Along the trails of Nariño, Colombia
- Camila Peña P.
- May 20, 2016
- 2 min read
To travel to the department of Nariño, birthplace of the best music trios –a set of three guitars–, is to travel to one of Colombia’s most beautiful and bio-diverse regions. Besides being the gateway to the country’s Southwest, it is the spot where the sea meets the Andes and the jungle, to top it all. Handcrafts are the basis of the region’s cultural tourism. Just to mention the jewelry in Tumaco; the hats and objects made of toquilla straw in Sandoná; leather products in Belén, and the veneer, clay, wooden and ceramic artifacts made in San Juan de Pasto, the department’s capital.
Its gastronomy has different tastes and aromas. On the coast, for example, salmonte, shrimp carpaccio, ‘encocado’, ‘mazamorra tumaqueña’ and ‘ceviche de piangua’ . On the Sierra, indian and European tastes blend, which has resulted in ‘sopa de locro’, colored trout, ‘frito pastuso’, ‘la choriza’, ‘hornado’ and Nariño’s emblematic dish, ‘cuy asado’.
Moreover, in this vast department, an overwhelming variety of landscapes mingle: deep gorges, fertile plains, mountains and glaciers, huge lakes, and vast reserves rich in flora and fauna. The pristine beaches of Tumaco, Lake La Cocha, Sanquianga National Park, Juanambú Canyon and the nature reserve of the Ñambí river, are ideal destinations for hiking, setting aside tensions and practicing extreme sports like bungee jumping, rafting, paragliding and kayaking.
The capital of the department of Nariño is located in the Valley of Atriz, at the foot of the volcano Galeras. For it predominantly republican architecture, it is known as the theological city of the country, as it hosts a large number of temples and shrines. It is also home of the Carnaval de Negros y Blancos, one of the nation’s cultural heritages. In the last decade, Pasto has evolved socially, culturally and economically with the opening of new shopping centers, the development of health tourism and by creating different education and recreation venues for the city’s young people.
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