These Sands are not Shifting

Not the greatest shot of me at the entrance to the Marvels
of the World in Sand, but it's not really about me.

The last time I was in Bogota, I had time enough to go and visit “Maravillas del Mundo en Arena” (Marvels of the World in Sand), an amazing collection of sand sculptures on display in a series of tents covering 32,000 square feet, created by sand artists from around the world. It took over 6,000 tons of sand from the Rio Sumapaz, determined to be of the right consistency to build sculptures that are over three stories in height using only water to hold them in place.

10,000 foot mountains surround Bogota
which is at 8,000 feet of elevation.

This is another good reason to check into events that are taking place when you are traveling. The event was over at the end of March and I would have missed it if someone had not said to me, "If you have time, make sure you see "Maravillas" and I am glad I did.

The first sand sculpture seen upon entering
the show.

Sand artists have been building castles and other structures for decades and some of them probably got their start at a beach, building moats and then watching the tide take their work away. You can see some of the internationally renowned sand artists and their work here. I was unable to get a list of those participating in the Bogota event, but am fairly certain some of them were among those displayed at that web site.

All of the "Wonders of the World" were re-created in sand, including the Pyramid at Giza, the Sphinx, the Great Wall of China, the Buddha, the Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal and more. There were tableaus of the U.S. Space Program, a nativity scene, South American indigenous archeological finds, the Tower of London and Big Ben, a giant chess set in sand and other artistic creations.

What follows are some photographs of the sculptures. The lighting was difficult for taking photos, so some are not as clear as I would have liked. I could have done a better job if I had taken a tripod with me, but this is not something I normally do. This presentation of more than 100 sculptures was sponsored by Foto Urbano, an international training company which has sponsored similar events in other places world wide.

This photo of the Buddha is credited to eltiempo.com

If you look closely at this you will see the 'shadow' of
the Twin Towers in this NYC structure in sand.

The U.S. space program featured in sand. Notice the
people to the right, giving you an idea of the size and
scale of the sculpture.

One of the artists at work near the end of the exhibition.

The Nativity scene was given a place of honor at the end of the show,
taking up about 10 meters in length - very impressive!

Close up of the Nativity scene. The standing Joseph is,
in my estimation, approximately 18 feet tall.

If you are interested in learning more about sand sculpture, here is a short video of the 2011 world competition in Washington state.

What I wished I'd seen...

My next-door neighbor sent me this picture from a friend of hers, "Lyn," who lives further south (and closer to the launch pad) than we do. It confirmed for both of us that what we saw (even if it was too small to get a photo) was indeed Discovery. I'm glad I went on the NASA site to listen to their radio transmissions until they did the fire-up to go out of orbit and into space to catch up with the Space Station. There is another evening launch in May, if it goes as scheduled, and I think I will make the effort to get closer so I can enjoy the bragging rights of having "been there," at least once.