We
are in Cartagena this morning after flying here yesterday afternoon. We
will spend the weekend here before heading back to Bogotá. Margaret
is reading the news (Colombia seeks more aid from US!) and I'm awaiting room service. Just kidding. We
are in the old city, and I don't think there's a hotel anywhere near
here with those sorts of amenities. Off to the west of us, in one of
the 100 or so Miami style hi rise hotels, I'm sure there's someone like me
actually eating breakfast, but I'll have to get up and get dressed
and walk the streets in search of one.
But
to back up to last month--oops I mean last weekend. Some 35 years
ago, the Colombian government annexed a bunch of land, built a dam, and flooded the Antioquian hillside near Medellín. In
addition to relocating the residents of El Peñol to a new location
lower down the mountain, they created a playground for weekenders
from Medellín. Gloria has a cabaña here.
Most
prominent is a giant rock, called La Piedra Peñol. A few years ago,
we would have had the stamina to climb the 740 steps to the top to
get the full 360 of the reservoir. But thanks to Margaret, who is
feeling less than athletic these days due to a knee problem, I got
out of that one. But the rock itself is quite spectacular, and even
from the lower tourist area the view is stunning. Instead of a large
lake, as you might expect, there are “islands” connected by
bridges and narrow passages; there are small encampments, farms and
ranches, and occasionally low rise hotels and apartments all
surrounded by rich agricultural land. It has taken 35 years but the
plan seems to have worked as people from the original town of El
Peñol were relocated downstream to a new town, and the
destination known as Guatapé emerged into a funky tourist town.
Guatapé really is a great spot. Their schtick has been to paint the town in traditional Antioquian style. On the lower part of many building there are zócalos, small square friezes, depicting all aspects of life in the region. They are brightly coloured, often humorous, depicting local life and traditions.
The “lake” is quite wide here, and there are the usual amusements: zip-lining, fishing, boating. The malecón is lined with kiosks selling hats, ponchos, jewelry, desserts, even single shots of your favourite liquor. On Saturday afternoon we toured some of the more decorated streets and found a great cup of coffee, before heading up to the cabaña in a colourful moto-taxi (drives like a motorcylce) up a horse trail to the backwoods. Okay, slightly bigger than a horse trail, but not much.
The original plan for here was to hike in the nearby hills, but M was not up to it so, what's a girl to do. I snoozed in the hamaca, we lazed, checked out the fish pond, walked short distances, and read a lot. Gloria is a fantastic cook and a gardener, so we again feasted on traditional Colombian cooking, much of the fruit and vegetables coming from her own organic garden.
Sunday
we took a boat ride through the reservoir, met up with some of
Gloria's family, and caught the 615 back to Medellín. I liken it to
the ride back from Sunshine Village on a spring afternoon when buses
were the only way up or down to the hill: a stream of lights for
miles and miles, winding its way down toward Medellín. At one point I
looked across the valley over Medellín to the opposite hillside only
to see one continuous line of traffic encircling the city and making
its way down into the valley and the sprawling city below. We weren't exactly alone on the boat trip, and obviously not everyone was as interested as we were!
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