Salento, Colombia 🇨🇴 

Great sleep last night, back in the country air.  We are heading on a coffee tour today, whilst I did one a few days ago, Lesley hasn’t and I figure you can never know too much about coffee. We head down to the square from the hostel where the Willy jeeps are waiting. The jeeps were actually sold off by the Americans at the end of World War II cheaply and are really popular in this area of the country for transporting people and coffee. We bump into Chris who was on our bus from Medellin and invite him to join us. We get our tickets but the jeep seats are full so I make Leslie pull the age card whilst I stand on the back and hold on for dear life.

It’s only about 20 minutes down the road until we reach the farm of El Ocaso. Our guide, Maria is very bubbly and knowledgeable. The first step is understanding the coffee cherry and how the plants grow. It has has two beans inside each fruit and they are coated in a jelly which is surprisingly sweet.

We are then each given a basket which we tied around our waist like a traditional coffee picker and head off into the plants to see how many fruits we can pick. I am super competitive, but still only manage a handful. Next up we see the separation machinery and then the kiln and tunnel drying methods. The beans are dehusked externally but all the waste is reused, the husks fuel the kiln and the cherry skins are used as compost so nothing goes to waste. We learn a bit about roasting, but they don’t do this on the farm. Then we can take a seat, learn how to brew coffee and finally drink a tasty cup. I actually prefer this tour to my previous experience, even if the farm is only 18 hectares it was really engaging.

We hop back onto a jeep, and I thankfully secure a seat this time as we head back to town. Chris is an interesting guy, so we invite him to dinner before parting. Lesley and I climb the steps at the end of town to the mirador before having a good mooch in the shops.

It is a rainy night as we sit in a patio for dinner, but the company is good and we have a fabulous steak in blackberry & coffee sauce washed down with a excellent red wine. Thank goodness my stomach is better!

Salento, Colombia 🇨🇴 

I am still not 100% and am feeling slightly nervous of my stomach on a 7hour bus ride. I had booked the tickets a couple of days ago to ensure we got onto the limited direct service to Salento. We caught a taxi to the South terminal in plenty of time, so we can have eggs and arepas freshly made for breakfast. After a final toilet visit we climb aboard our minibus for the long drive. I confess to mainly listening to music and dozing for the journey as it is the same road I took last week to Manizales. Lesley on the other hand is like a dog with its head out the window, and it is lovely to see her in awe of the mountainous scenery and countryside life. We stop once and also have a couple of stops in roadworks, which gets the bus unbearably hot. 

 We arrive safely into Salento and walk the few blocks to our lovely hostel which as views over the surrounding hills. Salento is a beautiful and colourful town with a big central square. We wander up the Main Street, Calle Real and stop for a bit of window shopping. We stop at a place for a simple dinner, where Lesley has the worst glass of wine ever based on her facial expressions!  

Whilst Lesley enjoyed the bus, we both don’t fancy losing a day to a return adventure, so we book flights for the return to Medellin from Pereria.

Medellin, Colombia 🇨🇴 

I am feeling a bit better today as we head to a French cafe for breakfast.  It was a really tasty omelette, I even had broccoli which has been hard to find. We walk down the hill to meet our guide at El Poblado station, the group all seem really friendly and interesting. We are off to Comuna 13, once one of the most dangerous areas but now a safe regenerated area full of street art.

We take the metro and then a cable car up to La Aurora to see this area and learn of the social projects here. The cable cars are a big deal in Medellin as it has made the city centre more accessible and cut commuter times bringing more opportunities. There are tower blocks here that the government gave to people post the South American games, based on their home risk of landslide or need. Theirs to own or sell once they have lived for 5 years. We sit for a bit enjoying warm corn arepas with cheese which are delicious and much nicer than the white ones I have tried.

We glide back down in the cable car and hop on a local bus to Comuna 13, still can’t believe they have a turnstile on the small buses. The area has lots of street art, many of it depicting stories from the conflict, like the one that shows two boys who’s father was murdered on the basketball court and another with elephants that have white handkerchiefs signaling peace. They are all very vibrant and we even meet Choco, who lives in the area and painted many of the pieces that we saw.

We stop for a coffee, even trying coffee lemonade which was refreshing. Continuing up on the street escalators, the brick houses with corrugated roofs are a vast sigh below us, clinging to the hills. At the top the light rain turns into a massive thunderstorm which we wait out a bit before heading back down and saying goodbye at the metro.

Tonight we are joined by Manuel and Delphine for rooftop beers followed by a traditional dinner of Bandeja Paisa which is rice, red beans, shredded meat, chicharrón (pork rind), chorizo, morcilla (black pudding), fried egg, avocado, arepa and plantain….pretty filling!

Hacienda Venecia, Colombia 🇨🇴 

Coffee tour today! Cooked scrambled eggs for breakfast and set off for coffee. We spent some time understanding the washing process that Colombia maintains due to weather rather than the drying method. The good quality beans are all exported and then roasted in country of export. We did some tasting and I can see the washing process produces more acid coffee rather than the rich berry flavours that I prefer.

The second part was in the fields, understanding more about the plants. Plants will yield fruit forever but they improve this by replanting every 22 years. They have a constant harvest due to peticipitaon and each plant will yield 3kg of fruit a year. It takes 5kg of fruit to produce 600g of finished export quality coffee beans. A variable size of pickers harvest the plants, picking an average of 45kg a day each and earning between £1-£2 per kilogram.

The final part of the tour explained the roasting process. We got to smell the beans along the way, getting to the first ‘crack’ for a medium roast and then a second ‘crack’ at a higher temperature for a darker roast.

All my learning done, we sat down to a simple chicken soup and salad for lunch. The group was quite sociable, so I hung round by the pool in the main house, heading back to my cheaper accommodation before dark. Hector and Marieke had been out hiking and I offered to cook, so I created another pasta dish for us. It was just us three in the hostel tonight as we settled in with a few cold beers.

Hacienda Venecia, Colombia 🇨🇴 

What can I say about today, I spent the whole day in a hammock. The area has a idyllic view over the various vegetation in the valley with the posher accommodation in the distance. The day started with a hive of bird activity, had some lovely little yellow birds investigating the grass, then as it warmed up the butterflies came out. The birds started up again late afternoon and when night fell there were amazing dragonflies that glowed in the dark to watch.

Despite reading a couple of books it was a very relaxing and memorable day on the coffee farm.

Manizales, Colombia 🇨🇴 

I had such a good nights sleep.  The bed was super comfortable and the hostel quiet.  I check out late and wander down the Main Street looking for brunch options.  La Suiza does great coffee and a tasty portion of huevos ranchos.  Filled up, I wander the main area and note that this is a modern and commercial part of the town.  They have their statue of Simon Bolivar depicted as a Condor, which is different.

The cathedral is the tallest in Colombia at 102metres.  It was built in 1928 over 11 years.  What I found most incredible was that all the concrete & steel used to build it was imported from Europe and USA.  The best part of the cathedral is that you can climb to the top of the spire, a mere 395 steps.  I nearly bottled it when another lady started to get hysterical but I pushed on to the top up the spiral staircase.  I didn’t stay long at the top before coming back down and feeling much better being at ground level.

I shop for a few groceries ready for my self catering days at the coffee farm and then grab my bag from the hostel.  I am whisked quickly back down the cable car and find the bus that will drop me at the bridge on the edge of town.  From here I call the Hacienda for a pick up, which transfers me down the valley to the farm.  We pass lots of coffee trees on the way, rows of them stretching up even the steepest parts of the valley.

The hostel is simple but fine, everyone is friendly and very sociable.  I am pleased I brought food when I see the variety at their mini market, there will be a lot of pasta but there is enough cold beer to see me through and of course the coffee is free.  

I head to bed and spot the biggest spider, about the size of my palm, just sat above the bed.  Never one to make a fuss, one of the guys takes it on with a broom and successfully kills it.  Whilst I am in bed reading, I see another one creep under the door.  This one I handle by myself and my trusty can of tuna bashes it from a height.  I do manage to go to sleep, after packing some clothes under the door and keeping half an eye open.