Mompós travel guide

Thanks to a geographical anomaly, Mompós (sometimes spelt Mompox and officially known as Santa Cruz de Mompós) retains much the same atmosphere you might have experienced visiting this sleepy town in the early 20th century. The grand old Magdalena River splits in two just before Mompós. When the town was founded in 1537, the Mompós branch of the river was the main tributary and it became a major staging port for travellers and merchandise going to the interior. But in the early 20th century it silted up with mud and became unnavigable for large boats, so traffic was diverted to the Brazo de Lobo. As a result Mompós became a backwater and it has remained practically untouched ever since.

In 1995 UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site for the quality of its colonial architecture and its fine churches, and it was the setting for the film adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold.

Today, in the evenings, as the soporific heat begins to lessen and the bats start to swoop from the eaves of the whitewashed houses, locals carry their rocking chairs out onto the streets to chat with neighbours and watch the world go by. Cars are rare here, the main forms of transport are bicycle, moped, auto-rickshaw – or on foot.

Mompós is still a difficult place to reach; while direct buses are possible, most journeys include a combination of bus, motorized canoe and car. But plans are afoot to improve transport connections. Hopefully, these changes won’t detract from its languid charm.

The churches demonstrate the colonial origins of the town; five of the six are close to the centre. The church of San Francisco is probably the oldest, dating from the end of the 16th century, with an interesting interior. Santo Bárbara, on Calle 14 by the river, has a unique octagonal Moorish tower and balcony. San Juan de Dios, La Concepción, Santo Domingo and San Agustín are all worth visiting. You may have to ask around for the key to see inside, they are not normally open except during Mass. Among the old buildings are the Casa de Gobierno, once a home of the Jesuits and now the Alcaldía, and the Colegio Pinillos. The cemetery is of considerable historical interest; try and visit on Wednesday of Semana Santa when it is illuminated by thousands of candles lit by the locals to respect the dead. The town is well known in Colombia for hand-worked gold and silver jewellery, especially filigree, as well as its wicker rocking chairs.

Simón Bolívar held Mompós dear to his heart, for it was the site of one of the greatest victories in his campaign to expel the Spanish from South America. “If to Caracas I owe my life, then to Mompós I owe my glory,” he said. He stayed in what is now called the Casa Bolivariana, which houses memorabilia of his times and also has some religious art exhibits. The Casa de la Cultura is a particularly interesting colonial building and home of the local Academy of History....read more