1.0 The locations of Magical Disinformation: Part 1 - Bogotá

This is a new blog post where I’ll introduce and write about key locations from my novel, MAGICAL DISINFORMATION. I won’t be giving away any spoilers, just some history, interesting facts about each place and provide some common “misinformation” followed by the truth.

(Note the difference between “misinformation” and “disinformation” below.)

“Misinformation is misleading information created or shared without the intent to manipulate people. An example would be sharing a rumor that a celebrity died, before finding out it’s false.” 

“Disinformation, by contrast, refers to deliberate attempts to confuse or manipulate people with dishonest information.”

(Source - https://theconversation.com/misinformation-disinformation-and-hoaxes-whats-the-difference-158491)

Bogotá

First up is Bogotá. A city close to my heart considering I spent 4 years living and working there, now returning every year to visit family and friends.

MAGICAL DISINFORMATION opens in Bogotá with the protagonist, Oliver Jardine, stumbling down the Eastern mountains of the Andean city. For anyone that’s visited Bogota it’s the first thing you notice about the city’s landscape and impossible to miss as you thunder down Avenida El Dorado in a taxi from the airport. Apart from providing a majestic backdrop, the mountains help in navigating the calles and carreras that make up the city. Because they flank the eastern side and run from north to south, they act as a useful landmark to know whether you’re heading north, south, east or west, following the reasonably organised street numbering system of Bogota.

Bogotá with the eastern mountains on the left.

But Bogotá isn’t all green mountains, far from it. Although it’s rather cliched to say Bogotá really is the thumping, pulsating heart of Colombia. A cosmopolitan, bulging city of commerce, culture, and politics sprawled along the Sabana de Bogotá, a flat highland basin sitting high up in the Andes. Being a bustling metropolis, it comes with all the usual big city problems of: crime, pollution, and traffic congestion. However, it also has the noble claim to fame of being the Athens of the Americas, hosting more than 30 universities. I, myself, even taught at a university while living there. 

The site where Bogotá now sits was originally the capital of the local indigenous group, the Muisca, until the arrival of the Spanish under Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada who founded the town on August 6, 1538. It was named Santa Fé de Bogotá. Santa Fé from his hometown in Spain (which seems to be located near Granada in Southern Spain where Quesada studied law), and Bogotá, from the original Muisca name, Bacata. It’s thought Jiménez de Quesada founded the city at the Chorro de Quevedo, which is now a plazoleta popular with students, bohemian hacky-sack kickers and the famous cuenteros, storytellers, who keep audiences rapt with their tales. 

Streets of La Candelaria, the historic centre.

In terms of Bogotá’s role in MAGICAL DISINFORMATION, two neighbourhoods stand out in this first part of the novel. First, we have La Candelaria, the historic centre of the city housing the Plaza de Bolivar, Museo de Oro (The Gold Museum), and a Botero gallery and many other tourist related sites. As well as the sites mentioned above in which Jiménez de Quesada was involved. There is one particular scene where Jardine visits a professor at the Universidad de los Andes which is in this area, sitting at the top of Avenida Jimenez, which leads up to the cable car or funicular to Monserrate, one of mountain tops housing a church overlooking the city. 

Later, Jardine is to be found in the neighbourhood of Chapinero, an energetic, hipster-habitating area which connects the historic centre with the more affluent north, branching out along the Carrera Septima which acts as one of Bogotá’s principal roads. 

You can read the first few chapters of MAGICAL DISINFORMATION (which include the scenes mentioned above) via the Amazon “Look Inside” function HERE.

Now let’s look at some common misinformation about Bogotá!

Common Misinformation about Bogotá 

Bogotá has been portrayed in many films and books over the years. I think I gave a relatively accurate picture of the city, but I thought it would be interesting to highlight some common nuggets of misinformation conveyed to the world, often through Hollywood movies. Thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Smith starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie for the examples below:

Bogotá Misinformation

• It’s steamy and jungle-y.

• It’s hot.

• There are chickens running around on the streets.

Bogotá? Not likely…

Bogotá Facts

• FACT: It’s high (2,640 metres closer to the stars as Colombia’s tourism agency will tell you) 

• FACT: It’s cold. You're more likely to see people donning scarves, suits or leather jackets than you are a hawaiian shirt. A good way to stick out in Bogotá is to wear shorts.

• FACT: The only chicken I’ve seen in Bogotá was on my plate and usually covered in a garlic or mushroom sauce...

Bogotá.

So there you have a little bit of information about Bogotá and will hopefully be better informed next time you watch an inaccurate movie depicting Colombia.

Coming up next…

As the action gets going, we’re headed to the Caribbean coast of Colombia which is where the rest of the novel plays out.

If you are interested in reading MAGICAL DISINFORMATION click here to pick up a copy via your preferred bookstore.