Chasing rainbows in the desert on a motorbike

Hello hello hello again, it's been a while!

I would have LOVED to write a blog entry earlier but wifi was not just bad, it was simply non existent.

Traffic lights here are rather long and there are street artists making mini shows for the waiting cars, hoping to get money afterwards.

As we left Popayán we saw one street artists who was on a different level - literally!

He balanced on a rope while juggling different things and swinging a ring around his feet.

As usual we got a lucky thumb and a good ride to our next destination, Inza. This mountain village was small, lovely and it felt like we have been the only gringos there.

Even this small town (it literally had maybe 3 big streets) has awesome graffiti. The street art culture is wonderful in Colombia!

In the evening we had a simple, yet amazing dinner in a family restaurant where the 13 year old son was our waiter.

Even the bill was lovely! ($3750 are 1€)

We hitchhiked in the morning again, to a museum, called Tumbas de Tierradentro which is close to Inza and left our backpacks there. It's a place where tombs from indigenous people were found, probably around 2600 years old.

Usually it looks like this. The stairs are restored with concrete, later I'll show you one tomb that has not been restored. There are over 50 tombs that have been opened and restored and yet there are still many covered by earth.

The tombs have been on several hills, which meant we had to hike quite a bit - about 15km in a steep terrain. Hanna told me it would rain (she checked the forecast) and I actually believed her. The forecast has never been right yet..

We got the chance to get changed and wear lighter clothes then our rain equipment (it didn't rain..) before going to the hard part of the hike, so we didn't die in the Colombian sun. It was still really hot..

They don't even know how many tombs there are in this place, they just know it's a lot.

There are MANY more fotos in the foto section check them out!

It is somehow tradition for kids to disguise themselves as red devils, strolling around, stopping cars and asking for gifts.

We stole fruits from a coffee farmer, thinking they were oranges. Excited, seeing the ripe dripping fruit, we bit in and had a taste like lime in our mouth. Incredible sour. Turns out these are mainly used for juices. Thieves are getting what they deserve I guess..

As the left the tombs (not hitchhiking since it was the 31th December and we wanted to arrive to the desert before the evening) we saw these people on a Jeep. Yes it was driving like this, they were celebrating something but we didn't find out what it was.

The trip to the desert was long, we had a crazy driver who lost during the trip his left mirror. That wasn't his fault tho, someone drove even more stupid while he parked.. anyway, we arrived in one piece in the evening in the desert called Tatacoa. It is a cool place, but technically a dry rain forest and not a 'real' desert. It feels pretty desert like tho. For the evening of the 31 we just lay down, watched stars and drank beers. It was super chill. No fireworks in the desert but that would have been weird.

The next day we rented a motorbike, I really needed some practice if I want to ride in Vietnam.

Riding the motorcycle through the desert was one of these experiences where you ask yourself afterwards why you didn't start with this earlier. I will be testing myself in Vietnam but I'm pretty positive I'll like riding motorcycles A LOT.

The simplicity of he this street vendor making barbecue is awesome. Just put have a tree in there and be done with it 🤷🏼‍♂️

We didn't sleep in the small town, we went directly into the desert. It is a pretty touristic place but only for Colombians. At least around Christmas and New year's Eve. We stayed in hammocks under a metal roof, had the perfect temperature at night and these hammocks are surprisingly comfortable!

The next day we rented two bicycles and went through the 'red desert' which is a beautiful formation of red sand rocks.

And yes, it was as hot as it looks

Also my favorite trousers died. I (and others) repaired them often but it's time just has come. Farewell old friend!

Oh and last but not least, I got pets! It's worms, not sure how many, but they are in both of my feet.

Aren't they cute? I'm quite sure that I got them in El Choco. I tried to cure myself with antibiotic cream but that (obviously) didn't help. What you see in the pictures are the tunnels they dig into my skin. They don't go deeper, they like it there. The worms themselves are super small. For anyone wanting to do research: They are called 'larva migrans', or hookworm. They actually don't like being in humans and would die within 2 months but since it is pretty itchy and hurts from time to time (when they dig new tunnels) I'll take in two days medicine and they die. Then my body will take back what these fuckers took from me!

So far so good, we are right now on our way to the Caribbean to chill a bit out, we both need some rest.

Love and peace,

Laurin