Salento, Colombia (Coffee Triangle)
Day 1: Getting to the heart of the coffee triangle
I head to South Terminal bus station in Medellin to get the 9am Flota Occidental bus to Salento. There are daily buses at 9am, 11am, and 1pm all including the rare luxury of wifi and movies for $15 one way.
It's a 6-7 hour trip down the windiest road and with my current hangover, I'm doubtful I'm going to survive it, but the countryside is gorgeous. by the time we arrive, Ive made friends with a German girl, Martie, and an Aussie, JoJo, headed to my hostel, La Serrana. as a solo female traveler, making friends is the easiest thing and I don't think I initiated a conversation this whole trip. We take a 6,000 peso ($2) jeep called a "Willy" from the main plaza to check in. The hostel is absolutely gorgeous.
After we drop our bags, we make the 20 minute walk back into town to shop around and eat dinner. While I can't say Colombian food is very memorable, we have a quaint little dinner at La Gran Trucha. Trout or "trucha" is the main specialty of the Coffee Triangle region.
Day 2: The day I got lost in the Colombian jungle After a night of the heaviest rainstorm I've experienced, i have family breakfast in the gorgeous garden of the hostel. JoJo and I get to the main square by 8am to catch a Willy to Valle de Corcora. The next Willy waits to leave until we have 8 people show up which includes 4 people riding on the bumper. Tip: I recommend riding on the back. It's not really dangerous, the views are amazing, and it gets a bit claustrophobic in the trunk. About a half hour later, we arrive in the Valle and immediately rent rain boots for 5,000 pesos ($1.75). It's going to be a muddy day. We're prepared to do a 4 hour loop around the valley that ends in a field of palm trees. But we've been told that since the weather tends to be bad in the afternoon, perhaps we should start with the palm trees and go backwards. Sounds brilliant... As happy as we can be with our genius plan, JoJo and I skip the right turn with the huge sign to the Valle and head straight up the road to the palm trees. We take beautiful pictures and continue on crossing over some fast-moving rivers with some terrifying handmade bridges.
Somewhere after the first two hours, I begin to question the difficulty of this hike. This is more strenuous than the towns people let on. we haven't seen anyone else all day which is concerning if we are on the finishing end of the loop...
Eventually we approach local men in the woods who advise us we are on a three day advanced route and we need to go back. We backtrack defeated, but determined to find the right path. We run into 2 british girls who were following us the wrong way and a local man selling coffee next to a poorly drawn map. we ask him where to go and he tells us to climb a gate covered in barbed wire... so we do. I must note that I think this is a terrible idea, climbing barbed wire fences in the Colombian jungle, but groupthink and curiousity talk me into it. An hour and a half later, we have been hiking up steep muddy inclines deeper and deeper into the jungle with no hope of an end. I'm convinced we are not going the right way and eventually get the 2 British girls and JoJo to turn around. We are in a torrential rainstorm and I have zero interest in camping a night in the jungle without any gear. We spend the next two hours slipping and sliding our way back down the mountain. Whoever falls the most has to buy the first round back in town. Naturally, that title will go to me as the world's clumsiest.
Down at the bottom covered in mud and soaking wet, we break for a coffee and laugh about our day. none of the locals can understand where we made a wrong turn so the mystery remains unsolved.
Day 3: Coffee and Tejo We wake up and have breakfast at the hostel where JoJo and I meet a cute 23 year old Dutch med student, Mick. The three of us head to the fincas (coffee farms), a 45 minute walk out of town. We meet an American guy, Kanoi, walking the same direction and quickly become a party of 4.
I love how easily people on the road open up. Travel encourages us to show vulnerability and tell fellow travelers our deepest secrets. I guess there is a feeling of anonymity amongst us that makes deep and meaningful friendships easy to come by.
we arrive at the Osaka farm to find out the coffee tour starts every hour on the hour. The tour is interesting, but feels a bit commercial to me. I'm still struggling with getting to know the real Colombia and not the facade they want us to see.
The guide tells us the workers get paid 500 pesos per kilo which is about $0.15. He then asks us to "help" pick the coffee beans. much to the chagrin of my new friends,, this bothers me. I know they will have to throw away whatever we pick. I tell the guide I don't want to waste the coffee just for my own entertainment and he nods knowingly. jojo gives me a look like 'just hush and enjoy it'.
I learn coffee was originally discovered in Ethiopia. The 4 biggest exporters are Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, and Indonesia. There are 3 types of coffee beans: Liberica, Robica, and Arabica. We taste the Arabica beans they grow in Salento and learn that they export all the first class beans. The second class dark roast beans are kept in colombia and sold as "tinto". This is unfortunately common in the third world. A country lush with beautiful resources exports them instead of enjoying the goods themselves.
After the tour, we walk the hour back into town and make some more friends along the way. We all sit down to eat at Brunch. It's clearly a restaurant catered to tourists, but comfort food every once in a while is okay.
We finish the day off with some street food arepas and play Tejo at Los Amigos. Tejo is not to be missed in Colombia. It is a sport that involves throwing heavy rocks at a clay target covered with gunpowder. When you hit the target, the explosion is extremely gratifying. The entrance fee is commonly a round of drinks and a few pesos.
Afterwards, we climb the hill at the edge of town to find a stunning view of the coffee valley.
Day 4: Don't get left behind
After a fun night, the next day we all part ways to continue our journeys on the road. After one last coffee at Cafe Jesus Maria, I head back to Medellin in the same direction as the Aussie couple. This should be the end of the story, but my luck is hilarious so there's more.
I put in my headphones and relax on the 6 hour ride back to the city. I wake up from a nap and notice it's dark out but I'm starting to see city lights so I know we're getting close.
this is a fixed destination bus not making local stops, but the older local woman sitting next to me signals the driver and gets up to get out. I'm next to the door so I have to get out to let her pass me. As soon as we're both out of the van, The driver pushes the auto close button for the van door and pulls back onto the highway...
So here I am on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere Colombia. At night. Alone. I can immediately tell it's not a place I want to be. The men on the street corner are staring at me. I don't want to make a scene so I pretend like I meant to get off here.
Ive been told not to hail taxis off the road and to use the official app or Uber, but I can feel the eyes of the local people on me and I know I need to make moves. I hail a taxi and ask the driver to follow that bus. the driver gives me a once over and pulls away. A guy walks up and tells me he can take me. Nope. That seems like a death wish.
The next taxi that comes by, I jump in the back seat without asking. I pull out the only cash in my pocket and tell him to head to Medellin. He nods and I realize how fast my heart is beating. I turn on my cellular data and WhatsApp message the Aussie couple in the van "WTF?!" She quickly responds that they yelled at the driver for leaving me, but he wouldn't turn around. They offered to wait with my backpack until I got to the bus station. Half an hour later, I make it to the station and I'm so relieved to see my friends. I got lucky this time.