour and on the Flavors of Bogota coffee shop tour, I thought I’d write a post on my favourite coffee shops in Bogota. Specialty coffee is the finest quality of coffee, cultivated, roasted and prepared by experts to produce the best cup of coffee you’ve ever tasted. I’ve always been more of a tea-drinker [more]

Bogota’s Museum of Contemporary Art

December 9, 2017 // 0 Comments

Esto no es una pipa Museum of Contemporary Art Bogota

I’m a big art-lover, as you’ll see from my Instagram! One of the best things about living in Bogota is being able to see art on the streets everyday. The Bogota Graffiti Tour takes people on a walk through the centre of Bogota and the Candelaria, and introduces the work of Bogota’s most renowned street artists. The Candelaria has numerous museums [more]

Vegetarian restaurants in Bogota

December 1, 2017 // 6 Comments

I’ve heard a few people say that it’s not easy being a vegetarian in Colombia, as meat is such a big part of the Colombian diet. Indeed, I’ve also heard some Colombians say that a meal without any meat is not a proper meal! I’m not a vegetarian but I’m not a big meat-eater either. So eating meat a few times a week in Bogota, when in [more]

Best Colombian coffee farm tour near Bogota [Updated 2024]

August 14, 2017 // 0 Comments

How to Bogota colombian coffee farm tour

As a Brit, I’m not ashamed to admit I’m a proud tea-drinker. But I’m also a huge fan of premium Colombian Arabica coffee (this one from Amor Perfecto is my personal favourite!) And it goes without saying–there’s nothing like farm fresh Colombian coffee! So when Chantelle from Andes Ecotours invited me to join her on their coffee farm tour near [more]

Learning to love my moustache in Bogotá

July 17, 2017 // 1 Comment

In Colombia, money generally goes further than it does back home. After I moved to Bogotá in 2013, I started going to beauty salons more often. They place a lot of importance on physical appearance in Colombia – it’s totally normal for a Colombian man to get a manicure, for example – so it’s not uncommon to find three or four hair and beauty salons on [more]

Useful contacts if you’re moving to Colombia

April 20, 2017 // 5 Comments

I’m always really pleased when my readers get in touch with me via the blog or leave a comment. People have asked me so many different questions about living in and moving to Colombia, and while I’m happy to help when I can, I don’t always have the right expertise. The most common questions relate to private Spanish teachers, Colombian visas, how [more]

23 great places to eat in Bogota

February 13, 2017 // 9 Comments

I always joke that Bogotá is where I ‘unlearned’ how to cook. It is so easy to get food delivered, or to go out and eat somewhere for a reasonable price, that I’ve become extremely lazy in the kitchen. My intention is not to encourage readers to adopt my bad habits (!) but to give you some ideas about places to eat in Bogota when you’re just not in the [more]

What to wear in Bogota

February 9, 2017 // 10 Comments

One cool Bogota afternoon you will find yourself walking among the quaint rugged buildings of the Candelaria, the smell of coffee wafting out of a nearby café and filling your nose. You look up to see where it is coming from, and almost stumble into a couple of (unmistakable!) tourists wearing shorts, vest tops and flip flops, standing in the middle of the street, [more]

8 great markets in Bogotá – and where to find the best prices!

July 23, 2016 // 12 Comments

There are a number of markets in Bogotá which are worth visiting, and if you’ll be staying in Bogotá for any length of time, you’ll definitely want to do some souvenir shopping at some point, either for gifts to take home to your family and friends, or because your family and friends are visiting you and THEY want to buy souvenirs! Or you might have [more]

10 Bogotá anecdotes which made me Bogo-smart!

November 3, 2015 // 4 Comments

When I first arrived in Bogotá, the experience of living abroad wasn’t new to me; I had lived in Latin America before. But I wasn’t yet ‘Bogo-smart’..! What I really needed was a Bogotá for Dummies guide! Fast-forward two years and I am now a well-weathered expat/Bogotana; so what pearls of wisdom do I have to impart? Well, I thought [more]

Colombia Blogs

October 18, 2015 // 8 Comments

There are some really great Colombia-based bloggers out there, whose blogs I regularly visit. Even though this blog is about Bogotá, many people who move to Bogotá initially might want to move to another part of Colombia eventually. So here are some Colombia blogs that I recommend you take a look at: bananaskinflipflops.com – Banana Skin Flip Flops was my [more]

Learn Spanish in Bogotá

June 1, 2015 // 16 Comments

Many people ask me what advice I would give to people thinking of moving to Bogotá; among other things, I always say – learn Spanish… or at least learn enough to be able to get by. There aren’t many people in Colombia who speak good English – and certainly not in supermarkets, hospitals, cafés and other places where you will want to be able [more]

Salaries, Tax and Working in Bogota

December 2, 2014 // 45 Comments

A common question I get asked is how easy it is when it comes to finding work in Bogota. Salaries can vary a lot, so if you’re considering moving here, you’ll definitely want an idea of how much you could potentially be earning once you find a job. You may even decide that remote-working in Bogota is the best option, as these jobs often pay in dollars or [more]

10 tips for taking a taxi in Bogota

December 1, 2014 // 44 Comments

Taking a taxi in Bogota can be a bit of an ‘adventure’ to say the least; an un-seatbelted adventure which can leave you silently praying for your life, as most taxis do not have functioning seat-belts for the back seats. If you’re taking a taxi in Bogota, keep in mind the following tips, which include common scams and typical taxi driver behaviour: 1. Always [more]

Cost of Living in Bogota

November 17, 2014 // 9 Comments

This post was updated in July 2016. Due to fluctuating exchange rates, I have changed the amounts to reflect the current cost of living in Bogota in Colombian pesos. Please note that these figures are based on living in an estrato 4 building, and will increase significantly for estratos 5 and 6. For more information on estratos, have a look at my post on Where to [more]

Teaching English in Bogota

May 4, 2014 // 30 Comments

The easiest way for an English speaker to make money in Colombia is by teaching English; and teaching English in Bogota has become a big business. Everyone seems to be setting up a ‘School of English’ nowadays; needless to say therefore, that there is a huge variation in quality, working conditions and pay. If you don’t have a CELTA certificate [more]

Bogota neighborhoods: where to live in Bogota [Updated 2024]

March 4, 2014 // 24 Comments

If you’re thinking of moving to Colombia, you’ll be in a similar situation to the one I was in back in 2013. I started researching the different Bogota neighborhoods and the average cost of rent. The problem was that I had no idea which areas were nice, safe and well-located, or which I should avoid. At the time of this update (September 2024) I can now [more]

How to find a place to live: Bogota apartments

January 30, 2014 // 8 Comments

Whether you are looking for long-term or short-term accommodation in Bogota, there are a number of websites advertising Bogota apartments for rent. You might also find my other post about the neighbourhoods and where to live in Bogotá useful. Long-term accommodation Renting long-term normally means committing to at least a one year contract. I’ve yet to come [more]

Extending a visa: how to get a salvoconducto in Colombia

February 19, 2019 // 8 Comments

how to apply for a salvoconducto in Colombia

Every now and again in one of the Expat groups on Facebook, someone will ask about how to extend a Colombian visa. So I decided to collate the information on Facebook into this blog post in the hope that it might help others. Dutch expat, Fetze Weerstra, found my blog post and read about the salvoconducto, which many people had mentioned on Facebook. The [more]

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