To most travelers Honda will represent little more than a hot and nameless stop on an overnight bus from the Caribbean coast to Bogotá. All bus lines that run in from the north coast come through Honda and pause briefly, allowing a few souls to alight. There is no central terminal, so in the darkness it appears as a confusing crossroads on the highway.
The city straddles the Magdalena River with 29 bridges – for this it earns the name of “City of Bridges” - and lines it with some architecturally interesting buildings remaining from the colonial era (the river is then plundered during February’s Subienda fishing festival). Honda exists mainly as the last stop on the river journey to Bogotá. From here conquistadors and royalty had to rough it overland. For this reason the town has been declared a national monument. Others also know Honda as the “City of Peace” for avoiding the violence in the 1950s that strafed so many of Colombia’s important cities. The town as a whole has a worn and used up feel and has definitely known better days.
Telephone Code 8
Altitude 229 m
Population 40,000