In a word, Monguí is authentic. The small village, located in the Boyacá Department, sits at 2900 mts/9,500 feet. It is far and away different from Villa de Leyva. It does not appear to be catering to tourists. The streets and the structures are eye-catching, but the people are what make this little village so enchanting. I stayed in Monguí for three nights but could have spent at least one more night there, even though the temperatures dropped considerably at night.
Getting to Monguí from Villa de Leyva was no easy feat. It was a three-bus trip. First, I took a bus from VdL to Tunja (more on Tunja in the next post). Next, I took the bus from Tunja to Sogamosa. Finally, I took a third bus from Sogamosa to Monguí.
I stayed at Hospedaje Bella Vista Monguí. No website for this place and the owners do no speak English, but if you can speak a little Spanish you will be fine. The place was almost impossible to find. Once there, however, the owners are tremendously helpful and the food is great. The rate was cheaper than any other place I stayed in the country and it included a wonderful breakfast. It is also only a short walking distance to the middle of town.
An oddity about the little town is that it is one of the premiere locations in Colombia, if not the world, for manufacturing soccer balls and every other ball you can imagine. Almost every shop in town has some level of creating or selling balls (see the last photo below).
The people of Monguí
The village
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