Sogamoso - Lake Tota

Our next stop: Sogamoso.  You know what I love about these places?  The cheap meals to be had.  Just outside the bus station, we dined on a full meal with soup and fresh mango juice for just five mil!  Plus, the people working there were very friendly.

After dropping off our stuff, we headed to Punta Larga Vineyard, a place with great views but just average wine.  That didn't stop us from sharing a bottle of riesling, Afterward, we walked around the quaint town of Nabso and ate yet again before returning to our hostel.

Our hostel was Finca San Pedro, a commune-type of place.  We were in a large room with a bunch of other people, and the showers were outside.  The next morning, Becky and I were up earlier than most of the others.  While taking a shower, I realized I couldn't turn the water off, which is my habit while soaping up.  Plus, I didn't have my contacts in, so it was near impossible to see what was going on.  I quickly finished my shower and lightly dried off before sticking my head out to get help.  (I hate wasting water.)  The only person around was an older gentleman that was tending the gardens.  I asked him for help while wrapped in my rather skanky towel.  His eyes didn't know where to look, and he promptly walked away when I explained about the tap being stuck.  Sigh.  

Luckily, there was a European man in the kitchen (attached to our bedroom) when I went searching for someone else.  He wasn't nearly as stunned by my mostly nude body (rather insulting, actually) and came to my aid to turn off the water.  Only then did the older gentleman return with someone in tow to help.  Of course, people heard about it during our breakfast.....

While waiting for a bus outside the hostel, a family from Bogota offered us a lift to the lake.  They were quite amicable, and we stopped often to take pictures.  We had them drop us off in the small town of Aquitain, though, so we could rent bikes....again.

Lago Tota is the second largest lake in South America, and views of it are impressive.  During the whole drive and most of our bike ride, the scent of onions permeated the air.  The reason: acres and acres of onion fields.  People were harvesting the onions the whole day, and it looked like back-breaking work.  

Our goal for this bike ride was Playa Blanca, a beautiful crescent of white sand along the shore.  The actual route there was very hilly and took over an hour to accomplish, making it another great workout.  Once there, we relaxed and dined on some fresh trout before pedaling back to Aquitain.  

That night, we treated ourselves to pizza and the leftover Riesling.  We had definitely earned it.