Cali Things to Do

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San Antonio is the most traditional neighbourhood of Cali. In the colonial times it was the extension of the downtown. Although it was split by Calle Quinta, it conserves its colonial feel. All the neighbourhood is on a hill, and at the top you'll find a calm and peaceful park and a beautiful Iglesia de San Antonio.

This old, bohemian neighbourhood is a lovely area to explore by day and night. In the afternoon you can wander around the quiet streets lined with picturesque colonial houses, small and independent theatres, arty cafés, eclectic bars and artists workshops. And at night Caleños come to a hillside park in front of the church and enjoy the breeze and occasionally relaxing music while watching the sparkling lights of Cali.

I loved San Antonio and was really happy that I was staying here. The area is very calm and only a 10-minutes walk to historic centre.

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Overlooking the Río Cali, Iglesia de la Ermita has become a landmark of Cali and it is certainly the most photographed church in the city. The original church, a small baroque chapel, was built here in the early 17th-century and its name was Ermita de Nuestra Señora de la Soledad del Río. It was totally destroyed in the 1925 earthquake.

Today stands a very different structure, a neo-gothic blue and white church that was built between 1930 and 1948. It was inspired by the cathedral in Cologne, Germany. There is a fine marble altar and the painting El Señor de la Caña (Lord of the Sugarcane), which dates back to 1787, reflecting the local importance of sugar cane, one of the few items that survived the earthquake.

The church is open weekdays 06:30am-noon and 02:30pm-07:00pm, Sat 06:30am-noon and 04:00pm-05:30pm, Sun 08:00am-noon and 05:00pm-07:00pm; free admision.

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There are several produce markets with fruit and vegetables, fish and seafood, meat, grains and beans, but the best quality is Galería Alameda. One morning my new local friends, Claudia, Lenny and Ricardo, brought me there. Though this large market is somehow out of the way of the usual sightseeing, it was well worth a visit. I especially enjoyed the fruits area and ended up buying two bags full of delicious tropical fruits. Most of them, such as pitaya (this little weird yellow spiky fruit was my favourite), chirimoya and níspero (sapodilla), I never tried before.

You also find a good selection of beautiful tropical flowers (oh, I wished I could take some with me) and places with local food (tamales, arepas, sancocho). We stopped at the place with the greatest variety of fruit juices and had some delicious new flavours, such as lulo (naranjilla), curuba (banana passionfruit) and guanábana (soursop). Outside there are several shops with unique arts and crafts which were worth having a look as well.

It is open daily from 05:00am to 06:00pm.

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Plaza de Caycedo is the main square and the civic centre of the city. It was named after Cali's hero Joaquin de Cayzedo y Cuero and since its foundation it has been a useful point of reference for other places in the city. The square is fringed by beautiful tall palm trees. It is surrounded by many important historical and modern buildings.

Facing the square is the Catedral, a large three aisle church with clerestory, elaborate aisle niches and stained glass windows. The original church dated from around 1539 and the present building is from the mid 19th century. The Palacio Nacional is on the eastern side of the square, a French neo-classical building, now the city archive. Next to it is Edificio Otero.

Notary publics, hawkers, lottery ticket sellers, food vendors and shoeshine boys among others can be found here offering customers their services.

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In the corner of Carrera 5 and Calle 6 you will be amazed by a huge brick building, Centro Cultural de Cali. This is one of the most representative cultural institutions of Cali. Photography exhibitions, music festivals, salsa workshops, as well as theatre and music groups, come together in this excellent cultural space. Besides, if you like dance performances, independent film and enjoy a varied cultural program, this is certainly the place to visit.

Since 1997 Centro Cultural de Cali is considered the cultural centre of the city and headquarters of the Secretarías Municipales de Turismo y Cultura.

It is open Mon-Fri 08:00am-12:30pm and 02:00pm-05:30pm.

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One of the few places where you can get a fine view of Cali is atop the hill in San Antonio. Here you will find a small church Iglesia de San Antonio with a splendid baroque altar. The church was built in 1757 and contains some highly valuable tallas quiteñas from the 17th century, a rather fine set of Quito carved-wood statues of saints. There's also a little stall selling religious art.

In front of the church is a pleasant park where you can take a rest in the shadow of trees, get fresh air and admire a view of the city below. In the afternoon street vendors set the tables with cold drinks, coffee and variety of snacks. More people come in the evening, sit around the stairs, have a drink and sometimes you can even hear the music.

The church is open 07:00am-04:00pm; admission by donation.

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Construction of the beautiful yellow Teatro Municipal began in April 1918 and it was inaugurated on November 1927 with the opera The Troubadour by the Italian company Bracale. In 1953 it was remodeled and reopened in 1954, during the 450 years of the founding of the city. Inspired by the Italian opera theatre, this neoclassical theatre holds up to 1.200 people in its stylish and elaborate European-like interior. It was declared a national monument in 1982.

The theatre is located in the historic centre, along with other institutions that form the epicentre of culture and heritage of Cali. Today it is used for various artistic performances, including musical concerts, theatre and ballet.

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Cali's oldest existing building dates back to around 1538-1540 and was formerly La Merced convent but today houses the Museo Arqueológico La Merced. This archeological museum displays regional pre-Columbian pottery and a scale model of the city. In five rooms you'll find a collection of pottery of the major cultures from central and southern Colombia, including Quimbaya, Tolima, Calima, Tierradentro, San Agustin, Nariño and Tumaco.

The museum is open Tues-Sat 09:00am-01:00pm and 02:00pm-06:00pm; admission is 4.000 COP (December 2008).