The Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá

in #hive-1637722 years ago

Today, we'll travel to the outskirts of Bogotá to visit the so-called first wonder of Colombia, the Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá. The cathedral was built inside a salt mine almost 200 meters deep.

To get to Zipaquirá, we decided to hire a taxi on our own, but you can also get there by bus, a private tour, or train. We considered going by train, but it only runs on Sundays and holidays, and we wanted to go during the week.

I will tell you about some of the stops we made on the way to and from Zipaquirá on another occasion. But today, I will focus on the visit to the Salt Cathedral.

The town of Zipaquirá is about 50 km from Bogotá. But with the traffic jams to get out of the city, it is a drive of more than an hour.

The taxi driver dropped us off at the parking area, close to which were the ticket offices. We bought the ticket, which included a guided tour of the cathedral. The cost was 77500 Colombian pesos per adult which at the exchange rate was about 17 dollars.

LlegandoCatedralDeSal_Zipaquira.jpg

Tickets in hand, we head for the Plaza del Minero towards the entrance of the Cathedral.

The mine in which the cathedral is located is an active salt mine and is still commercially exploited. Its origins date back to pre-Hispanic times when the Muiscas, inhabitants of this region called Cundinamarca, began the exploitation of salt, which they used for trade.

The construction of this cathedral started in 1991, but it is not the first one. The old salt cathedral built in Zipaquirá was closed down because it was considered unsafe.

Old cathedral
Years before the underground church was built (around 1932), the miners had carved a sanctuary, as a place for their daily prayers asking for protection to the saints before starting to work. In 1950, the construction of a bigger project had begun: the Salt Cathedral which was inaugurated on August 15, 1954, and dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, Patron saint of miners. It was compound of three naves and a monumental cross. Part of the galleries were actually carved by the ancient Muisca. However, as the church was carved inside an active mine, structural problems and safety concerns led the authorities to shut it in September 1992. Source

PlazaDelMinero.jpg

When you enter the mine, you are given some safety instructions. And they tell you to join the mine's wifi network to be connected during your stay in the mine.

New cathedral
In 1991 the construction of a new cathedral was undertaken, 200 feet under the older one. This new Cathedral was inaugurated on December 16, 1995. Its various corridors and sanctuaries were achieved by making small but significant additions to the caves left behind by previous mining operations.Source

We enter through a kind of tunnel. The lighting plays a fundamental role in the whole place. And as we enter the mine, there is a part of the tunnel where you can see the flags of the countries of the group of visitors who are about to start the guided tour.

CatedralDeSal2.jpg

CatedralDeSal1.jpg

In the first part of the route, there are several caves with crosses, 14 to be exact, which represent the Stations of the Cross.

The photos below are from some of the stations, in no particular order.

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_1.jpg

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_2.jpg

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_3.jpg

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_4.jpg

As the visit progresses, you stop at each of the stations, where, in addition to the explanation of the Stations of the Cross, you are given some interesting details of the workings of the mine and information about the construction of the cathedral.

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_5.jpg

CatedralDeSal_ViaCrucis_6.jpg

At the end of the Stations of the Cross, we reached an enclosure from where down you can see the altar of the nave of the cathedral.

CatedralDeSal_3.jpg

CatedralDeSal_4.jpg

There is a big statue of an angel playing the trumpet at this point.

CatedralDeSal_6.jpg

And the illumination and the immensity of the place carved in the salt give the nave of the cathedral an impressive appearance.

CatedralDeSal_5.jpg

The visit continues the tour, and we go more down into the mine to reach the main nave. But first, we pass a chapel which the guide explains to us has a special meaning for the miners. It is where the miners usually celebrate mass, and the chapel is dedicated to the Virgin of the Rosary of Guasá, who is the patron saint of the miners.

CatedralDeSal_7.jpg

Continuing the tour we pass a point where there is a carved nativity scene.

CatedralDeSal_8.jpg

Finally, we arrive at the nave of the cathedral, where if you look at the back, you can see the point with the figure of the angel from where we observed the altar for the first time.

CatedralDeSal_9.jpg

And we could admire the huge cross. When you look closely at it, you realize that it is dug into the wall of the mine. And by the way it is illuminated, it seems to be suspended.

CatedralDeSal_10.jpg

The cross and the nave of the cathedral are stunning.

CatedralDeSal_11.jpg

This was another of the salt-carved scenes we saw before entering the commercial area of the mine.

CatedralDeSal_12.jpg

At the end of the visit to the cathedral, you enter a shopping area with cafes and shops, where you can buy anything from Colombian handicrafts, and souvenirs carved in salt, to emerald jewelry, or even have a spa treatment.

MinaSalZipaquira1.jpg

We finished the guided tour and didn't spend much time in this area, as we wanted to take a walk around Zipaquirá before heading back, and I'll tell you about the town some other time. So we decided to leave the mine. We had the option of going out the way we came in and undoing the whole route, or from the point where we were, we could take a train inside the mine that takes you outside, and that's what we did.

MinaSalZipaquira2.jpg

This last photo was taken by my son, who had to go next to the driver of the train at the exit of the mine.

MinaSalZipaquira3.jpg

The Salt Cathedral is a masterpiece of engineering. It is impressive and well worth a visit.

Thank you for reading!

All images and writing are my own unless otherwise stated.

© CoquiCoin

October 18, 2022

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What a place sis! Shows the ingenuity of people. The different colors of the lighting gave the underground some sort of magical appeal. Thank you for this awesome tour sis!
!LUV

You are right. It has a magical appeal :) You are welcome, sis 🤗😊
!LUV

I converted the entrance fee in our local currency and it cost P935. Quite expensive but if this what I am going to see? It's all worth it! My Gosh! The place was so wonderful!

200 feet below the ground? How's the oxygen level?

How's the oxygen level?

Quite salty 🤣🤣🤣

Hahha nice one Kuya,😂🤣.
I was just curious, cause it was under the ground🤣

hehe I know inday, pero I could not resist a chance to tease you🤣

Haha, actually napangiti ako and I was thinking, maybe since its a salt mountain? Lol.

But the place is worth to visit, sayang its too far from me

Do you mine salt over there inday, we do in England.

Haha now I felt ashamed,
Honestly I don't know how salt made here in my country. Aside from they use sea water?🤔😂

hehe you do realise you will have me researching if there are salt mines there!

Hello, Lhes! The entrance fee is a bit expensive, but the place is worth it. It is something unique and if it was somewhere in Europe or the US, it would probably be much more expensive.

As for the oxygen, you are inside a mine with all its facilities and many safety measures. They are constantly monitoring the levels of oxygen and other gases.

Thank you for stopping by 🤗

Won't it melt in summer 😅.. Never been 200ft below the ground .. Must be a great experience

Hehe! Salt doesn't melt 😂
I've never been in a mine before. Before the visit, I thought I might feel a bit claustrophobic, but not at all. The place is very well suited. They have created an incredible space inside the mine, so yes, the experience was great :)

I was thinking about table salt 🤣🤣

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Wow it's interesting to see how new cathedrals are built, this one seems to be interactive!! Never saw something like this one!

Hola! Es increíble cómo pudieron hacer una catedral así dentro de una mina de sal. Es realmente impresionante.
Gracias por pasarte y comentar 🤗

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or even have a spa treatment.

Reminds me of when we floating in the Dead Sea in Israel with all the salt!
What an epic tour, and all the coloured lights work really well illuminating everything up.

Salt was big business in England pretty much from Cheshire and Worcestershire. We learnt this watching the canal boat videoes. Many of the places at which the salt is mined have names ending in wich, such as Northwich, Middlewich, Nantwich, Droitwich, Netherwich, and Shirleywich.

Did you drive the train jeje

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I wonder if there is something similar over there...

Hello hello Super Ed
I didn't know salt had been a big deal in England.

And I didn't drive the train thank god, hehe. But I love Gromit 😉 the movies are good, but I can watch the first three Wallace and Gromit shortfilms over and over again no matter how many years have passed. They are so cool!
No crackers, Gromit! We've forgotten the crackers!
And now that I think you are like Gromit
!LOLZ

It is funny Super Eli, but I have not really watching much of W and G but I like bring like Groit.
Mrs T is a fan too!

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Well, you should watch it, Super Ed

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wow - what a place, I love the lighting - it must have been a fantastic experience ! Plus wifi - how cool is that !
!LUV

The place is wow, really:)
Thank you!

!CTP

¡Un saludo, un fuerte abrazo y bendiciones, @coquicoin!

!PAL

Gracias Armando, igual para ti 🤗

!CTP

WOW! It is a beautiful place to visit.

Thank you for stopping by :)

Hiya, @ybanezkim26 here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Daily Travel Digest #1673.

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That's some awesome place to visit right there!

I really enjoyed the bold choice of colors for the cross, the purple, etc...

Thank you for stopping by :)

This indeed is worth a visit
Underground with such lights?
That's really beautiful.
The lights there makes it more beautiful.

Thank you for stopping by:)
!CTP

Wow what an experience. Going into a mine and seeing all of this. The caves with crosses. The light does add to the entire experience.
Thanks a lot @coquicoin for sharing this with us. 😊👋🏻
Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Hi, Jackie!
The cathedral is a marvel. I never imagined it would be so impressive.
My pleasure to share. Have a lovely day 😊

It sure is. It’s so large down there… very impressive indeed.
Thank you so much, enjoy yours further 👋🏻☀️
Dark and grey here at the moment.

I hope the weather will change and the sun will come out.
Enjoy the afternoon 😊🌸

Thanks @coquicoin it didn’t. But still was a good busy day.
Now evening…
Enjoy your day further 👋🏻😊🤗🌺