Colombia - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 537

Whatever geological or intergalactic
anomaly brought it here, it's well worth
climbing the 649 stone steps to the rock's
peak for phenomenal 360-degree views of
emerald green peninsulas jutting into the
azure Embalse del Peñol - a hydroelectric
dam that submerged the original town of
El Peñol in the 1970s.
There is a handful of restaurants and
tourist stalls at the base of the rock,
but it's better to walk or take a jeep
(COP$3500 per person) to the delightful
lakeside village of Guatapé , 3km away,
which is full of restaurants serving trout
fresh from the lake. The palm-lined main
square, Plaza Simón Bolívar, is well
preserved, with its crowning glory the
Iglesia La Inmaculada Concepción;
throughout the town you'll find colourful
colonial houses adorned with intricate
artistic motifs.
The best places to eat are along the
lakefront Avenida Malecón (also known as
Calle 32) and include Vaso é Leche , at C 32
No. 26-35, where you'll get filling trout
mains with a salad, plantain and fries for
COP$12,000. Buses leave for Guatapé
roughly every half-hour from Medellín's
northern bus terminal (2hr). Ask the
driver to let you off at “La Piedra”.

entertainment centred mostly on Cable
Plaza. The party comes to a head in the
first weeks of January during the Fería de
Manizales , when there are colourful
parades, a beauty pageant in search of a
new Coffee Queen and bloody bullfights
staged in the Plaza de Toros (C 8 and Cra
27). Manizales also makes an excellent
base for exploring the surrounding
coffee farms (see p.544) and the Parque
Nacional Natural Los Nevados (see p.543).

5

Plaza de Bolívar
In the centre of the city, the main square
is dominated by the vast Catedral de
Manizales (tower Mon & hurs-Sun
9am-noon & 2-6pm; COP$3000),
made of reinforced concrete and featuring
a virtigo-inducing, 106m-tall tower that
you can ascend with a guide; tours start
on the hour. In the centre of the plaza
stands an obligatory statue of Simón
Bolívar , but with a twist - Bolívar-
Cóndor , the creation of Rodrigo Arenas
Betancur, is half-man, half-condor.

Torre al Cielo
In the northwest suburb of Chipre, on a
high bluff at the end of Avenida 12 de
Octubre, the 45m-tall Torre al Cielo
(Mon-Wed 11am-10pm, hurs-Sat
11am-2am, Sun 10am-10pm;
COP$3000) is the town's best lookout. On
a clear day you can see seven departamentos
and three mountain ranges. Buses run to
Chipre from the Cable Plaza along Avenida
Santander every minute or so.

MANIZALES AND AROUND
Founded in 1849 by migrating paisas ,
MANIZALES developed in the late
nineteenth century with the growth of
the coffee industry. One legacy is the
numerous Neoclassical buildings in the
city centre, which has been declared a
national monument. This high-mountain
city (altitude 2150m) sits at the base of
the snowcapped Nevado del Ruiz volcano
(see p.543), which, on a clear day you can
sometimes see burping vapour from the
bridge in front of the Teatro Los
Fundadores. Manizales owes its hilly
topography to the geologically volatile
earth beneath it, and earthquakes occur
with some frequency.

Reserva Ecológica Río Blanco
Around 3km northeast of Manizales,
the Reserva Ecológica Río Blanco is home
to 362 bird species, 350 butterfly species
and more than forty mammals. Tranquil
orchid-lined uphill hikes through
impressive cloudforest reveal dense jungle
flora entwined in a battle for a place in
the sun; if you are lucky, you may catch
a glimpse of the reserve's endangered
spectacled bear. There is also a
hummingbird farm. You'll need to request
permission to enter the reserve from the
Fundación Ecológica Gabriel Arango
Restrepo (Av Kevin Angel No. 59-181;
Mon-Fri 8am-4.30pm; T 6 887 9770,

WHAT TO SEE AND DO
Much of the town's charm lies in its large
student population, who help create a
festive atmosphere, with night-time