Coffee Region and Medellin...the land of Juan Valdez and Pablo Escobar

So fall break was last week and it was really nothing short of epic. I backpacked on my own around the coffee region and had a fabulous time. I got to visit all the other volunteers stationed in the mountains, made new friends, enjoyed hot showers, and drank lots of coffee. I could probably write a book about everything I did, but I will try to just hit the highlights (and I mean, TRY). So here's hoping...

Manizales

So I began my trip by flying into Manizales... or at least I was supposed to. In try Colombian fasion, i waited patiently for 5 hours in the Bogota airport until my flight was supposed to leave....then another hour for delays.... then I boarded a bus to the plane.... then I deboarded the bus and went back into the airport.... then I watched a riot ensue as Aires told us our flight had been canceled with no new flights available until tomorrow. It was all very interesting and not the least bit surprising. There with petitions, yelling, fists in the air. A lovely woman had been on my earlier flight from barranquilla and seeing that I had lost my earlier travel companions to a flight to leticia, she took pity on me. Nothing worse in Colombia than being an female extranero traveling alone. So she braved the crowds, gathered the important information, and relayed the information to me on a need-to-know basis. Basically our choices came down to a flight to Pereira, a city an hour and half from manizales, or waiting until the first flight out in the morning. I think the whole flight, moaning and groaning, opted for the flight to Periera. So FINALLY, one flight to a new city, one bus to manizales, and one free ride by my new Colombian mom and her son to my hostel later.... I was in Manizales. ready to really begin my adventure

Manizales was lovely, perhaps my favorite Colombian city so far (apart from the picturesque Barranquilla, of course). The whole city ran on a major road at the top of a mountain, with the side streets all running along the sides of the ridge, making for beautiful views in every direction. Since my original plan to visit Los Nevados (a snow-capped volcano!) was foiled due to tremors closing the national park for the week of my visit, i spent Sunday exploring the city. I walked the 50+ blocks from my hostel to the city, checked the old churches, walked to the top of the Cathedral (the 5th highest church tower in the world), strapped on a harness for a sky walk at the top of the highest point in the city, and generally just wandered around. It was lovely and very relaxing. Since the hostel pretty much emptied out, I ended up spending the evening eating empanadas with a Canadian guy from my hostel and watching avatar on the big screen tv with my new Dutch roommate, whose real name I cannot remember because it sounded like yogurt, so now thats all I can think of. It was actually very relaxing.

The next day, with the park still closed, I met Angela for a wonderful coffee/breakfast date. We got fruit bowls with granola, yogurt, and chocolate flakes and camped out at Juan Valdez for like 3 hours. it was really nice to catch up and hear about what's going on in her life. Plus, I can't resist gathering ideas for what to do after my contract ends. Minus an interruption by my Canadian dinner friend, it was a perfect end my visit in manizales. I grabbed the bus with her on the way to her school and we parted ways, sending me to the cable car to the terminal. Next stop: Quimbaya.

Quindio

Quindio is an area in the coffee region. The coffee region is typically thought of to be the area enclosed by the triangle of Armenia, Pereira, and Manizales. Quindio's claims to fame include the Parque del Cafe amusement park and the Panaca plantation, neither of which I visited. It also happens to be where Quimbaya and Montenegro are located, the home sites for Miriam, Lynn, Megan, and Adam.

I started by visiting Quimbaya to catch up with Miriam and Lynn. It took me a little longer to get there than I had hoped, but it was pretty easy to do. I got there just in time to see their apartment, get a small tour of the town, enjoy some fresh fruit juice and a heavenly arepa con queso on the balcony, and accompany them to their evening class. It was so nice to sit in on someone else's life and routine. And they were fabulous hosts. I even got my own room to sleep in! The next day I went to school with them, and then still had enough time to make it to Megan and Adam's school to watch part of their school birthday celebration, complete with an array of colombian dances. I spent the afternoon in Montenegro, catching up with Megan and Adam on their balcony, getting a great tour of their town, running in the rain, and having a perfect stuffed arepa dinner. I don't know why the coast doesn't enjoy these amazing delicacies!! All-in-all, it was a great visit with the mountain folk! I was really glad I came.

Salento

The next morning I woke up at the crack of dawn to begin my journey to Salento. I got into town and found my hostel at about 9, which was apparently perfect timing to run into my roommate from manizales Yogurt, well obviously thats not his name but since thats what everyone calls him, I don't actually know what it is) and sign up for his horseback rising tour. Horseback rising was hands-down my favorite activity all break. We had an awesome group of people, most of which from Holland, and we just cantered and galloped through the countryside, up and down mountains, along coffee plantations, and through rivers. There were no helmets. just you and the horse. it was aboslutely lovely. Since I was pretty comfortable on a horse, me and another guy kept ending up way ahead of everyone. It was nice to just be able to ride with your horse on your own, separate from the group. I loved it.

After horseback riding, I was exhausted. It was actually pretty good exercise and lasted over 3 hours. Plus I woke up and travelled crazy early. However, there was a tour of a coffee plantation that I didn't want to miss. We got to see the plants, learned about the different kinds of coffee and the advantages of each, and even got to try some freshly made colombian brews. It was really interesting, and the plantation was breaktaking. Exactly what I had hoped for. After the tour, we grabbed some dinner in town and headed back with some wine to hang out in front of the fire. Yes, that's right. There was a fireplace. It felt like a ski lodge. Or a really cool sleep-away camp. I loved it. The people were all really cool, but I called it a night early because I was beat. Besides, I needed my energy for the 6 hour hike through Valle de Corcora the next day. i ended up taking to my roommate for like 2 hours, so there went my resting idea. However, we had a really good talk so I can't regret it too much. I love meeting new people backpacking!

On Thursday, the whole gang from the hostel went to Valle de Corcora. We loaded up on the first set of jeeps out of Salento, with people standing on the back and squished on top of each other. it was quite the adventure. The hike was lovely. The group of maybe 15-20 quickly separated. I first ended up walking with my roommate, Nolene, but we soon met up with two guys and made a foursome. Which was nice, since the path was less than obvious at some points. I may have cut myself on barbed wire and balanced on some very sketchy-looking bridges. But it was all worth it. After several signs claiming the first stop was nearby, we made it to the humming brid sanctuary, where we could enjoy some hot chocolate with cheese. The altitude had started to get to me, so taking a break was just what i needed. Some wanted to turn back, but we hadn't actually made it to the waxing palms yet so I insisted we continue. Little did I know that the next hour was completely uphill, in the mud. But it was all worth it. I thought the scenery was just breathtaking. Totally worth my struggle. :)

Medellin

The next day I had a few travel mishaps. Los Nevados was still closed, but I decided to try and make a pitstop in manizales anyway to check out the thermal springs. This was a poor choice, since they were blocking off part of the road and we ended up sitting on the other side of the mountain for 2 hours. When I finally got there, there was nothing I could do but jump on another 6 hour bus ride to Medellin. Needless to say, by the time I got there, I was ready for a little relaxation.

So I won't go day by day (mainly because I don't remember), but here are the highlights:
- Exploring the city - Botoro Museum was super cool, parque de la luz, the Cathedral, the botanical gardens etc. The city is huge and surrounded by gorgeous mountains so there is no end to places to explore. I also enjoyed finding small cafes to sit in and read.
- Pueblito Paisa - a small model of a typical Paisa village up on a hill. I also had fun exploring the park that surrounds it and meeting the lovely military men that apparently sleep there at night.
- Paragliding - AWESOME. totally worth the $40. Even though i didn't listen to the suggestion to get there early and instead had to wait 3 hours for the winds to die down enough. But it was still awesome. it was literally flying. nothing below you. the scenery was spectacular and we even spiraled to the ground like a bird. I would do it again in a heartbeat.
- Guatape - sadly I dont have any pictures from this because I was too lazy to take them off my camera and then was stupid and let it get stolen in Bogota. However.... there is a huge rock you can climb up to and see the country side. It is about an hour and half outside Medellin and definitely worth the trip. It is surrounded by beautiful lakes and full of colorful houses and decorative plazas. There was some kind of festival taking place while I was there so there was tons of good food and stands with beer and crafts set up. it was great. I cannot believe I lost my pictures :(
- Food and Nightlife - so I had some awesome food. Best meal? probably the steak dinner with holondase butter and a glass of red wine. But the chicken pad thai was a close second. Nightlife? was insane. It is like everyone comes to this one area of the city and it just gets crazy. i went out a little with people I met at another hostel (since mine was pristine but devoid of people) but I didn't stay out long. I definitely wished I had been there with some friends because it could have been really awesome. next time!

So thats my trip in a rather large, tree-like nutshell. it was awesome and I would recommend any part of it to anyone!! I was so glad I did it! I can't believe we are now in the homestretch....