Cocora Valley

Excerpt from Carla's diary:

22.2.2020 Day 227 of the journey

We got on the bus at 7:30 am, well actually it wasn't a bus but a jeep. There were eleven people with us in this jeep. We were incredibly lucky because we managed to grab the last two seats. Three people had to stand in the back and hold on tight. The journey took 30 minutes and then we arrived in the town of Cocora.
We decided to start the hike to the left, because that's where you first come to the tall wax palms and there are probably fewer people. So we walked through green meadows and kept passing by the wax palms. We were amazed by the height of these palms, which can reach up to 60 meters. It is Colombia's national tree and was discovered by Alexander von Humboldt. Yes, exactly, the Humboldt after whom the penguins are also named.
We walked to the highest point, where the palms offered a beautiful view of the valley. We walked up a beautiful path in the forest and there were always glimpses of the palms. ¡Muy bonito! The path led to almost 3000 meters above sea level and then went steeply downhill. We decided to walk to the Casa de Colibri. We paid 5000 pesos entrance fee, got something to drink, and were able to watch the hummingbirds drink nectar. Somehow we had imagined this Casa differently!;-)
The way back led us along a stream over terribly sloping and almost falling suspension bridges.
Back in Cocora, we took a jeep and treated ourselves to a break in the coffee town of Salento. When we arrived at the accommodation, we packed and took a shower. When our stomachs started to rumble, it started pouring heavily. So we had to earn our way to dinner in the rain and once again had soaking wet clothes. But at least we were lucky with the weather in the Cocora Valley.