POPAYÁN
The answer is
Touristic Places
Popayan
The places you can't miss
El Morro
It's the city’s principal archaeological site. It's also the perfect place to finish your tour of the city thanks to its stunning views. On the site can be found a pyramid that was built between 500 and 1600 A.C., as well as a commemorative monument that honours the city’s founder, Sebastián de Belalcázar.
Pueblito Patojo
It has scale models of all the town's landmarks. You will also find handicraft stalls and cafes for you to refresh, and pick up any souvenirs you'd like of your journey. Rincón Payanés is located at the bottom of Morro de Tulcan, before you start the walk to the top of the hill. It's about 1km from the Puente del Humilladero.
Torre del Reloj
The city’s Clock Tower is considered to be the icon of the city, called “the nose of Popayan” by Master Guillermo Valencia. It was built between 1673 and 1682, next to the Cathedral. The clock was made in England, and after the earthquake struck that destroyed much of the city, the clock was restored by the same English company that made it. Today the clock doesn’t work but stands as a symbol of the city’s resilience.
Puente del Humilladero
This bridge was once the main entrance into Popayán. It might have lost this title but it remains one of the most important historic monuments in the city, and is found on the way to El Morro. Opened in 1873 to cross the River Molino, today it is mainly used as a pedestrian bridge to avoid the busy Calle Segunda. The Humilladero Bridge is located on Carrera 6, close to the National Museum Guillermo Valencia and the library of Banco de la Republica.
Parque Caldas
Another reason to come to Popayán is to visit the most iconic place of Popayán, which is undoubtedly Caldas Park (Parque Caldas). It includes the Popayan cathedral, the clock tower and the park itself. Caldas Park was initially used as a marketplace, the park has had a long history of murder, community and art. Today it’s a leafy park where students, businessmen and other people converge for cultural reunions. It’s a pleasant place to walk on one of Popayan’s sunny days.
Parque Nacional Purace
Another reason to come to Popayán is to visit the nearby National Park Puracé a geothermal wonderland of hot springs, waterfalls, and an active volcano from which the park derives its name. The spectacular National Park of Puracé, one of Colombia’s most off-the-beaten-track parks that boasts several volcanoes, snow-capped mountains, lakes, a plethora of flora and fauna and hot natural springs.
Art, history and more
House-Museum Mosquera
This house displays a very interesting collection of colonial art and precious memories of the Mosquera family. It works in the house that belonged to the Mosquera Arboleda family, a recognized family in the history of Colombia, whose members occupied the highest positions of political power, ecclesiastical, military and diplomatic, simultaneously during much of the nineteenth century. Jose Maria Mosquera y Figueroa, was considered by the Liberator Simón Bolívar as the only person he would choose as a second parent.
Archdiocesan Museum of Religious Art
The old residence of the Arboleda family, was built in the eighteenth century based on plans of the priest Andres Perez Marcelino Arroyo, and it was acquired by the city in 1974 and renovated for its current use in 1979. Their collections are extraordinary examples of religious art, silverware, pictures of the so-called Quito School and paintings of the colonial period. Monstrances of the collection have such value that they are only exposed to the public for a few days during Easter.
National Museum Guillermo Valencia
It is located in a mansion on the Próceres Street, and it is dedicated to the poet Guillermo Valencia, one of the most prominent members of Modernism in Spanish literature. Its numerous rooms are decorated with valuable works of art and artistic pieces, as well as a collection of hundred of selected books, diplomas, medals and awards that Master Valencia received for his distinguished political life and for its fine literary and poetic compositions. In the park located across the street it stands the statue of the poet, made by the Spanish sculptor Victorio Macho. It has too a family cemetery where the remains of several generations of Valencia are resting.
Natural History Museum
It offers an exhibition of animals, like insects, butterflies and birds native to the region, and a collection of pre-Columbian pottery. It is the second museum in Latin America with the greatest collection of birds.
