Minca, Palomino and Medellin

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Buenos Dias

Minca

From Cartagena I got a bus to Santa Marta which got in at half 8 so I had a sorting out evening and morning in Santa Marta. Thankfully, it was a little cooler than Cartagena but there is not much to do and the city lacks much character. I got a bus or ‘collectivo’ in late morning from Santa Marta to Minca. I have been staying at a super cool hostel called Casa Loma which is on the hill. There are private 1 bed huts which were a bargain so booked one of those.



Minca is a village in the Sierra Nevada mountains and a backpacking haven, nice coffee shops, food and hostels. Lots of good walking and nature to enjoy. In the afternoon I got there I went to the Marinka waterfalls via the ear of the earth (another waterfall). Nice walk in the forest and rewarded with some pleasant dips in the waterfalls. Sadly there was a downpour on my way home (may be a theme of Minca). I woke up early the next morning and did the long hike to Los Pinos. I did this via walking up the road to Sierra Minca (famous hostel with a zip line) and then cutting across the forest. Fantastic views at the top. I then continued along the road and did a loop down to Finca La Victoria (coffee plantation) where I stopped for lunch and coffee! Then walked down to Poca Azur waterfall. On my way back there was a tropical storm and I was absolutely soaked AGAIN!



Sunset at the hostel was beautiful as the rain cleared up and spent the evening hanging out with people playing cards.



Next day was travel day to Palomino, super simple collectivo back to Santa Marta and a bus along a long road to Palomino.



Palomino is a sleepy, dusty town to the west of Tayrona, it has some cool bars and restaurants and a beautiful coastline with lots of waves and currents- which makes it difficult to swim in. Luckily most hostels have pools. I spent the afternoon chilling by the pool and reading and chatting.



The following day I decided to do a day trip to Tayrona which is a magical national park on the Caribbean Sea. Mix of jungles and beach, palm trees and wildlife. Tayrona involved a lot of walking (especially when you are me and refuse to get shuttles over short distances) so I walked from the entrance to the park and then around the park up to Cabo San Juan and Playa Blanca. Cabo San Juan is the poster girl for Tayrona with a cabin overlooking the sea on a small island, however, this makes it the most busy beach that you can swim in and I stopped at La Piscina which was quieter and much nicer to sit, read and have a doze. Saying this it takes about 2.5 hours to trek from the entrance to Cabo San Juan, over varying terrain so you don’t have much time for relaxation at the end before you head back. You can stay over in hammocks or tents (or some bougie hotels) but I decided against this.



So onwards and upwards with a night bus to Medellín from Santa Marta.



Medellin

Such a cool city, so surprised really. I stayed in the El Poblado area in a bougie hostel called Los Patios and had some time to sort my self out and do some washing. After this I went on a day trip to Guatape which is a town surrounded by a reservoir with a big rock to climb. Super interesting area created for hydroelectric power. The tour went up the rock and then we had a little boat trip followed by a walk around the very cute town. The town was colourful and had this amazing wall art, so much character and culture. We also had a local lunch buffet thing which was excellent.



On my final day in Medellin I went on a walking tour to Communa 13 after pottering around the centre of the city. Really interesting area which in very recent history was owned by paramilitary groups and guerilla but had now developed into a very bustling, lively community. Amazing art murals and graffiti and these escalators taking you to the top of the hill. I feel like there is probably a lot of deprivation still there and I hope that this tourist boom doesn’t again destroy the area.



Very conflicted opinions on Pablo Escobar where there is a tourist market but is not highly encouraged, which is very understandable considering he destroyed many lives and livelihoods in Medellin.



Highlights- this has been a great, great week staying in wonderful places and it has all been a highlight as I have done from beach, to country to city.



Reflections-found my travelling feet but I need to try and slow down. There is so much to do and see and I don’t want to waste my time out here! Next I am going to the coffee region (Salento) and the Tatacoa desert, then Bogotá. I’m hoping to fly to Peru around the 18th or 19th September.

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