Chia *

Nope, it's not a spelling mistake. It shouldn't be China, it shouldn't be Chiayi. This is the typical non-touristy Colombian town of Chia.

I ended up there courtesy of my Colombian friend Julio Felipe. You could mistake it for a subrub of Bogota, but the countryside in between and the town square make this surely a town of it's own right in the area known as Cundinamarca.

We called in with David, Julio's brother who lives with his dog near the town centre. That's his flat. We're invited in for Coca leaves, which taste like Mate but I'm not that keen on them. 

Just seeing a vehicle like this are typical in these random Colombian towns.

There were a few desperate things I wanted to do in Chia, as it was my last full day in Colombia (though I had a bus change the next morning in Cucuta to get across the Venezuela border). This included posting a postcard, withdrawing some money, getting some Venezuelan notes (which was in vain and really affected my time in the country) and squeezing in a final beer with Julio.

Entrance to the town square.

Street in the centre by the town square of Chia.

Chia town square.

Standing in the square, obvious foreigner.

Christmas Tree.

Main Church in Chia Square.

The bar Rio Grande where I had my last beer with Julio and David before leaving Colombia.

Having a wee Aguila beer with Julio and David.

Town centre sign in Chia.

Wee roundabout area where we met Julio's Mum and sister at a supermarket while we had our beers.

The shopping centre where we went where I couldn't withdraw money or get Venezuelan money. It was all a rush and very confusing.

That Shopping Centre was random. Julio's Mum and sister tried to sell their cat, Cow Semen was for sale and in the middle of a Colombian town, a stray camel oddly graced the shopping centre's aisle...

The stray camel...

And the world's smallest McDonalds was also in that shopping centre.

This was captured just on the way out of Chia, nice to have 2 places I saw in Colombia on a wee sign (Bogota and Guasca).

And after my visit to Chia I was soon back in the town of Sopo and heading on a bus north east towards the Colombian border. Colombian bus wilderness captured in all its mundane, rusty glory above. This is some journey...

Name of Town - Chia, Cundinamarca, Colombia

Language - Now Spanish, but originally Chibchan

Population - (of which one is David, Julio's brother) 196,640

Nickname - The Moon City

Key Song - 

R.E.M. - MAN ON THE MOON:

HAVING A BEER WITH FELIPE AND DAVID IN RIO GRANDE BAR, CHIA:

A FINAL NOTE ON CHIA:

Chia is so obscure and I reckon rarely would a foreigner ever go there, so here's some information on it from Wikipedia just to fuel the brain cells...

Chía is a town and municipality in the Cundinamarca department of Colombia, located to the north of Bogotá on the main road to Zipaquira. Its history dates back to the pre-Columbian era. The name comes from the Chibchan language and means "moon" or "month".

Due to its proximity to Bogotá (2.7 km), Chía has effectively become a dormitory suburb of the capital. It is also home of the Universidad de la Sabana.

[edit] History

Chía was a Muisca settlement in the pre-Columbian era, and an important ceremonial center of worship to the moon deity Chia goddess. In 1537 the Spanish, under the command of Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, took possession of the town.

In 1781, during the Revolt of the Comuneros, the march of the insurgents towards Bogotá stopped near Chía in order to cross the Bogotá River, in what is now known as the Bridge of the Commoners (Spanish: Puente del Común). At that site the viceroy signed a series of concessions to the rebels. However, once the rebel group had dispersed, the viceroy declared the concessions invalid for having been signed "under pressure". It is widely believed that eventually Bogota will merge with Chia, if the city continues expanding (as it happened with Bosa and Soacha).

[edit] Borders

• North with Cajicá and Sopó
• South: Localities of Usaquen and Suba, Bogotá
• West with Tabio and Tenjo
• Southwest: Cota
• East with Sopó

[edit] Other facts

Government Flag of Chía

• Market Day: Sunday
• Distance from Bogotá: 3.1 km
• Median temperature: 14 °C
• Demonym: Chiense or Chiano
• DANE Code: 25175

[edit] Sites of interest

• Marroquín Castle
• Hacienda Yerbabuena
• Commoners Bridge
• Chía Mall (Centro-Chía)
• Andrés Carne de Res
• Iglesia la Valvanera
• Teattroria