Colombia - round & colorful 🍑🍭

Hello and Bonjour to the collective reader community,

Your friends from the southern hemisphere are back (even though Colombia isn't actually in the southern hemisphere, it's just warmer here). New country, new entry, you know.🇨🇴🌎

Today's blog entry #18 tells about a German team of four ❹ who crossed the already very touristy Colombia from south to north (without a plane, because friends, we live in 2024, there are night buses).🚍☠️

The journey begins in the relatively centrally located capital of Colombia, Bogota. Which we had already reached after 3 buses, 4 taxi rides, 1 border crossing in just 30 hours. 🤯 Here we received important visitors from wintry Germany. May I introduce: Ralle and Zünthya.🧑🏽‍🦱👩🏾‍🦱 After a long time without real life contact with friends (the last time it was the only true Chrüssi in Australia)💛 we have familiar faces around us again. Great. Lickaah.🥹

We spent the first 3 days in Bogota to collect ourselves, especially since everyone, including Anna and me, had to travel 30 hours. Bogota offers more than you think. It is often simply labeled as an ugly big city, but it is more than that. A cultural stronghold🏰 that knows how to mix the western palate🫦 with the Colombian one, and that is not lacking in art🎨 and nightlife🌚. Maybe the nightlife was a bit neglected because only our bachelor (Raphi) actually felt the strong urge to hurt his head.🍸 So we explored the gastronomy and museum scene during the day and drank one or two cold hop drinks in the evening.🍻

Our trip took us via the tourist route from Bogota directly to Armenia, from where we planned our day trips to the nearby coffee region of Salento.☕️ Armenia, yes, you don't have to do it, but it was cheap and had a vegan restaurant that lacked nothing . Salento, on the other hand, offered a 15 km hike through tropical forests where the tallest palm trees in the world grow.🌴 Oh yes, we also did a coffee tour, which really had little to do with coffee, but we were able to dress in traditional clothing feel like Colombian coffee farmers and dance to farm reggaeton.👯‍♀️

At that point -> It really didn't feel good. Do you know that coffee farmers only earn around 1 euro per kilo, or so it was explained to us? That's really sad little. So we'd rather spend a little more money on fair coffee, and if that's not possible, just drink less coffee, but the good one!⛔️

Our route took us directly to Pablo Escobar's birthplace, Medellin. 🔪💣 He's hated here for good reason and people don't talk about him. I'm sure you all know enough. Medellin, also called the City of Eternal Spring🌼, is a vibrant city with some beautifully preserved colonial architecture. Medellin offers a lot: huge and cheap markets (we were only at one, it was cheap, but when cheap it gets a bit more dangerous, so sketchy)☠️, as well as a wild nightlife. You always have to buy a bottle of liquor if you want to go to a club, otherwise as a European you won't get in. That's why no club, but there were big winnings in the casino, around $45,000 was won, although in pesos... but well, at least something.💰

Also in Medellin there are exhibitions by one of the greatest Colombian artists, Botero. 🧑🏽‍🎨 Personally, we have to say, we love him.🍑🍊🍈 His pictures offer art and humor and at the same time show key points of Colombian culture and history, just great.

Our next destination should be the most expensive and probably most colorful city in Colombia. We drove north to Cartagena.🧡💛💚 I have to say, Cartagena is overrated in my opinion if you travel on a budget like we did. One night in a dormitory: 14 euros, as soon as you leave the city center everything is extremely littered, ☹️ and the city is extremely overloaded. People celebrate and consume there every day as if there were no tomorrow. Nevertheless, the history of the city is extremely interesting, which is why it is a plus point.

In order to find some relaxation after the hustle and bustle, we continued north along the coast. The small dropout town of Palomino should be our next destination🏝. Unfortunately, part of the group got sick, and what can you say, 34 degrees and high humidity are not the best climate for a flu ^^.🤕 But with time came recovery, and the place, especially the very rough Caribbean there Sea🌊, could be enjoyed. For us, the nice thing about Palomino is that it has narrow but very long beaches, that it is a little cheaper and yet has quite a few small shops and restaurants. But one thing has to be said, it is often very dusty... and man, the motorcyclists and scooter drivers annoy me, just loud and annoying. Probably vital for the residents, as it covers most of the day's journey, so you just have to accept it.🛵💨

After a 5-day stay in Palomino, we went to one of our highlights, the Tayrona National Park.🏞 Very easy to reach from the surrounding towns, and you really don't have to sleep in the park. A night in one of the neighboring towns, which offer beautiful hotels, and a day in the park is more than enough. The park itself offers a variety of animals and plants,🌱🦜 although you didn't see much of the animals (perhaps because many are too lazy to walk half the way and ride their motorbikes along the way - but just a wild guess -🤬 ). But the approximately 20 km long hike through the park and to the beaches there was definitely worth it. For us, the beaches are among the most beautiful beaches in Colombia.🤩

And what can I say, after a return trip to the “dream city” of Cartagena, our paths parted😪, the two German potatoes🥔 flew back home, and the goldheads continue on in pairs. All in all, Colombia got a 6.7/10⭐️, which I think will beat our current location, Mexico. But more on that in the next blog. Keep your ears stiff. If you've made it this far, thank you, you're the real deal <3

See you there antenna📡, and greetings from the Bye Service!🔑

Your golden heads 👩‍🦳👨‍🦳