Day 11: Explore Medellín, Colombia
It is Monday already, and so it is my last day in Medellín. After meeting a bunch of digital nomads from around the world at the 7in7 conference on Saturday and Sunday, it is now time for a little sightseeing. At least, this was the plan!
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Breakfast in El Poblado
My morning started with a proper breakfast at Café Pergamino. I had baked Huevos and a delicious and healthy smoothie! I am super surprised by the cuisine here in Medellín. After all, I have read the past weeks, and months, I expected a lot of rice, potatoes, and beans or so. Instead, Medellín has a wide range of food to offer, from healthy and vegan, to be a hotspot for burger lovers. A paradise, not only for meat enthusiast but also for vegans or vegetarians! This city has it all! Especially, in and around El Poblado*, the neighborhood where I stayed.
Well, “Huevos” are eggs and mine were baked with Mozzarella and tomatoes! It looks small, and it was my first thought, but eventually, the size was sufficient for my tiny stomach. (I cannot eat a lot at once anyway, so for me, it was a perfect size).
Off to Parque Arví
After breakfast, I continued my way to the metro station Poblado. My plan for today was visiting Parque Arví and enjoy an incredible view over the entire city. I also wanted to spend some time in nature, after these days in such a big city. Sometimes, I need a rest from all the hustle and being in nature is the best way for me. Parque Arví is a National Park which is open to the public “created for the enjoyment of the local, national and international community.”
So, I went down to the Metro Station, which is a 30-minutes walk from the breakfast spot, which was already a 20-minutes walk from my hostel. I took the Metro to the stop Acevedo and the cable car to the top of the hill from there. It is already a 20 minutes ride on the Metro and another 20 minutes with the cable car. And it would have been another couple of minutes for the rest of the way, with the second cable car.
Another Travel Fail
But… Do not forget; it is Monday! 😉
Unfortunately, the second cable car was CLOSED!!! Well, I am on my way, almost two hours, only to make it the halfway? DAMN!!!
Once again, one of my travel fails! I have NOT learned the lesson! Always, check the opening hours beforehand! When I wrote down these lines in this online diary and checked the website to give you a link, where you can find out more details, I saw, that the park is closed on Mondays usually! And when did I try going there? Right, on a Monday!! Ding, Ding, Ding!!! Sometimes, I am such a stupid girl!
At least, I had a beautiful view anyway, and I could take the same ticket for all the way back to Poblado as I did not leave the metro/ cable car stations.
Back to Poblado
Instead of hurrying to my last workshop, a coffee session with lessons about growing, harvesting, and processing the beans, including a tasting, I had a way too much time left, then. That is why, I went to Park El Poblado, rested a while, went into the other direction, and found the Starbucks, where I could buy the “I was here”-mug of Colombia for my best friend (she already has a pretty impressive collection), and just relaxed for the rest of the time.
The Coffee Tasting
Around 4 p.m., I made it to the coffee workshop. Two hours full of coffee! No worries, we have not tasted coffee all the time.
First, we learned a bit about the process itself, from the different sorts of coffee trees, the planting, and harvesting, drying and more of the process. Then, we learned how to taste coffee, from smelling the beans itself, how the smell changes with the grinding of the coffee beans, and then how different the smell is when it is brewed. Eventually, we smelled and tasted 14 different types of coffees (only one or two sips each).
The rest of the evening, the other workshop attendees and I spent one last dinner together, before I went back to my hostel and got ready for leaving Medellín*, tomorrow. My next stop will be Cartagena, and I look forward to seeing all those colorful houses which I heart a lot of!
