February 2019 I decided to do an immersion Spanish program in Colombia. For a whole month the city of Medellin was my temporary home.

Medellin is situated in a narrow valley thus the lights surrounding the city at night is one of the coolest things you will see while there. I took this picture from Pueblito Paisa. A small village with cobblestone streets, shops with local souvenirs and restaurants serving traditional Colombian food such as the famous bandeja paisa*.

Free walking tour – downtown Medellin

A great way to explore the city is doing a free walking tour with Real City Tour. My guide for this tour was absolutely amazing! One thing to note when you book this tour is that you can`​t​ expect to see beautiful scenery during your walking tour – the tour happens in downtown which will be crowded and sometimes dirty. The reason I recommend this tour is for you to learn more about the history of Colombia and its people. It will give you the real political and cultural perspective about the country. You can`t get that anywhere. For me it was truly fascinating!

One of the stops of the tour was the Plaza Botero with 23 Botero Sculptures. Botero is a Colombian artist born in Medellin.

Arvi Park

The Arvi Park is located approximately 45 min away from Medellin by public transportation. In order to get there you will need to take the metro and two cable cars. This park was my favorite thing about Medellin. I love nature and the Arvi offers 54 miles of trails to explore. I visited the park at two different occasions, the first I did a tour offered by the park called “Water Trails”. There was a specific point in the tour that our guide invited us to walk barefoot in the nature. It was a really pleasant experience!

The second time, I explored with a friend and we did the trail called “La Flora”. A good tip to hike on your own at the park is to download the maps.me app for offline maps. If you get hungry, there is a cute vegetarian restaurant right by the entrance of the park called Cable a Tierra. They offered a three course menu for a really good price and the food was creative and delicious.

Also, a visit to the Arvi Park is the perfect opportunity to take the cable car and enjoy a panoramic view of Medellin. The cable cars are new and I felt really safe. This is a must do!!

 El Salado Park

My second favorite nature spot in Medellin was El Salado Park. It is a lesser known park in Medellin which guarantee less people and a more tranquil visit. My friends and I went to this park during the week in a afternoon for a nice picnic and a short hike. To get there you can take the metro to the Envigado station and take one of the green buses with the words “El Salado” on the front. It will drop you off at the entrance of the park. There is an entrance fee of approximately $1.40 dollars.

Inside the park you will find a nice path with a stream running along side. The stream has some deeper spots suitable for swimming so if you want to enjoy the water don`t forget to bring your bathing suits. We did not swim but I sat down on the rocks and put my feet in the water. Very relaxing!

Sports in Medellin

Of course soccer is a big deal in Colombia and watching a soccer match in Medellin is a great way to experience Latin America’s passion for this sport! The tickets are not expensive and it is a cool activity to do with friends! I watched a match with one of the local teams called Independiente Medellin. One of my biggest concerns was safety. Since they are very passionate I know that it is common to break out fights inside the stadium. However, I felt really safe in that game I went and I also learned that things can get more heated when the two Medellin home teams are playing one another.

You may think that soccer is the national sport in Colombia but it is not. Tejo is considered Colombia`s National sport. I could try to explain all the rules of Tejo but all you need to know is that involves throwing discs on small targets containing gunpowder which explode on the impact. So you can expect small explosions, lots of beer, and lots of fun! This is a must do when visiting Colombia. Unfortunately, the sport is not very common in Medellin so I found only one place in the city with Tejo. You will have to gather a group of people to book a time slot. Look it up on the Facebook page Tejo in Medellin Tour to book a game.

Cafes in Medellin

When you talk about Colombia one of the first things that comes to mind is : Coffee. I am not big on drinking coffee so that was not a priority for me. Well, I changed my mind! It is true that coffee in Colombia is amazing! I caught myself wishing for a cup of coffee everyday. It was like dessert for me. Because of that I wanted to share three of my favorite spots in Medellin for coffee and some food, of course. The first one is Pergamino, very popular in the city they have three locations. This cafe was very close to my Airbnb so I went there several times. The second one is called Hija Mia, besides the delicious coffee they have good avocado and peanut butter toasts. Lastly, Cacao Brunch where I had one of the best breakfasts in Medellin. It is not crowded making the perfect spot for reading a book in peace!

Medellin is a nice big city with a lot to offer. I was so impressed with the quality and cleanliness of the public transportation making it very easy to explore the city 🙂

Next I will write about the little town Guatape – Colombia.