The Land of Coffee, Trout & Jeeps

It's funny how often strangers can impact your life when traveling. Something as small as a suggestion can turn into an hour long conversation and next thing you know you've altered the (rough) itinerary. That's how we ended up in Salento.

Taxi jeeps in the town square

Since Salento is in the coffee region, we tried about every coffee shop in town, but quickly found a favorite.

This coffee maker is over 100 years old

The menu is simple. You can either get a small or large coffee with steamed milk. And it costs less than $1 USD per cup! Given our love for Colombian coffee, we decided to take the hour hike out of town to a small coffee farm that offers tours. We had taken a tour in Costa Rica and were curious how the two differed. Honestly, the biggest difference was that this one was significantly cheaper, only $3 USD per person, and this included the cup of coffee you received at the end!

This lab hiked the whole way with us

Flowers from the trail

Taking a quick break

Almost to the farm

Our tour guide

Lots of banana trees on the farm too

Drying out the beans

Enjoying a fresh cup 

After the tour, and our hike back into town, we were ready to try the local trout that the area is also known for.

Trucha and patacon

Patacon is basically a large plantain tostada. I had my fish with garlic sauce. Phill had his topped with sautéed tomatoes and onions. They were absolutely delicious! 

The next day we were ready to head out for a hike in Cocora Park. We took an early morning jeep taxi from the town square hoping to avoid the fog, but it never quite burned off. 

First view of the river

Saying hi to a few friends along the way

One of many makeshift wooden bridges

Settling down for lunch

Making our way back down

Favorite part of the hike

Our taxi jeep soon to be stuffed with people

Phill taking a pic while holding on to the back

On our last day in Salento, we walked up the 250 steps of Alto de la Cruz to see a panoramic view of the city.

More winded than I should be

Then we settled in another coffee shop (with wifi) to work on the blog. For dinner, we found a restaurant serving American cuisine. The owner is from Oregon so we knew it was legit. It had been over a month since we had anything that resembled food from home so we couldn't resist!

My first cup of mora juice

The main street

Phill's massive burger loaded with EVERYTHING

Sunset from the town square

If these pictures haven't convinced you to add Salento to your bucket list, I don't know what will!

Welcome to Medellín Part I

Set in a deep valley in the heart of Colombia lies the city of eternal spring, Medellín. While many people outside of Colombia still associate Medellín with the drug cartel, Pablo Escobar, and violence, locals know that times have changed. Since the 1990's, the city has done an amazing job minimizing the drug presence and transforming their image into an innovative and exciting hub for Colombians and travelers alike. This dramatic change has not gone unnoticed. In 2012, the Wall Street Journal awarded Medellin City of the Year and they were also garnished for their Sustainable Transportation along with San Francisco. As soon as we stepped foot in the city, it was apparent how much Medellín had set themselves apart from the rest of the country. The locals, or Paisas, have an immense amount of pride and were clearly excited to see travelers experiencing their city and culture. We took the metro to our hostel located in an affluent district called Laureles. Shanta's brother, David, flew in from Houston the following day and we began exploring the city. We took a trip up the wall of the valley in a cable car and arrived at the ceiling of the city, Park Arví. The view of the city was obscured by the dense forest but the food vendors at the top made up for it. With empanadas in our stomachs, we set out hiking with the remaining daylight. To cap off the night, we drank our way through the gringo district, Poblado, which became a nightly routine. It was there that Shanta found her coveted Mexican food and David was mistaken for a Colombian local on multiple occasions. In Poblado we also discovered a coffee shop that Colombians claimed served some of the best coffee in the country. Despite keeping each of us awake until 4am, the locals were right about the quality. We spent the next week taking tours, seeing festivals, and bouncing from bar to bar at night. On David's last night, we went to a crowded local's bar a few blocks from our hostel. After a few drinks, we noticed Colombians crowding around an older man. When I asked the table next to us who he was, I was told that he is a national celebrity, Bazil Alexander, who used to be famous for his salsa songs in the 80s. The Michael Bolton of Colombia got up, grabbed the microphone, and began belting out some of his greatest hits while the bar roared in excitement. Shanta and David squeezed in for a pic, and Bazil managed to give a perfect smile mid-verse. David took off the next day and Shanta and I couldn't manage much more than drinking water and recovering at the hostel. Check back in the next few days for posts on our city tours and the famous Medellín flower festival, Feria De las Flores.

Typical restaurant near our hostel, The Wandering Paisa

David's first night

(Baby)sitting in line to Park Arví

Cable car system

On the way up

Drained the hot sauce supply

Conquering the park

The best coffee at Cafe Pergamino

Shanta taking in every last drop

Shanta's latte

With our new friend Aliyya

David and I excited about the cheap prices

The myth, the legend, Bazil