floundersgreatadventure

Nothing much happened on Sunday so Jeff and I just sat around and watched American football nothing like watching the Giants beat Dallas. We thought we might relate a little more history of the country today so here we go.

The Spanish settled along the north coast of today’s Colombia as early as the 1500s, but their first permanent settlement, at Santa Mara, was not established until 1525. In 1549, the institution of the Audiencia in Santa FE de Bogota gave that city the status of capital of New Granada, which comprised in large part what is now the territory of Colombia. The Spanish Crown sold properties to the gobernors, conquerors and their decedents creating large farms and possession of mines. Black slaves were introduced as labor. Also to protect the indigenous population from being decimated Indian reservations were created. The repopulation was achieved by allowing colonization by farmers and their families who came from Spain. With this began the colonial period. New Granada was ruled by the Royal Audience of Santa Fe de Bogota, but important decisions were taken to the colony from Spain by the Council of the Indies. A royal decree of 1713 approved the legality of Palenque de Basilio founded by runaway slaves from the fifteenth century; slaves had fled and sought refuge in the jungles of the Caribbean coast. The Spanish forces could not tolerate them and ended up submitting, thereby giving rise to the first free place in the Americas. It was their principle leader Benkos Bioho`, born in the region Bioho, Guinea Bissau, West Africa. Palenque de San Basilio was declared in 2005 as a “Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO. So much for today’s history lesson Jeff and Ruby are on their way to Medellin to visit a mall or two and then try and see the lights on the river. Me I’m going to give myself a good scratch and lick and take a nap.