This year Zipaquirá turns 423 years old and we want to celebrate this date by telling you 10 curious facts that you probably did not know about the Salt City of Colombia:
- Zipaquirá had the so-called Banco de Cipaquirá (with C, since the current spelling rules were established in the 20th century) it circulated bills of 5, 10 and 50 pesos in the 1880s. It worked in the historic house where it is located today the Bishop's Palace and was an example of the commercial and industrial power of Zipaquirá, in fact, it was considered the financial company with the largest market in the department of Cundinamarca.
- Gabo studied in Zipaquirá, that's right, the Colombian Nobel Prize winner for Literature completed his high school studies at the Zipaquirá National Men's High School for 4 years, a key period for García Márquez's literary and journalistic incidence in the history of Colombia. His first story and his first speech were written and read in Zipaquireño lands.
- The Zipaquirá flag is made up of three horizontal stripes of the same size, the upper green stripe represents the wealth of the municipality; the white middle stripe symbolizes the royal city; and finally, the red stripe represents the fight for independence and the heroes of the city who gave their lives.
- The Zipaquirá shield has a castle with three towers at the top and the shield is divided into three sections; in the upper half there is a book that symbolizes the communal capitulations; in the lower part on the right there is a city and on the left the Diocesan Cathedral of Zipaquirá. Under the shield the phrase: EVERYTHING FOR THE COUNTRY
- Zipaquirá has given several world and national champions in different disciplines to Colombia, many will remember Egan Bernal (cycling) but there are other names such as: Stephanie Benito (futsal), Diego Arias (mountain biking), Zipa Forero (cyclist), Diana Rojas (futsal), Libia Ortega (cyclist), Stella Castro (athlete), Héctor “El Zipa” González (Soccer), Yosiana Quintero (cyclist), among many others to come.
- The Red Candy is the traditional sweet of the city, it is of Spanish origin -the Spanish ladies taught it to the mestizas of the time-, it is said that it has been prepared in Zipaquirá since the 19th century and it is so famous that even the renowned singer-songwriter Jorge Velosa composed a song for him.
- The Siete Cueros is the flagship tree of Zipaquirá. Its name is due to the fact that it has several layers that surround the trunk, it can measure up to 12m in height and its flowers are purple and pink.
- Two presidents of Colombia have emerged from Zipaquirá; First, we have Santiago Pérez Manosalva, economist, professor, humanist, philosopher, lawyer, poet, journalist, and former president of Colombia from 1874 to 1876. Known for working for the education of the country, so much so that he was called the president of education. And second; He is the current president of Colombia (2022-2026) Gustavo Petro Urrego, the first left-wing president the country has had, his flags have been La Paz Total and Colombia World Power of Life.
- "La Torta Bicentenaria" was the largest cake in Latin America and was prepared by the city's pastry chefs' union to celebrate the 410 years of Zipaquirá and the Bicentennial of Independence, with more than 2,000 eggs, 600 liters of milk cream, 200 of vegetable oil, 500 kilos of flour, 120 of powdered sugar, 10 gallons of icing, 300 pounds of peaches and 400 pounds of strawberries Zipaquirá broke a continental record.
- In Zipaquirá you will find the best colonial-style hotel in the region, with excellent attention and service, comfortable rooms and promotional packages for special dates, learn more by clicking here.