In the city of eternal spring: Medellín & Guatapé

We safely arrived at Medellín Airport on September 6, 2022, without any problems. However, the airport is located quite far outside the city, so we took a nice Uber drive for almost an hour to our hotel. We are thrilled to escape the heat of the coast and enjoy the pleasant climate here. And we instantly fell in love with Medellín! The formerly most dangerous city in all of South America surprises us a lot: calm traffic without the constant honking that we know from other cities; modern, young, well-maintained, and incredibly green. Over 4 million people live here, and the city expands endlessly onto the surrounding mountains.

Our hotel is located in the El Poblado neighborhood, which is very touristy but also very safe. The selection of many super beautiful international restaurants is so abundant that we have a hard time deciding. In the end, we end up having dinner on a rooftop terrace with a fantastic view of the city's night lights.

Everyone who visits Medellín takes a trip to the "Comuna 13," which was heavily influenced by Pablo Escobar for many years and was fiercely fought over by the military, guerrillas, FARC, and other groups. After several military operations, in which numerous innocent civilians also lost their lives, the neighborhood finally became quieter in 2002. Since then, it has become safer and even tourists can stay here without fear. We take a donation-based free walking tour, and our guide brings us closer to the history of the city. Street art, in particular, has played a major role in the transformation of the former drug district. This has attracted tourist guides instead of gang leaders to Comuna 13, bringing money and security to the residents.

To learn more about the impact of the drug wars in Colombia, LonelyPlanet recommends the Memoria Museum. However, the museum is mostly closed due to renovations, so our visit was unfortunately not worth it.

We continue our journey to Plaza Botero, where some of the artist's bronze statues stand.

We let ourselves wander through the old town and finally get on one of the gondolas belonging to the public transportation system. Not only are these a beautiful way for tourists to see the city from a bird's-eye view, but they also better connect the outer neighborhoods to the city center. Overall, the public transportation network in Medellin is better than in any other Colombian cities.

On September 9, 2022, we book a tour to Guatapé - a small town about 2 hours away from Medellín. The tour was highly recommended to us, even though it costs almost twice as much as the standard tours. We are picked up early in the morning by a minibus. After picking up all 11 tour participants, we drive to a small finca outside the city for breakfast.

On the way there, the first surprise awaits us on the roadside: the minibus stops, and a man with a small drum and harmonica gets on board to accompany us and shorten the journey with traditional live music.

The next stop after a delicious breakfast is Peñol. About 50 years ago, the valley where the village of Peñol was located was flooded by the construction of a dam. Therefore, the entire village had to be relocated. A small replica shows what the village looked like before the flooding. But to be honest, the view of the water is more interesting than the touristy village, so we soon continue to a small beach on the reservoir.

We drive the last few meters to the water on the roof of an old van over a bumpy road, where we jump directly into the clear water of the lake from a bridge that is about 5 meters high. Then the next surprise awaits: we are picked up by a small motorboat in two groups and can explore the idyllic area from the water. You can even go wakeboarding, which Carsten, of course, cannot resist.

The main attraction of the area is the Piedra del Peñol, a gigantic rock that stands out from the landscape. You can climb over 650 steps to a viewpoint on the rock, which offers a fantastic view of the lake landscape.

Now we have earned our lunch, which is already waiting for us in one of our guide's houses. There are 15 different bowls, pots, and pans with various Colombian dishes - each more delicious than the next!

Then comes the last stop of the day and the actual goal of this excursion: Guatapé. The colorful town is also known as the city of pedestals because every house here has a pedestal decorated with reliefs. Originally, this had practical reasons so that the moisture prevalent in this area could not penetrate the walls so quickly. Today, the colorful houses are a tourist magnet, and the little village is quite crowded.

After everyone has equipped themselves with drinks for the journey back, we start our return with our funny group. We get along so well with the others from Belgium, India, USA, England, and Germany that we spontaneously arrange to meet at a hostel for a few beers in the same evening. In the end, we end up at a club with a ball pit (why don't we have something like this?!). Luckily, we eventually find a way out because we have to catch the bus to Salento early tomorrow morning...