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Colorful Ráquira is the pottery capital of Colombia and an easy day trip from Villa de Leyva.
Introduction to Ráquira
The area around Ráquira was originally inhabited by the Muisca people. The modern town was founded on October 18, 1580, by Friar Francisco de Orejuela. Ráquira translates to Village of the Pans in the Chibcha language.
Today, the town is famous throughout Colombia for its traditional pottery. In addition to pottery, handwoven goods such as bags, baskets, dresses, and hammocks as well as other Colombian souvenirs can be found there. About ¾ of the town’s economy is based on handicrafts, and it’s especially popular to visit for the Sunday market.
Getting to Ráquira
To get to Ráquira, you can take a bus from Villa de Leyva. It takes about 45 minutes. We visited in the morning and combined it with a trip to La Candelaria Monastery.
Where to Eat in Ráquira
As a major regional tourist destination, there are plenty of restaurants to choose from in town. Most serve traditional dishes or fast food.
Restaurante Cazuelas Boyacenses
One restaurant you have to try is Restaurante Cazuelas Boyacenses. We’ve eaten there on every trip we’ve taken to the town. Their specialty is in the title – cazuelas boyacenses.
On the ground floor, there’s a souvenir shop and the restaurant is upstairs. Pottery hangs from the walls and ceilings along with some fun posters and pictures. We sat on the balcony, which has a nice view overlooking the plaza.
For lunch, we shared a cazuela boyacense, which is a hearty stew full of beans, peas, potato, meat, and other goodies. It came with a patacón, rice, and a slice of avocado. We also tried an arepa boyacense, which was excellent.
Plaza
The plaza is a great place to start exploring the town. It’s surrounded by colorful buildings including the Town Hall (Alcaldía), which also joins in on the fun.
In the plaza you’ll find all kinds of statues created by local potters. There are men making vases, women weaving, religious figures, and even a donkey. A ceramic relief of the town surrounds the trees planted in the plaza.
A fountain in the center of the plaza has a statue of a boy with his hat on backwards peeing into the basin. I guess it’s the Colombian version of Manneken Pis in Brussels.
Church of San Antonio
The Church of San Antonio (Iglesia de San Antonio de la Pared) is on the south side of the plaza. It’s a plain brick building with a tall bell tower. The church was built in 1600 by Cristóbal Aranda and was elevated to a cathedral in 1690. It combines the Gothic style on the exterior with the Colonial style inside.
Bridge of Souls
Just off the plaza is the Bridge of Souls (Puente de las Ánimas). From this small covered bridge, you can see the river that passes through town.
Shopping in Ráquira
The streets nearest to the plaza are lined with souvenir shops packed to the gills with colorful pottery, mugs, piggy banks, hammocks, toys, fridge magnets, and all kinds of other things. You can even find unpainted pottery in some stores.
Wandering Around Ráquira
Besides shopping, one of the best things to do in Ráquira is to simply walk around town to admire the colorful buildings. They’re a stark contrast to nearby Villa de Leyva. Bright oranges, yellows, and reds dominate the streets. On the plaza, you can even find a building painted as the Colombian flag.
On some buildings you’ll find murals. During our first visit, the exterior of Restaurante Cazuelas Boyacenses had a few caricatures of famous Colombian athletes, such as cyclist Nairo Quintana from nearby Cómbita and the 2014 and 2018 Colombian World Cup teams.
