por Jim
During the final days of our trip we finally checked out a few museums. Yesterday we visited the Gold Museum, which not only has a lot of gold and other metals, but a wonderful history of metals in cultures all over the world. There were some interesting objects like this one
Today we went to the Botero Museum, which features the collection that Colombian artist Fernando Botero donated to the nation, which housed it in an element of its museum complex in downtown Bogota. It includes a lot of his work, including paintings and sculptures, always of people who looked like they had always eaten well, if not excessively. In addition, he collected much material from artist friends including Picasso, Calder, Degas and others. In short, it is a tour of 20th century art. What's striking about it is not its size -- there are museums including the Mellon collection in Washington that own much more -- but its quality. There wasn't a second-rate piece in the entire museum. Two of my favorites were of couples -- one of Botero's supersized regulars
We commuted to these museums in the downtown area from our wonderful hotel in the elite Chapinero section of town, which led me once again to reflect on how much more difficult it is to get around in big cities that lack subway systems. Bogota, like Quito and, to a lesser, degree Santiago, began in a valley surrounded by mountains, but has outgrown the flatlands over time as people build up into the hills. Bogota's equivalent of a beltway is to swing several thousand feed up into a park that runs through elite neighborhoods where you get a great view of the entire city. Which is to say distances can't be measured as a crow flies. It makes for some interesting driving on trips that are never short, but always enjoyable as we view new sections of the city. Finally, we've had some great food here as we have in the other cities we've visited. South American ice cream is a treat everywhere.
During the final days of our trip we finally checked out a few museums. Yesterday we visited the Gold Museum, which not only has a lot of gold and other metals, but a wonderful history of metals in cultures all over the world. There were some interesting objects like this one
Today we went to the Botero Museum, which features the collection that Colombian artist Fernando Botero donated to the nation, which housed it in an element of its museum complex in downtown Bogota. It includes a lot of his work, including paintings and sculptures, always of people who looked like they had always eaten well, if not excessively. In addition, he collected much material from artist friends including Picasso, Calder, Degas and others. In short, it is a tour of 20th century art. What's striking about it is not its size -- there are museums including the Mellon collection in Washington that own much more -- but its quality. There wasn't a second-rate piece in the entire museum. Two of my favorites were of couples -- one of Botero's supersized regulars
and one of Leda and the swan, both of whom were considerably more svelte.
We commuted to these museums in the downtown area from our wonderful hotel in the elite Chapinero section of town, which led me once again to reflect on how much more difficult it is to get around in big cities that lack subway systems. Bogota, like Quito and, to a lesser, degree Santiago, began in a valley surrounded by mountains, but has outgrown the flatlands over time as people build up into the hills. Bogota's equivalent of a beltway is to swing several thousand feed up into a park that runs through elite neighborhoods where you get a great view of the entire city. Which is to say distances can't be measured as a crow flies. It makes for some interesting driving on trips that are never short, but always enjoyable as we view new sections of the city. Finally, we've had some great food here as we have in the other cities we've visited. South American ice cream is a treat everywhere.
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