Free days are the best days during vacation. With no itinerary to follow, I just walked around La Candelaria district of Bogota, enjoyed coffee, ate the best rice tamale for breakfast, and had a hefty 1″ thick steak for lunch. As a tropical country with fertile land, food is more affordable in Bogota; probably the cheapest of all the places I’ve visited in South America. Here are some of the memorable meals I had during my 3 days visit.

I’ve had different types of Tamale during my travel, but Bogota gave me the best one. It’s packed with fragrant yellow rice and corn combination, carrot slices and chunks of braised pork rib and chicken, plus complimentary bread and coffee. Mura lang ito, around 100 pesos if converted.

Ajiaco is one of the many regional Colombian dishes you can’t leave the country without trying. It’s a hearty soup made from three different kinds of potatoes, chicken, guasca leaves, with a half an ear of corn splashed in for good measure. Also served with a slice of avocado (locals mix them with the soup for added texture). I had this meal during my day tour at Monserrat Religious Shrine overlooking Bogota.

Meat is relatively cheap in Colombia. I enjoyed a thick slab of steak from Banquete Restaurante, a seated,full service restaurant in La Candelaria, serving good local dishes. This steak set cost me a little over 500 Php, i think; salad included. The red pepper\tomato gravy on top is mild. Not too hot. Picante as they say. Very different from our usual gravy here in PH. I also had freshwater shrimp ceviche as appetizer. Sobrang sarap nito. Shrimp is blanched (not raw).

Sealed the afternoon with churros and Tostao Coffee, an affordable coffee chain in Bogota. Also enjoyed random street chorizo arepas (sandwich) I think went back 3x on this street kiosk during my stay. Ibang level ang chorizos (sausages) sa Bogota, I tell you.

A memorable last dinner in Bogota. I had this hefty plate of Bandeja Paisa, so i can try various dishes in one seating.

Bandeja Paisa is a traditional Colombian dish that contains beans, rice, arepa, traditioinal chorizo, plantain, chicharrón, avocado and marinated ground beef (like arroz cubana). I’ve noticed that Latins serve avocado as a side without any sweeteners; in contrast to us who only appreciates the fruit when it’s sweet and creamy.

To close the meal, I went to try the hot chocolate drink at La Puerta Falsa, known as one of the oldest continuously operating cafe in the world. The drink is set with 2 types of bread of choice, butter and a slab of white cheese. Colombians usually melt the cheese with the hot drink. I did not like it. The mix of sweet taste of choco and the salty\sour cheese did not work for me. The cheese is excellent though… with the bread.

Some more random street food photos around Bogota. Fruits and other produces are quite similar to the Philippines. Probably because of similar tropical lands, as well as strong Spanish influence.