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Published: November 19th 2012
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Guatapé According to Wikipedia, the name Guatapé is a Quechua word referring to stones and water. Stones are there, a gigantic boulder in the countryside and as for water, you´ll be surrounded by one of the largest lakes in Colombia.
And that´s what I have here now, a description of a place where you can kick back while exploring this enchanting destination.
What a facade! Getting to Guatapé was a pleasant surprise for me as I didn't know that such a colourful lakeside town existed; si señor, imagine an amazing destination with beautiful zocalos painted, that´s right, dimensioned images of pastel-colored paintings on the lower wall tiles of people´s houses. Brilliant idea!!! Lucky us the inhabitants sculpted and painted their most common everyday activities, products sold, geographical and cultural beliefs on the lower part of their houses.
The result? it is a pleasure for the eyes to walk around the village and observe those magnificient walls of the historic centre looking more like a Disney story.
Although I arrived at nearly the sunset, it was beautiful to see all the
local vendors selling their goods and enjoy the scenic views of such a place. Although the place was bustling with motorbikes, cars and tuk tuks, it all made sense as I had left Medellin. And soon, I found myself happily strolling through its cobblestone streets and admiring handicrafts at the local markets.
But first things first, as soon as I got to the village, my stomach decided I was hungry so I headed to the malecón where plenty of restaurants would offer some nice food. The day was a bit cold and an arepa with cheese and a hot chocolate was my indulgement while observing the tourists walk past the lake.
A bit of history As the village has always been a national treasure given its hydroelectric production, it wasn't a surprise to know that both the guerilla and Paramilitars have interests in the region. The government then had to act accordingly and now, you can travel there safely, in fact, there is no need to guard the village as before, which is proved by the amount of foreign visitors you will encounter.
Legend has it that
this charming village was once home to Pablo Escobar, the big man in the Medellin Cartel. Does it ring a bell? no? you might be interested in watching a current RCN TV series depiciting his kidnappings and murders. But do not worry as this only belongs to the past, there are some soldiers around the village making sure that the village is safe and that tourists can actually have a pleasant visit of this vivid town.
A place to wander around I reckon Guatape is the place for just wandering around without any worries whatsoever and forgeting about the stress that city life sometimes triggers in us. Yeah, that´s right, for some reason, the idyllic town has you easily linger around for hours and you feel just fine.
Soon you will be charmed by the variety of panel art on the facades of homes and businesses, each depicting unique aspects of the regional geography, culture and lifestyle. Your eyes will do the trick, enjoying the colourful architecture, observing the characters of the village and seeing life go by. If I were living in Medellin, I will definitely visit the village quite
often to feel the lovely weather and admire one of Colombia´s largest lakes: Guatapé.
The sights are just awesome. "The Calle de los Recuerdos", or Memory Lane as it should be translated, is like the most visited place as its adorable zocalos would have you entertained while you pleasantly walk. At the end, you get to the Plaza Mayor where you surely have a deserved rest on one of the benches laid out for you.
The Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Carmen matches the town quite well. Its colonial architecture and fancy colours correspond somehow to the layout of the town.
How to get there? If you are in Medellín, you can take a day off and enjoy a trip by comfortable coach. You can actually get it at the Terminal del Norte and ask the driver to drop you off at the Caribe Stop.
Okay folks, that´s it. Let me tell you that the only problem we had was for the accommodation, it seems that the weekends most people from Medellin and foreigners decide to actually spend the day in Guatapé, so either you decide
to go on weekdays or rather book a room beforehand. However, you know that the paisas are very resourceful and can sell you literally anything...
In fact, two ladies whom we had to pay for parking the car near the waterfront, offered us rooms in her house, which we thought it was quite possible; so we agree to take it but when, after 10 minutes of waiting, she told us she had to ask her brother-in-law´s sister for a key to the room and ask her to sleep somewhere else, we thought that would be kind but... too complicated. In the end, we drove off the place and ended staying at a nearby town as we couldn´t find a free hotel, don´t say that I didn´t warn you. 😊
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