Bucaramanga, 420 km from Bogotá, is the capital of Santander Department. A modern, industrial city with little remaining of its colonial past, it is nonetheless not without charm. It still has a small colonial area, some lovely parks and squares and fine dining and nightlife. It is also an important transport hub, connecting Bogotá with the main border with Venezuela, Cúcuta, and with the Atlantic coast. If you are heading to any of these destinations it is more than likely that you will have to make a stop in Bucaramanga.It stands on an uneven plateau sharply delimited by eroded slopes to the north and west, hills to the east and a ravine to the south. The city’s great problem is space for expansion. The metropolitan area has grown rapidly because of the success of coffee, tobacco and staple crops.
The city was founded in 1622 by Paéz de Sotomayor but was little more than a village until the 19th century. Simón Bolívar established his campaign headquarters here in 1813, and lived here for some time in the Casa de Bolívar around 1828. Perú de la Croix, a French officer in Bolívar’s army wrote his Bucaramanga Diary here, an interesting study of his leader. Gold was found in the hills and rivers nearby, hence the Río Oro to the southwest, which were worked until the end of the 19th century.
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