BREAKING BORDERS

Barrio Egipto is the second oldest neighborhood in Bogotá, after Candelaria, which borders it. It is an underprivileged neighborhood located at the foot of the mountain, with a long history of violence. It is still strongly discouraged to go there alone, although the situation has improved since 2016. It is undoubtedly the work of Breaking Borders that is beginning to bear fruit. This association of young people who were born and raised in the midst of the war between pandillas, is now banking on community tourism to change attitudes. Guides from the neighborhood, former gang members, now accompany travelers to show them their reality, the other Bogotá, without artifice, with poverty and social difficulties, but also all the dignity, creativity and energy of its inhabitants. Among them, talented artists, in the street art in particular, whose superb and very telling works can be admired on the facades of the brick houses. This visit is enriching from a sociological, historical and cultural point of view. It fully achieves its goal of breaking down boundaries and there is no particular risk in walking through the alleys of Egipto with the community guides, whose testimonies are all more poignant than the others. This "tour" has become very popular and one of the most popular in the capital. Take the tour only with Breaking Borders, do not go alone, the neighborhood is not a museum.