Tag: palomino

Salamina, Colombia

Charming villages of Colombia

Charming, little villages were our absolute favorite in Colombia. There is nothing better than sitting in a little bar with an old man, drinking coffee almost looking at the coffee beans growing on the bushes ahead. So sit down with your cup of coffee and let’s go through the best of the best 🙂

  1. Salamina

This little town has completely stolen our hearts. It’s close enough to Medellin to get there with just one bumpy, bus ride but far enough to get far away from the big city life. There is no traffic, rush or groups of tourists in Salamina. Instead there are lovely cafes, colorful houses and green, mountainous heaven around it. It’s truly a perfect place to just relax, read a book and enjoy nature and good weather. Close by there is a stunning valley of Samaria, (to be) famous for its very high wax palms.

In Salamina we stayed with Martin and Angelica, an extraordinary couple on Airbnb. They are not only very inspiring people who create everything around their house by themselves with love, but they also made us feel at home there 🙂 Not to mention they make the best breakfast ever with fresh juices, arepas (corn pancakes) and eggs.

  1. Filandia

When nearby Salento is attracting all the crowds with its wax palms in Cocora Valley, Filandia stays a wonderful, peaceful treat. You won’t see crowds or overpriced hotels over there. Just peaceful but very colorful town with lovely and a bit curious locals. They will ask you how you like Colombia and why you chose Filandia. It’s it obvious? Not only it’s very colorful and has a lot of character but it has the best surroundings ever! Here you will find waterfalls, ever green forests, endless coffee farms and amazing hikes. Not to mention you will see hummingbirds, toucans and even howler monkeys.

In Filandia we volunteered in a really nice hostel called Bidea which is owned by a lovely Colombian-Basque couple. It’s not only a beautiful, Colombian house but also a great atmosphere that makes it a great place to stay. Don’t forget to visit Helena Adentro for great food and a romantic, charming vibe.

  1. Villa de Leyva

Nothing can compare to the white houses or cobblestone streets of Villa de Leyva. Not to mention the one and only, massive, gorgeous Main Square. Although it’s number one on many lists of towns of Colombia, it’s not busy. Not at all. We were actually really positively surprised. All the little streets were charming, white and really clean, even outside of the center. Little markets on the corners were selling true curiosities like dried bushes of pink pepper! And we will never forget an amazing ice cream place, Santa Lucia. Although we shouldn’t, we went there every day… and every single time it was delicious and the owners were just the most cheerful people on earth.

In Villa de Leyva we stayed in a stunning hostel (Buda Hostel), just outside of the city on a hill. It was a struggle to drag the backpack up there but once there the views made everything ok again. The house itself is wonderful, with lots of terraces and open space, not to mention the huge barbecue and chill out space outside.

  1. Palomino

The town itself is not really that nice, there is no beautiful architecture and it was just build along a busy road which goes just in the middle of it. But… those beaches. If you can’t go to Providencia than that’s the second best. Kilometers of sandy paradise with not too many people. There are quite some charming, boutique hotels out there. The beauty of the place is that there is not much to see, just pure relax 🙂

  1. Santa Elena

Probably the most calm place of them all. Middle of absolute nowhere and so close to Medellin. We stayed there surrounded by green, luscious nature in a trailer made into a house (Airbnb). It was just an unforgettable experience to stay away from everyone and everything in this charming little place where all we could do was to just relax, walk around and enjoy. During the evening when it was getting chiller we could sit on our deck, start a fire and observe all of the weird bugs coming to visit us 🙂 It was our last place to visit before we ended our Latin American adventure and we wish such an end to all of you 🙂

Useful tip!

If you’re going to Colombia and you would like to get to charming, little villages that are not so well known you should visit http://www.pueblospatrimoniodecolombia.co/nuestros-pueblos. There you will find a whole list of tiny towns well worth a visit:) Enjoy!

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Cartagena, Colombia

Lazy days in the Colombian Caribbean

Caribbean coast greeted us with unbearable heat and it didn't leave us even for a second. Sweating we started our trip in Cartagena, probably the most popular city in Colombia among all the travelers. And I really mean all even among old people dressed as if they were going for a Mount Everest expedition but with their balconies in front of them I don't think they go any further then the border of the old city. There is not even a need to go any further then that because the old town and the hip Getsemani neighborhood are all there is to see. But I have to admit that the old town is really gorgeous, charming, colorful, playful with its street art  and actually quite big so it was not difficult to get lost there for a few hours.

Especially that there are some beautiful shops with clothes, accessories and everything a person would (not) need. So we have done some window shopping as well:) Outside of the touristic places Cartagena is a city literally drowned in garbage and poverty. Many people live in ruins and the middle- class neighborhood where we stayed did not look middle- class even by polish standards. No wonder we were not sad to leave Cartagena to go to start our trek to the Lost City (that hike deserved a separate post so ...).
The trek was absolutely spectacular and worth the effort. To rest and chill out we went to Palomino, a small village with one paved road. The village itself was nothing great but strolling on its beaches and chilling was really great. Especially knowing that there was nothing in particular to see also not underwater as the currents are too strong to even enter the sea.

To rest from resting we went to Minca. It's pretty much known as THE coffee town. But honestly it missed the vibrant green surroundings of the town's in the coffee region, that I am not going to mention the architecture that they missed. The town looked pretty much built 20 years ago from cheap bricks and metal for the roofs. The views from the mountains around Minca were pretty nice but we felt a bit disappointed.

Luckily we also visited an amazing local farm specialized in avocado, cacao and coffee (La Candaleria). Beautifully situated on top of a mountain (definitely worth the walk) and super crowded with all sorts of gorgeous birds. Unfortunately way too fast for me to take a picture of most of them. Thankfully there was a lazy hummingbird going back and forth to the same flower and a beautiful toucan. And not only the birds were nice but also the family running the farm. They were really warm and excited about their farm and their cacao and coffee. And so were we:) a highlight of our trip to Minca for sure.