buenos aires
back yet again! i actually had no choice since i have my roundtrips start/end here. my last minute roundtrip wasn’t so bad: $600 with LAN PERU for a roundtrip EZE-BOG (EZE->LIMA->BOG). considering how expensive the buses in argentina are, i think $300 each way is reasonable. i’m glad i didn’t have to do the 100hr+ bus journey that probably would’ve come to about the same price.
i do love it here tho, and is why i keep stopping over between trips. although after the tranquility of the patagonia region and countryside colombia, i did feel some underground stations and nearby streets were dodgy. so keep your eyes open and don’t flaunt your valuables!
i stayed in the san telmo district once again. i just really like the vibe and the proximity to its markets, although i admit many things are accessible with the metro. met up with my friends again….i love going out with locals because it for once puts the pressure off me to find somewhere to go ;)
bogota
if you’ve got the extra cash or just short on time, try looking for flights with aires.
www.aires.aero
$40 U.S. will get you from bogota to loads of destinations nationally and internationally. $200 will get you to new york!
this is also a great option if you are coming from the u.s. instead of booking a ticket to buenos aires, why not start in colombia and make your way south?
bogota
back in bogota! i really like the fact that it’s a big city, and like buenos aires and barcelona, it starts with a ‘b’. ok just kidding. i really like that all three cities have distinctive neighborhoods. makes it much more fun to explore. the candelaria area is great because it’s old town so it’s got character. it’s also a student area so there are cheap places to eat. the proximity to museums and plazas is undeniable as well!
we happend to arrive on 1 may, which is labour day. here the workers have a big parade that is regulated by the thousands of police to keep them in check. things only got a bit out of hand when the riots started in plaza bolivar. people were just throwing things from the crowd since you are not easily spotted. so, surrounded by the riot police, tanker bull dozer double the size of an ambulance, army guards, AND national police, the rioters were kept in the plaza by tear gas and threat of rubber bullets. nevermind how armed the police were! AK’s, gernades, and big, big guns. i have no idea why i ended up there except to get some photos…i did feel safe enough with the army boys right behind me though! the aftermath was a big mess of shrapnel/garbage/burnt articles and one damaged cathedral door. as naive tourists we were left excited and adrenaline-fueled standing in the plaza.
villa de leyva
the best lamb is supposedly served here. i don’t know why, but we’ve been following food around for a bit now….maybe it means we’re feeling deprived? the town is a good size and has massive cobble-stoned roads. a bit hard to walk around at first because you always have to watch out for loose/missing stones. getting hurt during a trip is definitely not what any of us are looking for!
its got a huge plaza that is 120×120 meters and one of the biggest in the americas. umm what else, what else??? a church, shops, and scenic hikes….i think i am starting to be unimpressed by the similarity of these towns.
however, WE WERE VERY MUCH IMPRESSED WITH THE LAMB!!! many restaurants serve it as a specialty and most probably won’t dissapoint. ours was the size of my thigh! get one to share…unless you plan on taking some home! if you go into the ‘centro de comercio quintero’ there are a couple to choose from. ’don quijote’ was recommended a few times.
barichara
it’s a short ride away to barichara from san gil, a perfect day trip. this town is famous for its colonial streets and overall aesthetic beauty that’s been preserved. we were told this is why a lot of films are still filmed here. it’s definitely pretty, but not exciting enough to merit a over night stay. our reason for coming was to see the village but more to try their delicacy: ants!
there was no way i was trying them since i despise them. that’s all. anyway, after lunch we asked the owner where to find some. OFCOURSE he had some and offered them to us as dessert. sick. these things were the color of red beans and the same size, if not bigger. after they were chewed a bit it didn’t look any better on everyone’s tongues. apparently they don’t taste so bad.
if you don’t have too much time for day trips, don’t worry about it. the whole santander region is famous for its ants. shops in san gil sell them as well.
san gil
one of my favorite villages :) popular with adventure seekers, it’s the interlaken of colombia. from white water rafting to rapelling, it’s all here! paragliding prices start at 60.000.
stay at el dorado hostel on calle 12, n.8-55. owned by the rios brothers, luis and miguel are heaps of help and fun!
we stopped off here so two of the boys could potentially go paragliding. i say potentially because they needed a good convincing! it would’ve been awesome to go again but funds are running low…2 more months to go.the taxi ride into town from the bus station is only 2500. the town is not very big so this price is pretty standard. don’t be ripped off for ‘extra persons’ or ‘extra bags.’ just make sure to have 2500 and don’t expect change…we’ve experienced that they simply refuse to give it back!
the climate is so much nicer here. inland and still surrounded by vegetation, it’s not as humid as the coast. food and drink is most definitely cheaper. whew! there are a couple of markets in town which are worth checking out like the fresh fruit juice and chicken ones…the poor chickens are in a crate next to the kitchen waiting to be eaten. never seen that before! you can also get big ants here (specialty of the santandar region). um, no gracias.
if you just want to relax, ask luis. he’ll recommend excellent places and even join you! he took us to a swimming hole just 5 mintutes outside town where you can go cliff jumping. follow him up as he shows you how to climb back up under the mini waterfall and bare-handed on the face of the rock. what a fantastic day!
el parque nacional tayrona
another park, another entry fee: 34.000 pesos for a 5 day permit. a bit steep but a must-do on my list of the coast! plastic bags are not allowed and neither is alcohol with high alcohol content. they search your bags at the entrance as you register. wine seemed to depend on the security staff and definitely NO LIQUOR UNLESS YOU BRIBE THE POLICEMAN! (a bit more later)
from the entrance you can pay another 2.000 for a lift to the start of the trails. cough it up and pay…it’s an uninteresting paved road. from here it’s a easy hike. there are a few places to stay…the first one (el paraiso) is really nice and cheap (about 15.000 for a hammock) WITH proper toilets/shower. however, the beach isn’t that great. walk another hour and you will reach el cabo. you can swim in the beaches here (it’s not allowed along the way due to strong currents) and the water is fantastic. aqua clear water with white sand and many nice coves. the hammocks start at 20.000 and the tents from 25.000. there is also a shite communal outdoor shower for the whole campground…food starts at about 8.000 for a pretty big meal and drink from 2.000 a can/bottle of water.
we didn’t see any police until this last campsite. as we were registering ourselves, he approached and asked to see our bags. we had 2 litres of rum hidden away but his search was thorough! apparently strong alcohol is not permitted because it “ruins the calm ambiance of the park.” understandable, right? but we are in colombia…and asking if we could bribe him isn’t technically bribing, is it? so we asked him if there was any was of getting them back and OFCOURSE he said “sure, at what price?” so after a little haggling, we paid him 30.000 pesos for both cartons. not bad considering the prices within the park for beer :p
enjoy your time here! there is endless jungle paradise waiting to be explored and a gorgeous beach to relax on when you get back. just bring lots of water, food and enough money!
taganga
oh ya, other than that, it’s a lovely little fishing town just 15 minutes from santa marta. the diving course here is supposedly one of the cheapest. that includes popular places like thailand and of course australia!
taganga
geez never before have i been so wary of the police. i’d heard stories of police corruption and had been especially warned of the police here. the stories were about drunk people walking alone that were singled out as police planted drugs on them and then make the tourists bribe them to not go to jail.
the first time it happened, a cop stopped us (a group of 5) at the top of the hill as we came in from the beach. then, out of nowhere 2 more showed up. they asked us to empty out our pockets/bags and started asking if we had any drugs. because of the warnings, we were prepared. we emptied our bags in view of everyone and turned our pockets out in the same fashion. after a bit of thorough searching, they let us go. sure, one time is ok, but this happened 3 TIMES in the same day! the police surely recognized our group!
drinking on the beach, we were warning a guy about this and the danger of walking alone when this guy decided to go to the toilet in some trees. it was out of our view and on the way to a club just up the beach. he didn’t come back for ages and we figured he went dancing, so we were surprised when he came back with a different hairstyle and a different shirt. turns out he was peeing when he saw the policeman approach, got nervous, and swallowed a bag of coke which was tucked in his underwear. so the police had nothing to bust him of but stood there yelling at him about hiding drugs. unfortunately for him, he was staying at a hostel next to the police station so they were familiar with his face. hence the attempted change in appearance (although i think it made him more suspcious). at the end he offered all the money he had on him and they let him go. 80.000 pesos! heaps considering we were paying 18.000 a night.
volcan del totumo
AMAZING! in the mud volcano, you’re somewhat floating upright without the work of treading anything…and when you lie down you’re stuck in that position…wading/swimming is just manageable….and getting pulled/pushed is such a cool feeling. this is definitely a MUST-DO if in the cartagena area! the videos are on my youtube page. check it out!
getting here is a bit tricky. 35.000 with an organized van (casa viena is a good one) plus the 5.000 entry fee. on your own, get a taxi to the bus terminal. it is about 10.000 pesos (find people to go with!) and from there take a colectivo IN FRONT of the bus terminal (not in it) towards the volcano. it will drop you off at a turnoff before going over to barranquilla. here you will find people with motorcycles to take you to the entry of the volcano. should be about 2.000/3.000. tuk-tuks are also available if you aren’t comfortable on the back of some stranger….but ours got a flat tire and we ended up hitching a ride with a construction worker THEN had to hire a moto…so i would suggest tht moto from the beginning. good luck!