Colombia 9-17 March 2018
Escape to Colombia: Bogotá & Medellín (Pt. I)
An unforgettable week in Colombia, a place which left me with a love-hate feeling. I loved Colombia so much that I hated not having more time to discover it better.
For Spring break we decided to join the Colombia trek organised by a group of HBS Colombian students. Thanks to these amazing HBS Colombians we discovered and experienced the real Colombia.
I enjoyed everything about this trip: the culture, the friendly people, the cities, the weather, the delicious food, the parties, and last but not least making friends and meeting wonderful people.
Since I have so many places to show you in Colombia I decided to split posts into different parts.
Here is the first part I hope you enjoy it ❤
We flew to Bogota from Boston and started our trip staying at Estelar Parque De La 93 Hotel, which is a nice five stars hotel located in a great location in Bogota.
First morning started perfectly: breakfast at the hotel, then a conference with the Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, who kindly welcomed us in his palace and explained us the development of Colombia. Then, the best part is when the Chivas (Traditional party bus) came to pick us up from the president’s palace. That was so much fun.
We partied in the Chivas all the way to Andres Carne De Res which is one of the best restaurants in Colombia, where we had amazing Colombian dishes. We had lunch there and drinks, then we headed to a private party hosted by Andres & Don Julio at a country house. The party lasted until 2 am but at 1am I was already done. Too much for the first day, so we headed back to the hotel to get some rest.
The next morning we were supposed to get up early to visit downtown, but after that party, we dosed out. At least we woke up to catch our flight to Medellin. We contented ourselves by watching the city from the bus. It would have been great to walk in the streets of Bogota, but it’s fine because I had other cities to enjoy.
Next up on the trip was Medellin, “The City of Eternal Spring”, which is a very beautiful city located in the Aburra Valley. We arrived in the evening at 8pm, we checked in at the hotel (Estelar), we dropped our bags in the room, changed and went out for dinner in a place called El Mercado Del Río. It was so fun to see so many options in one place, the variety, the taste, all very good. Overall the market had a great vibe.
The next day the plan was to climb Guatape rock, visit the colorful town in Guatape and a boat party. It was a long promising day.
At 7am we left the hotel, it took us one hour and half to arrive to Guatape. We got unlucky with the weather it rained for the first two hours but then it got sunny. We started by climbing the rock ( El Peñón de Guatapé ) 740 Stairs to get to the top, but it was totally worth it. The views are definitely spectacular, leaving you speechless.
We spent a couple of hours there, then we went to walk in the streets of the colorful town. I definitely recommend you to spend a few hours wandering around the streets. It’s a cute, colorful, clean and safe place. Plaza de Zocalos was my favorite part of the town,which is this pretty little square where you can enjoy rich coffee from one of the ladies in town, there are also some shops if you want to pick up some souvenirs.
After Climbing El Peñon de Guatape and wondering in the streets of the colorful town, it was time to have lunch and then start the boat party.
The boat carried us through lakes and mountains while we partied all the afternoon. I felt so grateful to be there partying surrounded by the beauty of that incredible landscape.
It was such a funny and adventurous day. Guatapé was a safe and friendly community to explore. Add it to your bucket list, no doubt!
This was my first day in Medellin! In the next post I’ll share with you places I visited the second day. Stay tuned.
I love Colombia ❤
Beautiful pictures!
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Thank you
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all the colors are so amazing !
Xx
Kali
http://www.lovelaughexplore.com
@love_laugh_explore
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I fell in love with it
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Your photos are fantastic. We were in Colombia just a few weeks ago and loved it as well. I’m so jealous of you getting to Andres Carne De Res. Unfortunately we were unable to go but reading your blog has made me think we made a big mistake. We will just have to go back sometime.
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Thank you so much!! Yees you def should go back to Andres Carne De res the ambiance there is amazing!
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The colours are absolutely amazing! I wouldn’t know where to look! And those stairs zig zagging on the side of the mountain looks awesome. Looks like you thoroughly enjoyed your adventure:)
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Yes I had a wonderful time in Colombia I’m thinking about going back again!!!
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Those stairs and those views – wow. I’d have to really think hard about climbing those even though the view looked amazing. I really enjoyed all the colorful pictures of the town too. It looks like such a fun place and full of personality. Thanks for the article.
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Thank you so much!! The stairs part was hard haha at least for me I was dying lool!!
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When anyone says Columbia, usually they think of Bogota. I am glad that you went outside of just Bogota to find this gem of a place. It is so colorful and beautiful.
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Colombia has so many awesome places to offer not just Bogota! I’m so glad I traveled around the country and discover it. Thank you!!
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Ohmaygadddd 😀 I never thought Colombia is a very colorful and wonderful country. So much colors and positive, love seeing your photos. I’ll put Colombia in my bucket list for sure ❤
http://itsbeyondimaginations.blogspot.com/2018/04/travel-diary-bali-for-only-1752146-idr.html
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Me neither until I flew there haha!! Such a wonderful country you def should visit
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I love your super amazing photographs. Everything about this place looks incredibly beautiful. The hypnotic natural beauty, the colourful streets and vehicles, the wall paintings – everything is just wow!! 740 Stairs to get to the top – really? But the views are definitely to die for. Thanks for sharing this lovely post. 🙂
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Thank you so much that means a lot to me!! yeah it was a hard hike haha but worth it
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You have an amazing way in writing! Love the post and especially the photos are so stunning! My husband and I are planning to visit Columbia via cruise next year
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Thank you so much! I really appreciate your feedback! you definitely must do the cruise it’s gonna be incredible.
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Colombia is on my bucket list. I’m planing to visit this country in this year. How many weeks you recommend for first timers? 2 weeks is enough?
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I visited 3 cities and two islands in 7 days! So yeaaah 2 weeks is great! Actually I would have loved to spend more days in Cartagena!
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Tbh I’ve been there one week i visited 3 cities but It’s def not enough. I would spend at least 2 weeks one in Medellin and one in Cartagena.
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Columbia has long been penned in my bucket list, but I haven’t gotten a chance to come here. Truly, the best way to explore one place is in the eyes of locals. I’m glad that you were able to join the group of students who organized the tour. I love the panoramic view of Guatape that have made me speechless. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
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Yes it’s always better to visit the country with locals! Thank you so much for your comment!
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I’d definitely love to explore Colombia as your photos make the entire place look so vibrant and energetic. I’d love to admire those picturesque photos of the beautiful landscapes from above as well! 🙂
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I’m happy you liked it!! You will def love colombia
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You took some increedible photos! I’d love to seee Colombia, especiall Medellin for myself one day. It’s great that it’s open to tourists and travellers now. It looks like a vibrant city.
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Thanks a mil!! Medellin was awesome, but Cartagena was incredible I would say it’s a different kind of cities.
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Wow is an unreal beautiful city, so many colors. I want to see with my eyes. Great article with nice pictures thank you for sharing.
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Thank you!!!
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What a great start to your trip! You fit a lot in!! I love all of the colorful buildings.
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Thank you!! This town was the best!
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I am kicking myself because I skipped this area because my family was paranoid. Im going to re-book now… lol great photos and looks like an amazing time!
Thanks for posting this!
Dee
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Dont worry I feel you my fam said dont go but I just went haha and changed their minds about it!! you should def visit it’s very safe and super pretty
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I definitely need to return to Colombia. I only went to Cartagena, and that alone stole my heart. Your photos are breathtaking.
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I fell in love with Cartagena, it’s just so pretty.
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Absolutely stunning views from the top of El Peñón de Guatapé! I guess the climb was totally worth it. And I love the colourful streets and houses there. People seem to love decorating their houses. It is such a lovely visual treat – makes everything more fun and interesting.
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Totally agree!! I just wish everyone had this mindset of decoration also the outside of their houses!!
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Colombia is such a great place to visit! I have only been to Bogota and Barranquilla but from this post I know wish even more that I visit Medellin. That rock looks like quite the hike but what a beautiful view!
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You def should visit Medellin it’s beautiful
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We are currently planning a South America trip and plan to visit Colombia, we will bookmark your post for when our trip is a bit closer. Thanks for sharing your amazing photos and some great tips
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You will def enjoy Colombia!! Thank you.
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This is such beautiful and colourful place
Loved all yyour captures and very
Informative post
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Thank you so much
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The view and your pictures from the top of Guatape rock is just amazing. I wonder if I have such stamina to climb 700 stairs! Colombian town is beautiful and I love to explore the markets of every place I visit. Boat party sounds so exciting! I am looking forward to visiting all these places when I get to visit Columbia.
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Thank you so much! Yes the trip was awesome I can’t wait to go back to Colombia
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