If there is a part of Bogotá where walls would talk, it’s La Candelaria. Maybe talk, isn’t a strong enough word, rather “shout” is more accurate. The historic district of the capital extends east from the Plaza de Bolívar and has clearly named streets and cobbled alleyways. Home to many churches, museums and the workshops of iron- smiths and bookbinders who still operate in the courtyards of these 18th and 19th century houses, La Candelaria, was the birthplace of Santa Fe de Bogotá. Arriving on higher ground in 1538, Spaniard Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada was determined to head south down the Magdalena River. When he arrived at a Chibcha Indian community in a fertile plateau, he decided to rest. Little could Jiménez de Quesada imagine that the hamlet would expand into a metropolis of 8 million and that the dank walls of La Candelaria would welcome change and colour.
