Medellin - What A Place

My plan was to take a bus to Bogota and then fly to Medellin. Theory. In practice, that was more difficult, as all the truck drivers in Colombia went on strike and blocked all roads in and out of the big cities all across the country. So no bus was running. I didn't know that until the morning, when I wanted to leave Villa de Leyva.

At the bus station, three other people were facing the same problem. At some point, we were even considering taking a helicopter into Bogota, but it turned out that they were already fully booked for that day. Luckily, we found a private taxi that drove us, but the expected time he told us was anywhere between 3h-8h given the uncertainty how quickly we would get through all the roadblocks. Anyway, I turned out not to be too bad, and l even made my afternoon flight.

So l arrived in Medellin in the evening and the drive from the airport to my hostel offered some of the best views I have ever had over a city. Medellin is located in a valley and the city not only stretches out for a large portion of that valley, but houses are also built up the hills on pretty much all sides. It really is a sight to behold.

Anyway, I had three main objectives for Medellin during my 2.5 days here. Visit the infamous Comuna 13, party and go on a tour about Pablo Escobar.

I started by visiting Comuna 13, once said to be the most dangerous area in the entire world. Nowadays, it is a quasi-open street art museum, with a happy and joyful vibe - people dancing, selling, some parties, and just generally having a good time in the absence of any danger. Our guide still lives in Comuna 13 and told us all sort of stories, including about the infamous military operation "Orion' in 2002, in which almost 100 people were killed. Nowadays, however, it is worth a visit as it holds so much truth about the development of Colombia since 1990 and serves like a microcosm into wider Colombia, its history and its society.

That evening, I met up with an old friend, Naty, that I studied with in London and that I visited in Medellin a few years ago. Together with her boyfriend, we sat down for dinner at a bar, caught up about the old times, drank Colombia's no.1 drink, Aguardiente, and watched the Colombian football team. On the way back, we stopped at a few viewpoints to marvel at the amazing sight underneath us that was Medellin.

I wasn't done for the day, though, as I signed up to go partying in Medellin. Specifically, with a party bus, or Chiva as they call it here. It was definitely an experience, even if the clubs we went to were mediocre at best. So it wasn't the full party experience, but it ticked two of the three things I wanted off the list already.

The next day, it was time for the Pablo Escobar tour. Some people say it shouldn't be run while others say it is an important part of the city's history. Especially since Netflix's Narcos show sort of glamorised him. But who am I to judge?

Anyway, it was a highly interesting tour, in which we visited important places where important events took place (bombing of the place he and his family lived, the jail he built for himself, a football field where he made big announcements and finally his grave). It put a lot of things in perspective, debunked some myths and our guide was very knowledgeable about Nettlix and Escobar that helped get a better understanding of not only Escobar, but also about how the people in Medellin felt.

It was just the right ending to my time in Medellin and Colombia. It is a country that is really fascinating and that I definitely want to return to one day. While I couldn't quite connect with Medellin, I had a great time getting to know some more off-the-beaten path destinations in the country (Cabo de la Vela, Barichara, La Ciudad Perdida, Villa de Leyva) and learning more about its history and culture.Read more