Before experiencing Medellin and environs, we first had to get there – and find places to camp! After our little adventure in Florián, we had a long drive, not so much in miles as in time and bad roads.
“Isn’t Colombia famous for its toll roads,” you ask. I would think so, based on the number of them – and they’re pricey relative to local standards. Yet, nobody talks about them. The main reason I mention toll roads here, however, is because some most of them suck. At least north and east of Medellin. They contain potholes, speed bumps, shifted tarmac, wide cracks, dips, and gaps – and you have the privilege to pay for hitting the obstacles. Hard. Because, you know, the speed limit is all of a sudden much higher on these “highways.”
That is my long-winded way to say that we hit a pothole really, really badly. Neither of us had seen it – I had my eyes on my tablet writing a message (since we were on a smooth toll road, right?) and Mark was staring at the navigation screen to check a potential turn-off.
At the time, we only discovered that the backside of our camper (a structural problem we thought we’d fixed in the US) had become separated again, something we had to fix ASAP. Later, we discovered other issues with the truck as a result of this mistake and the massive impact of the camper and truck bed colliding. From then on, it has been ALL eyes on the road ALL the time…
It took us two days and a loud night along the “highway,” before we reached Rio Claro. We hoped to relax here for a few days, visit a national park, and enjoy swimming in the clear river as – at this low elevation – it was quite hot and humid. We’d quickly stopped at Hacienda Napoles as well, known from Pablo Escobar movies and documentaries. It was closed that day – and expensive, so we’d pass anyway.
We arrived at a recommended campsite along the Rio Claro river around 5pm and took a refreshing swim and cold outdoor shower. Then, I had a translation job. But the cell service was very hit or miss and it took me hours to make little progress.
That night, a huge thunder and lightning storm arrived (which had Maya hiding behind our pillows again). In the morning, the river had turned brown and the internet remained elusive. We drove a few hours to a mirador (viewpoint) in the mountains, where I had to work against the clock to get the assignment finished. Talk about stress. A loud and sleepless night followed.
Mark, Maya, and I were excited to finally meet Susan and John in person. It was a long time coming. Expats in Colombia, their lifestyle and travels (in country and abroad) had always intrigued me and I’d been following their blog Latitude Adjustment for many years. When they moved from Medellin to El Retiro a couple of years ago, it all sounded so nice that I wanted to check out their town as well.
The three of us ended up spending five days with and without our new friends, camped by a lovely park in town. It was a relaxing place to be, we enjoyed socializing at their place or at a restaurant, and we even met other friends of theirs, Nicky and Ian, who run the excellent blog Above Us Only Skies. I knew the couple from their newsletters and Facebook page. A fun time was had by all!
We found El Retiro a bit busier and less cute than many of the other historic towns we visited over the past five months. Positives were the yummy bakery, riverside path, fancy shopping mall nearby and sturdy, attractive furniture. If we ever “settle” in Colombia, we know where to obtain high-quality wooden furniture!
I have since become acquainted with Jayson, who runs an attractive, peaceful, and comfortable Eco-lodge/Airbnb in the mountains near El Retiro. His place is called Finca Las Cordilleras and you can find more information about it on Facebook and Instagram. If you ever decide to stay there, the code LC-ROAMINGABOUT gives you a 10% discount. ????
It was becoming more and more pressing that we completed a few projects on Thirsty Bella, so we decided to stay at a real campground in Santa Elena, for almost a week. We usually avoid this, because it costs money and we don’t have need for facilities. Although a real, hot, pressurized shower is always nice! We fixed the separation issue after taking our camper off, Mark made granola in the communal oven, and we finished a few other projects related to our fridge and catalytic heater.
One day, since the truck was available by itself and it would be easier to take Maya, we drove into Medellin. Bad idea! Google sent us through narrow, windy, steep barrio (neighborhood) roads. We soon realized that just our monster F350 truck is still too big for Colombian cities.
We were on a schedule as we had booked a “free” (tips are expected) walking tour with Real City Tours, which would start at 9:30am. Luckily, we managed to find an affordable parqueadero (parking lot) close to the meeting point. Discovering that we had to leave our keys – cars are stacked against each other – caused a tad more stress, as much of the back seat contained valuable belongings, like tools and spare parts…
Our guide Germán was amazing and we learned a lot about the painful narco history of Medellin, the hardships and pride of the Paisa people (people from Antioquia), and the city’s remarkable recovery. Colombia and its inhabitants have come a long way.
We visited the center of town on foot. Our favorite places became Botero Square and an attractive art gallery, but we soon realized that Medellin doesn’t have any notable architecture. It had been an interesting three-hour tour but we were ready for the peace of our campground.
When the work was finished on our camper and the water tanks filled, we set off towards Guatapé, known for its embalse (reservoir), attractive buildings, and massive rock you can climb. We found a decent spot to camp for a few nights, but I did have an interesting encounter with a neighbor.
Mark and I always pick up Maya’s poop in public places. In Colombia, however, it can be hard to find trash cans. On the day of garbage pick-up, everyone lines the sidewalks with their big trash bags. Imagine how the stray and loose dogs adore that!
Anyway, I had a filled poop bag and of course there was no trash can near the park we were walking. But a garbage bag had been deposited near a store – must be garbage day soon – and I was finagling the poopie bag into its bigger brother, when the store owner told me I couldn’t do that. I was supposed to walk the trash to town, ten minutes away. That’s where the closest garbage cans were… No wonder there is dog poop everywhere on the grass and sidewalks in this country!
The town, while extremely overrun by tourists, is worth a couple of hours of strolling. The bottom part of the houses is adorned with painted scenes in bas-relief, often related to the function of that building. It’s very colorful and photogenic!
Plus, Guatapé has a decent bakery that sells baguettes, stray dogs are well-fed and loved, and the fresh produce is super affordable!
On the day we left town, we stopped at Piedra El Peñol, early enough to beat the crowds. Just. Maya was not allowed, so she stayed in the camper while Mark and I climbed the 675 steps for a good view over the island-dotted reservoir. The area was more built-up than I anticipated.
Along the way back to Medellin, we also checked out a reproduction of the village center of El Peñol, which had been flooded and covered when the lake became a reservoir. It was cute but nothing more.
To our pleasant surprise, the parking spot we had found in iOverlander, on the northern edge of Medellin, worked out well. We slept in a relatively quiet neighborhood and felt safe enough to go into town three times.
Once to take the metro to Comuna 13 for another “free” walking tour with Zippy Tours (Maya was allowed to join but stayed home because she had lost a toenail and we didn’t want her to walk much), once to meet other friends by taxi in El Poblano (Maya came), and once to walk back to Botero Plaza and potentially visit Museo Casa de La Memoria. The route was grimy, busy, loud, and too long, so we returned home after revisiting Botero’s statues. It was too much for Maya’s paw.
Our visit to Comuna 13, once the most dangerous barrio in Medellin, was something I had looked forward to, based on travelers’ reports. Our guide, who grew up there, was knowledgeable and the street art was colorful and attractive, but the area near the stairs/escalators (put in place many years ago, so residents could reach their homes in the hills – and the town center – easier) has turned into a tourist mob scene. The metro system, however, is a work of art, convenience, and efficiency!
There is a lot to say about Medellin and its history and we have heaps of respect for how far the city has come and progressed. Yet, we are not clear as to why most visitors – or people who haven’t been – rave about this particular city in Colombia. While we don’t regret our explorations here – and, really, three days is about enough – we definitely would not call it a highlight in this country. For what it’s worth. ????
Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics with dogs, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir:
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