If you want to go on a nice relaxing horse ride through the mountains surrounding Bogotá, it’s probably best if you don’t invite me to come along.
I am not terribly comfortable on a horse, and I am the first to admit it.
I tried my best to remain calm, I tried to find my Zen, to let go. I tried to relax my muscles, which were tight and had started to twitch, I tried moving in sync with the horse, I tried getting comfortable in the saddle, but alas, I was a mess.
My poor horse, as well as the people I went with, must have let out a big sigh of relief once it was over.
“Are you OK Sarah?” One person said as we began to set off.
“Not really,” I replied, my teeth clenched.
“Have you been on a horse before?” another said.
“This might surprise you, but actually yes.” I answered.
Silence.
I was in La Calera with a bunch of Colombian and Australian friends. Everyone else looked enviably comfortable on their trusty steeds.
“Yeehaw!” One called, galloping off into the distance. My horse started to follow, going too fast for me to handle. I made squeamish noises from the back of the pack, trying to get my horse to walk at a pace not unlike that of an abuela’s.
But, in my defence, let me set the scene for you – it was Halloween evening, we were in the middle of La Calera at about 8pm at night, it looked like it was a full moon and we were riding horses through the hills into the darkness. And this was all by choice.
The ride took about one hour and a half to complete and we stopped atop a hill to a lookout point where the near full moon and the sparkling lights of the surrounding town put on quite the show.
After some romantic stargazing, we made our way back down to the main road, hopped off our horses and decided it was time for some food. Andres, a local, suggested Cocina de Tahir, a restaurant owned by a Colombian and Iranian couple and conveniently located just down the road.
The Iranian fled his country during the Gulf War, came to Colombia and met the woman of his dreams whom he now cooks alongside at Cocina de Tahir. Since he had a pizzeria in Iran, the restaurant specialises in both Italian and Arabic food.
“They make the best pizzas in Bogotá,” Andres said.
A quick tour of the kitchen and a look at the open wood-fired oven, I reckon that he just might be right. But as I was getting into the Arabic music that was playing, I decided I was in the mood for some traditional fare so I opted for the Arabe Mixto ($25,000) a plate full of rice, dolmas, meat dumplings, dips, tabbouleh and falafel. Yum.
With full bellies and sore bums, we called it a night and returned to Bogotá. Night rides through the hills surrounding Bogotá during a full moon, what a way to spend Halloween.
Sarah
