Last updated on .
The small town of Belén de Umbría is my home in Colombia. It is a coffee growing town that sits up in the mountains surrounded by a beautiful green landscape and part of the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia.
Introduction to Belén de Umbría
The people in Belén are very friendly and welcoming and it didn’t take long for me to feel like a local after moving here. I came here to teach English but quickly realized it’s a great place to live.
Belén is an agricultural community that sits on the side of a mountain. The streets can be very steep. It might be difficult to walk up and down some of the streets, but the views are stunning and at least it keeps me in shape.
Residents of Belén can find almost anything they need in town. There’s a hospital, shops selling all kinds of household goods, and some very good schools. Children join football teams and play tournaments in the stadium. Culture is also important to the town. Belén’s small museum is excellent and the Cultural Center (Casa de la Cultura) often puts on plays, dance performances, and more.
The weather in Belén is a bit cooler than many nearby towns because it’s at a higher elevation. Mornings are nice and comfortable, the afternoons can get very hot, but once the sun sets behind the mountain, the nights become crisp and cool. The weather can change in an instant. Sometimes clouds roll over the mountains quickly and heavy rains pass through, but they typically don’t last very long.
Main Plaza in Belén de Umbría
Life in Belén revolves around the main plaza. Here, you can find several shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, and cafés. Locals love to drink coffee and aguardiente, dance, and listen to music. Music plays loudly past 1am on most nights. On weekends, the plaza is jam packed with people loading up jeeps and coming in from rural areas to go shopping.
One common sight in the plaza is the jeeps with sacks full of coffee beans and plantains packed on top, and people hanging off the sides and back. They’re also used for transportation to more rural areas, and sometimes to other towns.
Church of Santa Rosa de Lima
On the plaza is the Church of Santa Rosa de Lima. It’s simple inside but it’s an important symbol of the town. The first church was a small chapel completed in 1902, which was officially consecrated by the first bishop of Manizales, Gregorio Nacianceno Hoyos Yarza. Another church was built in the 1930s, but it was replaced with the current building in the 1940s. The bell tower stands 45 meters high and contains bells brought from France in 1928.
The church was gutted by a fire on September 14, 1952, and was completely redesigned. Construction was finished in 1955. Stained glass windows made in Medellín and Cali were added, with funds donated by local families.
Guillermo Jesús González Ospina House
Just uphill from the plaza is the only building I’ve spotted with a historical marker. The building was the birthplace of Guillermo Jesús González Ospina (1919-1962), the writer of the lyrics for the pasodoble of the Manizales Fair (Feria de Manizales).
Farmers Market
On the first Sunday of every month, there’s a farmers market in the plaza. Local farmers and artisans come to sell all kinds of fruits and vegetables, coffee, honey, tamales, condiments, and several other goods.
Founders Park
There are a few smaller plazas in town. Founders Park (Parque Fundadores) has the firehouse, the Fireman’s Church, and a few sculptures in the middle. On another end is the Town Hall (Alcaldía).
Plazuela
The Plazuela has places to play basketball and football and a playground. It’s in front of one of the biggest schools in town. It’s also where you can get some of the best views of Belén.
Eliseo Bolívar Museum
The privately-run Eliseo Bolívar Museum (Museo Eliseo Bolívar) is a fantastic museum with a unique collection. It was founded in 1942 and displays indigenous artifacts from the pre-Columbian period along with personal items collected by the grandfather of the museum’s current owners.
I was invited for a personal tour by my student, Sebastián, whose family runs the museum, and visited with Marisol. Admission is free (as of October 2024) but it’s important to call ahead to schedule a visit. The museum is a must-see if you’re in Belén. The hospitality of the family and the wonderful collection are both treasures.
The museum is set in a beautiful home on the edge of town built in 1894. It features a large open courtyard and the views of Belén and the surrounding green hills are amazing.
Museum Collection
The first rooms are the ethnographic section, showing old photos of Belén and displaying rare personal items, old irons and other household items, a Victrola phonograph, and an antique movie reel from Germany. The library contains many books printed in the 1700s and magazines from the mid 20th century. There’s also a small chapel with priceless ceramic religious figurines.
In the main gallery, there are roughly 500 pieces of pottery from the indigenous Quimbaya people who once populated the area. Small tools, ceramic figures, and more are housed behind glass cases. Some of the pieces in the collection are totally unique and cannot be found in other museums in Colombia.
Scattered among the Quimbaya artifacts are more modern items, such as a money collection from several countries around the world, religious artifacts, paintings, articles of clothing, and even cannonballs.
We were also able to see a stereoscope with rare photos from the early 20th century. This is only one of two stereoscopes known to exist in all of Colombia. I’ve also seen the other one at Caliwood in Cali.
My Thoughts on Belén de Umbría
Overall, Belén de Umbría is a great place to live and I feel lucky to have been placed here at the beginning of my life in Colombia. I’ve lived there since 2014 and have grown to know many residents and supported many businesses. It’s been interesting to see the town grow and develop over the years, and we plan on living there for quite a while longer.
