No Puede Ir Alli You Can't Go There
We were up and at breakfase by 7:30am the next day with plans to go on a tour of the town Guatape. Gutape is located about 2 hours east of Medellin and the only way to get there is by bus. Unfortunately, when we went to the front desk to book the tour, the concierge turned us down because it was already too late in the day.
Though we were slightly disappointed, we brushed it off and figured we could do a tour of an area known as Comuna 13. After researching some tours, we finally found one on Medellin City Services. Funny story, when I asked the front desk to make us a reservation for the tour the man at the front desk immediately looked at me in horror and told gave me a stern "NO. You can't go there." He told us it was too dangerous and that we would need an escort, like a policeman or body gaurd or something, someone with a gun.
I told him I was confused and explained that we wouldn't be going alone, that we would have a guide. Finally, he was convinced and decided he would call to get us a tour guide. When the tour guide arrived, he had to explain to the concierge that the neighborhood is not the same place it was 15 years ago.
Pueblito Paisa Little Town Our tour guide was awesome. We told him our plan was to have no plan and just explore. He said perfect, we'll go see eveything then. First stop was the top af a little hill in the middle of the city where you can see the city at a full rotation.
As we took in the view, our guide explained the different areas of the city, landmarks and even a little history.
There is a small replica of a traditional Colombian town square on the hill as well. The square is riddled with souvenir shops, restasurants, and bars. So we grabbed a couple of brews for the road. In Colombia, you're allowed to drink in a moving vehicle as long as you aren't driver.
El Parada Proxima: Comuna 13 We made our way to the infamous Comuna 13, what was once known as one of the most dangerous places of the city. A while back this Comuna (area in which refugees were forced to move to from the countryside) was taken over by rebels attempting to control trafficking through the San Juan highway. The orange snake like structure is known as Las Escaleras Electricas, the Electric Stairs. Becasue the Comuna is built on the side of the hill, to get to the top you either have to ride a motorcycle, walk up six flights of stairs, or ride 6 flights of escalators.
Today, with the help of the Colombian government, this area has been blessed with peace and restoration. As an attempt to heal this area of its violent history and reputation, graffiti artists have been hired to paint the walls of the Comuna to inspire hope and forward thinking in the youth growing up there. We were even lucky enough to meet the artist of the mural in the pic above, Chota.
At the top of the Comuna is yet another stunning view of Medellin. In this photo, the boy on the left is posing and saying to me, "Senorita, toma una foto." I'm like, "Meh, no gracias hombre. Tal vez en diez anos."
A Peculiar Form of Transportation To me, the cable cars were the most impressive development of Medellin. They are, in fact, a part of the everyday metro system. Sometimes, the only way to reach certain neighborhoods is by taking the cable car. Because the city had so little space to spare during its development after Escobar's reign, the only place to build metro systems was above ground. Amazingly, this system has been running for the past 11ish? years fault free. Fun fact: Because the cables cars are a part of an average communte, some people advertise their businesses on tops of their roofs.
Parque de los Pies Desalzos The next stop was Barefooot Park, a small plaza where you can take off your shoes and soak your feet in a little pool or run around in the sand. Surrounding the park are small restaurants and ice cream shops.
