Pasto, Colombia - Polarsteps

Nov. 7, 2022 - Pasto, Colombia. Pasto is a small city high in the Andes Mtns between 8000-9000 feet. Pasto was founded in 1537 which means you'll see a lot of very old buildings and classic architecture. Pasto is another very old city, this one having a population of more than 450,000. It is the capital of the Nariño department (province). Most of the city lies between 2,520 meters (8,270 ft) and 2,700 meters (8,900 ft) in elevation. There are some communities that are high, about 3,000 meters (9,800 ft), up on the sides of the Galeras volcano, which tops out at 4,276 meters (14,029 ft). The weather is very pleasant with an average high all year round of around 69° F (21° C) and an average low of 55° F (13° C). Pasto has its own Carnaval called Carnaval de Negros y Blancos (Black's and White's Carnival). It takes place the first week of January. As for rain, if you're familiar with the amount of rain in the Seattle, WA area—the two cities are very similar. The road across the mountains from Mocoa to Pasto was gravel, very rough, and often only one lane with steep and deep drops. The elevation of the pass is around is close to 2800 meters (around 9000ft). Here in Pasto, you can find buildings that are more than 400 years old and still being used. In Pasto, I walked around the city and took pictures of many of the historic churches and general city pics. There's much more to see but I want to keep going and get into the part where I feel I'm finally going on this 'round-South America' trip. There are a few more historic churches, the La Cocha Lagoon is a volcano crater lake with an island called La Corota which is a wildlife sanctuary. The hotel, Hotel Vymar, is quite nice, especially for the money. The rooms are big and have an integrated closet and desk. The bathroom is big and the shower is surprisingly big with a rain shower head and hot water. The materials they used for the interior finish are of good quality, as well. There's also a restaurant/bar as part of the hotel. Pasto and the surrounding area should be on your list of places to visit if you have the chance to visit Colombia.