Travel Guide Villa De Leyva

The city was founded in 1572 in the Saquencipa valley, according to the project of Don Andrés Vias Venero de Leyva, who bequeathed his name to the city. After the advent of the Republic, the development of the city was stopped in favor of other cities, such as Tunja. Villa de Leyva is nevertheless one of the oldest colonial sites in Colombia and as such is listed as a National Historic Site. Located at the bottom of an arid valley, the surrounding landscape contrasts with the green savannah of Bogotá. Villa de Leyva is an outstanding example of Spanish colonial picturesqueness. The Plaza Mayor is the heart of the city. Ambitious in size and disproportionate to the rest of the town, it has the audacity to bear another name than that of Simón Bolívar, an almost unique case in Colombia! With its old-fashioned look, the city seems frozen in time. The houses are all white, with tiled roofs, often with a balcony carved in green wood on the front and bougainvilleas invading the walls. One does not come here on an academic visit to identify specific sites, but rather to soak up the atmosphere that so many Colombians enjoy. Good restaurants, excellent accommodations and a good selection of handicrafts should satisfy the most reluctant. If you're there in mid-August, don't miss the Festival del Viento y de las Cometas ("Festival of the Wind and Kites"), when the sky fills with hundreds of colorful kites (August is the windiest month in the Colombian Andes, and is known as " el Mes de las Cometas" ). The other months also have their festivals (classical music, cinema, gastronomy...) which usually take place on weekends.