Cauca Capital Popayán Capital of Cauca, founded in 1537, known as the White City for the whitewashed facades of the historic center. Near Parque Caldas are the cathedral, the Torre del Reloj and the Iglesia de San Francisco; to the north, the Puente del Humilladero, the Casa Museo Mosquera and Morro de Tulcán, a pre-Hispanic earth pyramid. It is the city of pipián empanadas and Holy Week processions.