Amid rolling foothills at the southern end of the Valle del Cauca, Popayán is a small gem. Known as the ‘Ciudad Blanca’ for the stunning uniformity of its chalk-white facades, it is second only to Cartagena as Colombia’s most impressive colonial city.
Founded in 1537 by Sebastián de Belalcázar, Popayán became the most important stopping point on the road between Cartagena and Quito. Its mild climate also attracted wealthy Spanish families from the sugar haciendas of the hot Cali region. In the 17th century they began building mansions, schools and several imposing churches and monasteries. Fortunately Cali overtook Popayán as the region’s capital in the early 20th century, so the Ciudad Blanca was never bulldozed to make way for modernity like so many other Colombian cities.
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