Meet Manizales

Manizales is a city in central Colombia, the capital of the Caldas area. It lies near Nevado del Ruiz volcano and is prone to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mudslides. Nevertheless, Manizales is one of the coffee centers in the country with many plantations all over the area. Manizales is a city of a little under 500,000 inhabitants. It is also an education center of the area with many professional sports teams: football, indoor soccer, basketball.

What To See While In Manizales

When visiting these parts of the country, remember that you came to the climate of great humid and rains all over the year. The city has many wide avenues and squares. The most prominent city attraction is the neo-Gothic church – The Cathedral of Manizales, the third tallest in Latin America, at 133 meters.

Of course, there are also many museums and botanical gardens, hot springs, and resorts. One of the most interesting attractions is the Gold Museum of the Banco de la Republica. There are many important cultural and entertaining events related to theatre, jazz music, historical drama revivals, bullfighting, and beauty pageant contests.

There is a significant number of stray dogs, but they seem to be calm, quiet, and taken care of by many.

The larger the town, the bigger differences among social classes. You might encounter homeless and people on the very border of poverty just next to seriously luxurious areas. But that is nothing new. Poverty does look the same wherever you go.

Country Roads

The roads are good for motorcycling, and the city surrounding is just amazingly green and restful. The city does seem like an out of this world’s oasis. People do rely on two-wheel vehicles and they are the best solution for city driving and recreational sports in the Caldas area. There is something rather special in a two-hour ride from Manizales to Nevado del Ruiz, from 2,160m to 5,321m elevations, from being freezing cold while driving to the feeling of being in a sauna when you explore volcano hot springs. And you should definitely experience it!