Trying to direct a Colombian on how you want your photo to look is very difficult, and potentially life threatening when he still doesn’t get it &*&^|%£^& right. But hey, its still a good photo! )06-Jul-2009 18:18, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 9.0, 28.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 400
After a few days chilling in San Agustin, it was time to head to Ecuador. Quick sharpish; we’re developing a habit of liking countries we visit too much and that’s no good for our timetable. So with trepidation we headed to the Colombian/Ecuador border at Ipiales keeping our fingers crossed; and managed to sneak in a quick visit to the magnificent Las Lajas Cathedral near Ipiales on the way. Maybe we shouldn’t rush… perhaps Colombian border control would much prefer it if we stayed?!
The gorge of Guaitara River in Las Lajas, near Ipiales.
The gorge of Guaitara River in Las Lajas, near Ipiales.06-Jul-2009 17:52, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 5.6, 28.0mm, 0.013 sec, ISO 100
On Sunday morning (I had to check that – you have no idea what day it is normally) we took an early bus from San Agustin to Popayan with Coomotor. This 7hr, COP$28,000 bus is akin to taking a trampoline on the road. Except its not a trampoline, its a dirt track. And its not a trampoline, its a thin veil of plastic over a pile of bricks. Which aren’t laid neatly. Forget about even reading, let alone sleeping! Having said that, the views are fantastic, like most of Colombia the mountain ranges hair up and sheer down with glee and its an absolute pleasure to bounce through.
We stayed in Ipiales so that we could cross the border; in thanks we took the best picture of it we could find. Ta da!
We stayed in Ipiales so that we could cross the border; in thanks we took the best picture of it we could find. Ta da!06-Jul-2009 19:36, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 14.0, 28.0mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 400
Once we’d arrived in Popayan we squeezed in a quick Menu del Dia (we’re getting varyingly fond of these, if you get them right they are tasty and great value for money. Soup, main meal and a juice drink for about £1.20. Get it wrong, and you feel very hungry. Or that you wish eggs had never existed), reserved our hostel (Hotel Belmonte), and hopped on a COP$25,000 bus to Ipiales. This one was little better, it actually was broken into two stints and stopped at Pasto for about an hour. In total, we thought it would take about seven hours and it was closer to ten. However, we did see one of the most impressive gorges to date en route; unfortunately it was night time so a double fork in the eye! Do it in the day time if you get the chance! ) At about 2am we rolled out of the bus, straight into a taxi and stumbled into our bed at Hotel Belmonte. That bit was COP$3,000 and much smoother than the buses…
Whether a 90 degree rotation of the camera makes it even more impressive is in the eye of the beholder.
Whether a 90 degree rotation of the camera makes it even more impressive is in the eye of the beholder.06-Jul-2009 18:14, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 8.0, 28.0mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 400
The next day was border crossing, but not without visiting the famous Cathedral at Las Lajas. A collectivo will get you there from close to the square for COP$1,900 per person, and you catch a fleeting glimpse of the Cathedral as it spans the gorge on the way. The Cathedral was built from 1916 to 1949 and represents gothic revival architecture; sounds like a music era but no that is what the architect had in mind. It is built inside the canyon of the Guaitara River, and was declared a minor basilica in 1954.
Not really sure what the snake, an umpteen legged and two headed calf have to do with Las Lajas Cathedral, but find them beneath it you will.
Not really sure what the snake, an umpteen legged and two headed calf have to do with Las Lajas Cathedral, but find them beneath it you will.06-Jul-2009 18:50, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 4.5, 38.0mm, 0.017 sec, ISO 400
The Cathedral itself is pretty incredible, the museum underneath slightly less so but it had been a long few days (that weren’t over!) so our wow treshold was definitely diminished. A large number of pigeons frequented the area as you can see in the gallery, and their fluttering around the gorge with the background sound of a rushing river and waterfall definitely set the scene. Why they gave two mutant calves a going over with the taxidermist I have no idea, pictures below!
Once done with our site seeing we headed back to Hotel Belmonte, a surprisingly excellent choice for what is likely to be a one night stop over in Ipiales before the border for most. Secure, clean, and the owner was exceptionally helpful in telling us where we needed to go to visit both Las Lajas Cathedral and also make it to the border. So, off to the border we went via a COP$7,000 taxi to Rumichaca where you cross the border into Tulcan of Ecuador.
Nervously, we headed to Colombian Emmigration…06-Jul-2009 20:11, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 7.1, 73.0mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 400
We were quite nervous; our first (mine definitely) border crossing over land, from an area that was notorious for its exports into one that was notorious for old ladies slashing your day pack. What if somebody had slipped something into one of our pockets when we weren’t looking; what if that didn’t matter and we were going to get a spandex glove where the sun doesn’t shine just because the patrol guy was having a bad day?
Thankfully everything went uneventfully, just how all border crossings should be. You smile cheerfully as you walk over the bridge into Ecuador, ignoring the pestering of the locals who are offering you “the best exchange rates available” and proceed to swap at the exact and best rate for both parties with other travellers going in the opposite direction. You then swear at the Ecuadorian immigration office who proceeds to stamp everybody entering the country at a snail’s pace, although we were lucky and only had to wait about an hour.
So… Ecuador here we come!06-Jul-2009 20:11, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 11.0, 28.0mm, 0.003 sec, ISO 400
Finally, we were through – the first sign of Ecuador though was a couple of dogs humping next to sign saying “Welcome!”, but at least that meant things could only get better. A quick colectivo to Tulcan bus station, a mad panic among the touts as another minibus of fresh meat arrived, and we had our bums on seats on a bus to Quito. The surprises weren’t over; although it looked like a proper, decent and respectful it acted more like a colectivo in that it stopped for anyone whether they were getting on or off, and that meant four or five biscuit and drink sellers every fifteen minutes of the five hour bus trip. Put it this way, after about 20hrs of bus time in two days we were very glad to arrive in Quito! Bring on Ecuador!
On your way down you see hundreds upon thousands of plaques, each from successive pilgrimages to the cathedral.06-Jul-2009 17:53, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 7.1, 28.0mm, 0.008 sec, ISO 100
Swine flu is a bitch when you can’t wipe your own nose because your arms are made of stone.06-Jul-2009 17:57, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 6.3, 73.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 100
Inside Las Lajas Cathedral the back wall is literally the side of the gorge as you can see.06-Jul-2009 17:59, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 3.5, 28.0mm, 0.05 sec, ISO 400
Crap, blurry photo, but hilarious because the nuns have abused their powers just to gain entry through the locked gate and get a better photo.06-Jul-2009 18:00, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 4.0, 50.0mm, 0.167 sec, ISO 400
The bridge that spans the gorge, allowing both the original church and the cathedral to stare each other out.06-Jul-2009 18:02, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 10.0, 28.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 400
They were so scared when I turned the camera on to monochrome they flew off. This is the original church by the way, 1754 or something I think.06-Jul-2009 18:04, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 6.3, 28.0mm, 0.01 sec, ISO 400
Whether a 90 degree rotation of the camera makes it even more impressive is in the eye of the beholder.06-Jul-2009 18:14, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 8.0, 28.0mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 400
Lynette trooping towards the waterfall from earlier, bottle of Timotei in hand.06-Jul-2009 18:15, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 10.0, 35.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 400
Trying to direct a Colombian on how you want your photo to look is very difficult, and potentially life threatening when he still doesn’t get it &*&^|%£^& right. But hey, its still a good photo! )06-Jul-2009 18:18, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 9.0, 28.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 400
A model of Las Lajas cathedral. The sign next to it was everywhere, thankfully my Spanish is so poor I had no idea what it meant.06-Jul-2009 18:41, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 3.5, 28.0mm, 0.25 sec, ISO 100
And we guess there was a train accident at some point, and God had something to do with it.06-Jul-2009 18:47, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 4.0, 45.0mm, 0.017 sec, ISO 100
Not really sure what the snake, an umpteen legged and two headed calf have to do with Las Lajas Cathedral, but find them beneath it you will.06-Jul-2009 18:50, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 4.5, 38.0mm, 0.017 sec, ISO 400
Translate the Spanish, and the answer ye will find. Google Translate was like a chocolate teapot.06-Jul-2009 18:59, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 9.0, 28.0mm, 0.005 sec, ISO 400
We stayed in Ipiales so that we could cross the border; in thanks we took the best picture of it we could find. Ta da!06-Jul-2009 19:36, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 14.0, 28.0mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 400
And got our passports stamped with all the flurry of mashed potato. 10 seconds and it was over.06-Jul-2009 20:07, Canon Canon EOS 400D DIGIT, 5.0, 28.0mm, 0.017 sec, ISO 400
The gorge of Guaitara River in Las Lajas, near Ipiales.
We stayed in Ipiales so that we could cross the border; in thanks we took the best picture of it we could find. Ta da!
) At about 2am we rolled out of the bus, straight into a taxi and stumbled into our bed at Hotel Belmonte. That bit was COP$3,000 and much smoother than the buses…
Whether a 90 degree rotation of the camera makes it even more impressive is in the eye of the beholder.
Not really sure what the snake, an umpteen legged and two headed calf have to do with Las Lajas Cathedral, but find them beneath it you will.
Nervously, we headed to Colombian Emmigration…
So… Ecuador here we come!
![[Facebook]](http://mace.me.uk/mrandmrs/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/facebook.png)
![[MySpace]](http://mace.me.uk/mrandmrs/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/myspace.png)
![[StumbleUpon]](http://mace.me.uk/mrandmrs/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/stumbleupon.png)
![[Email]](http://mace.me.uk/mrandmrs/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/email.png)
[...] Gallery: Crossing the Colombian border in Ipiales and Las Lajas … [...]
Hi Guys, lovely photos, almost (but not quite) with you. Glad the legs healing, and by the way, “Favor no tocar” means “Don’t touch”
Nice for your idea.