About the city

Popayán is a small city, so cold and -in my opinion- it is not beautiful. When, I lived there I didn't got out to many places because I really hate it. However, I'm going to tell you some things of this place that I barely even know.

That town is called “Ciudad Blanca” or “White city” because it has colonial architecture and the presence of white houses in the city´s center. In addition, Popayán has many churches spread throughout the city but mainly in the center.

The most typical places and the activities that you can do when you go to that town are:         

1.      "Pueblito patojo": It's a touristic place where you can find crafts; eat and drink some typical food of the region; and some days (Mainly Friday), you can enjoy cultural events like listening to storytellers or see plays.

2.      "El Morro de Tulcán": This is a pyramid built in pre-Colombian times, which is the main archaeological site of Popayán. In the top of the hill, there is a statue in honor of Sebastian de Belalcazar (Popayan´s Conqueror).  

    As this site is a lookout, you can see the entire city of Popayán. But please, be careful because this place would be a little dangerous.

3.      "Puente del humilladero": This Bridge has a big and important cultural history representative for natives. On this site there is a street full of crafts where you can buy many handmade things and also, you can watch presentations on the “teatrino”, which –in architecture- is an area with a smaller size than a theater, it hasn´t privacy, but it´s an original act where there is a real repetition of everything that in the theater is fiction.

4.      "Parque Caldas": It is located in the center of the City; in this place there are all the main and representative buildings of the city. If you go to this park you will not find a specific activity to do but you can walk around and visit museums and churches.

5.      "Torre del reloj": It´s a landmark of the city which it´s located in “Parque Caldas”.

6.      Popayan´s Churches: All Popayán churches preserved the colonial architecture making it beautiful places. For that reason, that city has become one of the most important religious destinations of the country. Some of the churches of that town are:

·        The Church of San Francisco

·        Catedral Basílica Metropolitana de nuestra señora de la Asunción

·        The Church of St. Augustine

·        The Church of Santo Domingo

·        Bethlehem Church

·        San Jose Church

·        the Church of the Incarnation

·        the Church of Carmen

I´m going to tell you the most representative activity of the city, which it´s the holy Week. It is characterized by processions that take place continuously since the sixteenth century between the nights of Holy Friday and Holy Saturday.

Each performance is a "step" and is carried on the shoulder of the traditional “carguero” through the streets, a distance plotted on a Latin cross from time of the conquest.

7.      “Loma de las cometas”: This place is located in the variant, and as the name says it is a space where people will raise their kites in the summertime whit their family. But, moreover people can also go to this hill to slide down the hills with the help of cardboard and have a good time with friends.

Well, there were the most typical places of Popayan that I recommended and you must visit when you travel to that city. So, I hope this information has been helpful to show you a little about this conservative and small city.

Do not forget to carry warm clothes and comfortable shoes when you decide to travel to Popayán because you will need. Good luck

Bye…