Hostal La Finca

Our next station was volunteering in a hostel situated in the hills next to a town called San Jerónimo, two hours away from Medellín. The hostel is run by Alexis (half German, half Colombian) and his German girlfriend Mathilde. We were welcomed by Alesha, another volunteer, coming from Russia.

Very soon we felt very comfortable in that place. Everybody was very nice, the surroundings were amazing, there was always good music, the weather conditions were perfect, the pool was great, and there was always beer available in the fridge, making for a relaxed and amazing stay.

Our work mainly consisted of gardening. We created new flower beds, planted lots of herbs, flowers, and fruit trees. We also took care of the pool, the guests, the animals, and kept the place clean.

In our free time, we hiked to the old colonial city and former capital of the Antioquia department (now Medellín), Santa Fe de Antioquia. Its city center was declared a national monument of Colombia in 1960. I don't think any further explanation is needed to show that this town is beautiful and has a wonderful colonial atmosphere. During the hike, we had amazing views of the mountain ranges that dominate the landscape there.

We stayed for 2 and a half weeks and every day was filled with great conversations about everything and anything, drinking beer, and enjoying delicious cocktails made by Alesha using the fruits we picked while working. Alexis and Mathilde were more like friends than employers to us. I had a very interesting conversation with Alexis about the environment and its recovery from human destruction, about hope, and about the intention to save nature or rather humans...

I miss all the people we met there. After our stay, we had a good time with Alesha in Medellín. But in the end, while traveling, there is always a goodbye, probably without seeing each other again...