Sucre – Bolivia’s White City

It was time to move on through Bolivia, and Sucre was next. The bus journey wasn’t particularly long, and I arrived in Sucre in the early afternoon. I knew that this city would also offer impressive colonial squares and buildings, but once again, I was met by surroundings that looked a little tired. This time, however, I was better prepared, so I set off on foot towards the city centre and my hotel.

Sucre is also situated high in the mountains, with steep hills in and around the city. This means you have to be prepared for quite a bit of uphill walking here as well.

You can clearly see that the city is growing and developing, even though the historic centre is surprisingly small for the capital of such a large country. There were many unfinished buildings, including apartment blocks of seven or eight storeys. People had already moved into the lower floors, while the upper floors were still far from finished.

But then you reach the old, dignified part of the city. Here, large squares are surrounded by impressive buildings on every side. Much of it is white, reminding me of another white city I have visited, Arequipa in Peru. This part of Sucre lies on a relatively flat plateau, so it is easy to forget that steep hills are just around the corner.

San Felipe de Neri

One of the most impressive religious buildings here is the Church of San Felipe de Neri, part of a former convent. The colonnaded walkways around the courtyard are very impressive, and one of the most popular things to do is to climb onto the roof and look out over the city at sunset. You get a wonderful view of the brilliant white buildings and towers, with their sea of terracotta rooftops.

I felt it was time to give my calf muscles a bit of a challenge, so I first walked uphill to the ASUR Museum of Indigenous Art. It has some excellent displays of local handicrafts, and I even bought myself a woven scarf. From there, I continued to the statue of Jesus at Mirador Norte Churuquella. There were plenty of steps, but the view was well worth the effort. Some kind of ceremony was taking place at the statue, so I kept my distance.

Parque Cretácico

Another excursion from Sucre is of a completely different kind: Parque Cretácico at Cal Orck’o, home to an extraordinary collection of fossilised dinosaur footprints. Thousands of individual footprints can be seen on an enormous, near-vertical limestone wall. You have to view them from a distance, but on the other hand, the park has created something resembling a Jurassic Park, complete with life-sized dinosaur models. Perhaps it is most exciting for children, but it is worth a visit regardless.

Castillo de la Glorieta

To round off my rather relaxed days in Sucre, I went for a walk in a completely different direction, to Castillo de la Glorieta. This is a slightly eccentric palace built for Bolivia’s only prince and princess, a title granted to the couple who lived there. With its pink colour and mixture of architectural styles, it looks like something out of a fairy tale. The palace has been empty since the 1970s and shows some signs of decay today, but it makes for an entertaining detour.

Some of you may be wondering why I have called Sucre the capital of Bolivia. Isn’t that La Paz? Well, Sucre is the country’s official constitutional capital, while La Paz is the seat of government and the administrative centre. And La Paz is, in fact, my next destination.