Published: 10.12.2017
On our last day in the capital, Monserrate was on the list. A mountain with a height of 3,200 meters right in the mountain range that borders the city to the east. First decision to make: 600 meters of altitude on foot or by cable car. Since the walk to the cable car station was not far but tedious, we decided to take the cable car - maybe we'll walk down. Great view from the top, unfortunately the weather was not the best, but we could clearly see the incredible size of the city. After a surprisingly cheap coffee for such a viewpoint (I believe in Likavittos in Athens the coffee costs 15 times more), next decision: walk down or take the cable car. Unfortunately, it started raining - the first time here in Bogotá - so we decided to take the cable car again. In addition to the rain, there was also the unclear security situation: travel guides, cable car staff, and signs advised against walking. In good weather and especially with more people on the trail, we would have risked it.
Once we arrived at the bottom, we wanted to visit the police museum, which was highly recommended in the travel guide. Unfortunately, after a 40-minute walk, it turned out that the opening hours in the travel guide were not well researched: closed on Saturdays!
After wandering around aimlessly for a while, we decided to drive "home", pack our things (we're continuing tomorrow), and eat in our neighborhood. The taxi driver we flagged down was just as incompetent as all the others before (also in Medellin). They have no idea and maybe by chance know the airport. If a driver nods knowingly after you tell him the destination address, one thing is for sure: he has no idea where he's supposed to go! You absolutely need to know how to get to your destination yourself. I always download the offline map from Google Maps in all cities. That helps! So I can navigate without internet. When we were stuck in the first traffic jam, the taxi driver told us to use a different app. I was already furious and asked very irritably 😡 and in German (!) why he doesn't have it if it's so good. He understood me perfectly: left his phone at home! I'm telling you, they're all incompetent. I could easily write 10 pages of taxi stories, but it just makes me angry 😜
If you're ever in Colombia: use Uber whenever possible (you have to be online, which is not always possible). The Uber drivers are also all incompetent, but at least they have navigation via smartphone and the price is fixed in advance - detours are at the driver's expense!