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Jaltepeque Estuary, El Salvador
Yes, we are safely back on Sine Timore. The boat looks none the worse for our absence. In fact, due to a big rainstorm while we were away (almost 5" in one day), the boat almost looks clean.
Now we just have to adjust to the slower pace of life, and the much warmer climate.
{GMST}13|18.4|N|88|54.1362|W|Jaltepeque Estuary, El Salvador|Jaltepeque Estuary, El Salvador{GEND}
Bogota, Colombia
Yesterday was officially the last day of our tour of Colombia. An hour and a half bus ride to the airport just outside the city of Armenia, followed by a short flight, brought us back to the capital city of Bogota once more. It was Monday, the day of the actual Bank Holiday, which meant we were greeted by a mostly deserted city. Most businesses were closed, coupled with a cool, overcast day, which seems to have kept most people indoors, or at least not prowling the streets around our hotel.
After a short orientation walk, covering territory we had mostly seen before, and a full-on torrential rainstorm, what remained of our group made their way to a very cool restaurant for our last supper together. We had a great evening in what was arguably one of the nicest restaurants we have had the pleasure of visiting on this tour.
We said goodbye to many of our new friends, some of them last night and some this morning. A few of them are, like us, hanging around until tomorrow before leaving Colombia.
By tomorrow night, we will be back to our humdrum existence in El Salvador.
{GMST}4|36|N|74|4.128|W|Bogota, Colombia|Bogota, Colombia{GEND}
Salento, Colombia
Yesterday morning we had a great tour of the coffee plantation, where we got to see the entire operation, from picking the ripe berries to roasting the final product. From now on, we are coffee connoisseurs. One odd thing was the peacock population on the farm - I'm not sure what that is all about.
In the afternoon, we rode a bus for a couple of hours to the town of Salento, a seemingly quiet little backwater in the midst of coffee country. However, this weekend is a bank holiday in Colombia, and this town is tourist central for both locals and international visitors. The main drag is crowded with coffee shops, bars, restaurants and souvenir shops, and a hoard of people. Last night, during dinner at a nearby hot spot, the rain came down hard, but was mostly over by the time we were ready to leave.
A few of us were persuaded to try a unique Colombian sport in a nearby bar, which basically consisted of throwing rocks at a clay target with strategically placed packets of gunpowder. You know you scored big when it exploded, otherwise scores were much like curling. The games are free - mostly an excuse to buy beer!
This morning, after a short Willys Jeep ride, we hiked, along with an incredible number of other people, for a couple of hours, to take in some spectacular views of one of natures oddest things - the tallest palm trees in the world, growing at something like 2500 meters above sea level. The weather was perfect for the hike - the rains held off until late this afternoon. When we got back to the town, there were even more people than yesterday.
Tomorrow we will be making our way back to Bogota and our Colombia adventure will be almost over...
{GMST}4|38.37|N|75|34.122|W|Salento, Colombia|Salento, Colombia{GEND}
Hacienda Venecia Coffee Plantation
A 5 hour bus ride on an extremely winding, twisty road, partially under construction, brings us to a lovely guest house in the middle of coffee country. A beautiful, tranquil spot with all the coffee you can drink, brewed to order at the push of a button.
We are only here one night, but tomorrow we are promised a tour of the plantation and the coffee making process, before we continue our journey farther into this region. Meanwhile I think I will just sit back with a fresh Cup of Joe and soak up the atmosphere.
{GMST}5|2.3|N|75|33.8166|W|Hacienda Venecia, Colombia|Hacienda Venecia, Colombia{GEND}
Medellin, Colombia
We arrived in Medellin early yesterday afternoon, after an uneventful 50 minute flight from Cartagena.
Medellin is the second largest city in Colombia, with a population of 2.5 million in the main part and maybe another million scattered around the outskirts. Upon arrival at our hotel, we all walked to a hamburger joint for lunch, then continued on for a trip on the very modern metro system. We took a train to one end of the valley, then a series of two cable cars that lifted us up over one of the densely populated slopes of the city and into the clouds, eventually traversing a portion of a huge tract of densely forested parkland. The humidity and low-lying mist gave an eerie feel to the whole thing.
Unfortunately the weather gods were not on our side for this journey and we were caught in a nasty rainstorm for the rest of the day, including a long walk back to the hotel from the metro station on our return trip. It is the rainy season here so I guess we shouldn't really be too surprised.
This morning we woke up to a completely different kind of day, with blue skies and sunshine. We signed up for a 4 hour walking tour of the central part of the city, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We not only got to see the downtown itself, but also learned a lot about the recent and ongoing political and economic situation in Colombia and especially this particular region of the country. The city of Medellin has gone from having the dubious title of the most dangerous city in the world, just 15 years ago, to now being recognized as one of the most innovative cities. Right now it seems to be very upbeat and progressive and the people generally friendly and happy. The future holds a lot of promise, albeit not without a few lingering problems.
{GMST}6|12.4218|N|75|33.93|W|Medellin, Colombia|Medellin, Colombia{GEND}
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