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South America
  • Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser
  • Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser

South America

A 161-day adventure by Miel & Laura Read more
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  • Trip start
    January 21, 2024
    South America
    So many delicious unknown fruitsPlaza de BolívarMuseo del OroMuseo BoteroStreetart everywhere!MontserrateFree walking tour in La CandeleríaTwo local dishes: Tamal & Arepa

    Bogotá

    Jan 21–24, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    I had to kill a few days on my own before Laura, Maarten & Laura arrived, but there are worse places to do so. Bogotá has a bad reputation but is colourful, dynamic, authentic and surrounded by nature. It's fairly safe, but as locals say: no dar papaya (don't be an easy target). Once reunited, we went to Montserrate to enjoy the views and went on a free walking tour.Read more

  • South America
    Willys, the most used type of transport here
    Salento from aboveHorses running up and down the streets is business as usualOne of our first coffees ever! Still disgusting, but we'll learnPicking coffee beans at the Ocaso plantation. The real pickers pick up to 120kg/day for just €30The beautiful Cocora ValleyWax palms grow up to 60m high!1They throw bananas into every dish here 🍌

    Salento

    Jan 24–28, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    This colorful colonial town in the Zona Cafetera was the perfect reason to start drinking coffee ☕. We hiked the Coffee Route and learned a lot during an interesting tour at one of the many coffee farms. We also hiked amongst giant palm trees and saw hummingbirds! 🌴 Maarten & Miel went on a MTB adventure but had to turn back because one of the bikes broke down (secretly happy, man these hills are steep) 🚲Read more

  • South America
    Plaza Botero in La CandelariaOne of the many rooftop bars in El PobladoGuatapéVegan version of Bandeja Paisa, Antioquia's local dishThe stairs of the famous El Peñol waiting for usColorful Comuna 13Hot chocolate tasting 🤤

    Medellín

    Jan 29–Feb 1, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    We visited busy La Candelería, drank cocktails in El Poblado and strolled around in Laureles, but were not impressed. The city and its many districts are hard to get a grip on. On a day trip to Guatapé we climbed El Peñol's 708 steps for a great view over the lake and wandered around in the colorful town. The next day, we had to revise our opinion of Medellín after a walking tour in the vibrant San Javier district (Comuna 13) , where we tasted local food and enjoyed art in all its forms. This neighborhood transformed from Colombia's most dangerous place to the coolest one in little more than a decade.Read more

  • South America
    Tintipan
    View from our cabin (which was a bit crooked)2A huge spotted eagle ray jumped 2m high out of the water right in front of our kayak!Our hostel: Santa LovaThe famous floating hostel: Casa en El AgiaSanta Cruz del Islote, with a population of 800+ people on just 1 hectare2

    Tintipan

    Feb 2–4, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    You're obliged to relax on this island: you pick a hostel, get dropped off by a boat and can't leave the premises (which are surrounded by mangroves) unless you book a tour or are checking out. So relaxing is what we did 😎. Playing cards, reading a book, chilling in a hammock, snorkeling, kayaking, getting sunburned and drinking cocktails🍸. We also visited Santa Cruz del Islote - the most densely populated island on earth.Read more

  • South America
    Pelicans!Exploring the narrow waterways of the mangrove in a wobbly canoe 🛶A raccoon sleeping high up in the trees 🦝One of the many cute sloths1Yuca crisps1

    Rincón del Mar

    Feb 4–6, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    A short boat trip took us from Tintipan Island to this little paradise on the Colombian coast 🌴.

    Apart from enjoying a beautiful sunset and spotting cool animals in the mangrove (sloths, a raccoon, an iguana and lots of cool birds), we spent most of our time in the bathroom of our cabin as we both had food poisoning 🤢. Miel was given treatment in the local (very basic) hospital to be able to continue the journey to Cartagena.Read more

  • South America
    The typical colorful colonial buildings with wooden balconies
    Street art based on a Gabriel Garcia Marquez's novelAt night, the city centre's streets turn into one big cocktail bar

    Cartagena

    Feb 6–8, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    There's not much to do in Colombia's most touristy and expensive city so we only stayed around for two days. However, it can't be denied that it's a beautiful place! There's color everywhere; be it on the painting canvases, the old houses, the dresses of the street performers, the different fruits or in the cocktail glasses (which we couldn't enjoy given our health condition) 🎨

    We were also pleasantly surprised to find iguanas, sloths, monkeys and parrots in the same small city park 🐒

    We might come back here!    Read more

  • South America
    Spotting monkeys 🐒Chilling in huge hammocksMarinka WaterfallsA very bad picture of a toucan!The local cat always visited our terrace during breakfastWe had a different dog following us every day 🐶3One of Minca's 2 streetsTypical local jungle houseCacao face mask

    Minca

    Feb 8–12, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    This cute town is nestled in the foothills of the beautiful Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. We ignored the heat and the sandflies and explored the numerous hiking trails in the mountains while birdwatching, spotting monkeys and visiting a cacao plantation 🍫. The rivers, waterfalls and hotels with fancy pools along the way provided us with the necessary refreshment. Cuddling with the many cute street dogs that kept following us, made these days even better!

    Unfortunately, we also had to say goodbye to Laura & Maarten. Thank you for the best trip, we’ll miss you 🥲    Read more

  • South America
    The beach is beautiful (but not much of it is left because of erosion)
    We stayed in a cute cabin!Seywiaka, a Kogi village in the Sierra Nevada de Santa MartaKogi in their typical outfitCute cinema where the owner brought us popcorn and a drink during the movie 🍿We saw a few macaws in Palomino (this one was hurt and is recovering at the shelter)Miel got a fresh haircut ✂️

    Palomino

    Feb 12–16, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We hiked through the jungle on our own, up to an indigenous Kogi village. These people don't interact with the outside world, so we kept our distance (but ended up playing with some kids in the river). We also visited the local dog shelter, went to the improvised cinema, enjoyed good food (we even found vegan cinnamon rolls 🤤) and chilled on the beach.Read more

  • South America
    11113 people, 4 bags, 1 motorbike

    Camarones

    Feb 16–17, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 34 °C

    The coastal town of Camarones (= 🦐) lies one hour north of Palomino, but couldn't be more different. We were virtually the only tourists and there was not much to do but (trying to) escape the heat. We woke up at 6AM (😴) to meet our guide Daniel, who took us to the 'Santuario de Fauna y Flora los Flamencos'. We saw a lot of flamingos (of course), but also pelicans, herons, peccaries, caracara and ibis while paddling through the lagoon in our canoe.

    Daniel told us that the lagoon is often used by narcotraficantes. Last Christmas, a few villagers stole some cocaine and were killed as revenge. Colombia’s government has struggled to limit cocaine production in recent years, as rebel groups and drug trafficking gangs take over territory that was abandoned by FARC guerrillas following the group’s 2016 peace deal with the government.    Read more

  • South America
    Our room for three nights!🥵Playa de ArcoirisThe view from Pilón de AzúcarPlaya DoradaTypical Wayuu mochilasThe view from El FaroCheap Venezuelan fuel brought us from Uribia to Cabo de la Vela

    Cabo de la Vela

    Feb 17–20, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ 🌬 30 °C

    It wasn't easy to get to this remote desert village on Colombia’s northern tip, but it was worth it. We experienced what life must be like for the indigenous Wayuu that live here; we slept in traditional hammocks and hiked through the barren wasteland 🌵. Since we were the only ones crazy enough to do so, we often found ourselves alone at beautiful beaches.

    The village itself is a kitesurf destination. We promised ourselves to keep this (expensive) activity for another time and just enjoyed the show the pros put on. Add a beautiful sunset every evening and you get a truly unique place!    Read more

  • South America
    Co-working at Holls - our favourite place in Palomino!
    & the best (vegan) lunch at Holls!We found another M & L to play 'Keer op Keer' withPalomino's most idyllic pool at the fancy vegetarian hotel El Pavo Real ...... which we could enjoy by just having lunch there!Cristo es amor1Beach party until 11 PM - perfect for us!

    Back in Palomino

    Feb 20–26, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    After visiting some locations with less facilities (vegan food, electricity, internet and drinking water were hard to come by), we decided to go back to a familiar and comfortable environment. We worked on our travel guide (a project that will hopefully be finished one day), ate good food, surfed, went partying on the beach and enjoyed Palomino's relaxed vibe.Read more

  • South America
    Costeño Beach Hostel
    The hostels in laid-back MendihuacaMendihuaca River1Lunch at YAY& swimming at YAY :)El SaltilloGuachaca RiverTrying to get rid of the many mosquitos1

    Guachaca

    Feb 26–29, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We stayed in a cheap room in Guachaca on the busy Ruta Nacional that runs along the Caribbean coast. It was the perfect base for our new favorite activity: exploring fancy hotels! First day: Costeño Beach Hostel close to gorgeous Mendihuaca. Second day: sustainable resort YAY in the jungle and a hike to a hidden waterfall.Read more

  • South America
    Our hammocks at Playa Brava
    We looked for coconuts to stay hydratedFinally a (faded) glimpse of Pico Simón Bolívar, Colombia's highest but inaccessible mountain 🏔️Howler monkeys!Playa Cabo de San Juan, Tayrona's most popular beachSnorkeling at Playa PiscinaWe had Playa Cañaveral to ourselves!1

    Tayrona NP

    Feb 29–Mar 2, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ 🌬 31 °C

    This national park is one of the most visited places in Colombia and our last stop on the Carribbean Coast.

    We tried to evade the day trippers going to the overcrowded Playa Cabo de San Juan by making a 3-day trip to the lesser-known beaches. The sweaty hikes through the jungle and sleepless nights in a hammock/moldy tent were rewarded with sights of an anteater, a tucan, barbed woodpeckers, lizards of all sizes & colours and all 3 types of monkeys (capuchin, howler & tamarin) 🐒. We could wash off the sweat in the clear blue sea with a view of white beaches backed by palm trees, jungle and the slopes of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. 🌴

    This may have been our last sight of the sea for this trip, but it was a good one!    Read more

  • South America
    Rio Suarez - Class 4/5 white water rafting 💦
    Barichara villageView from Guane after hiking the Camino Real from Barichara 🥵270m bungee jump over Rio FonceCueva de la Vaca (sadly named after the many cows that fell into the cave and died) 🐄One of Pescaderito's many crystal clear poolsParapente above the spectacular Chicamocha canyon 🪂1We had to climb the steepest street ever to reach our Airbnb, but it was worth it! 👨‍🍳

    San Gil

    Mar 3–8, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Name any adventure sport and there's probably some travel agency in San Gil offering it. All of them are reasonably priced too, so we went wild!

    We went paragliding 🪂 and caving and Miel also ticked bungee jumping and class 4 rafting off his bucket list ✅. To let our adrenaline levels drop, we visited "Colombia's prettiest village" and cooled off at some natural pools in between all the adventure.Read more

  • South America
    Saturday market!1New favorite fruit: mangosteen!Vegan empanadas & arepas!One of the fancy food courts1The area is rich in fossils, including one of a marine reptile that lived 100 million years agoWe made bahn mi! Almost as good as Tine's :).

    Villa de Leyva

    Mar 8–13, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Villa de Leyva is known as one of the most beautiful and well-preserved colonial towns in Colombia. As we were quite impressed with the colonial architecture, the pretty cobblestone streets, the huge Central Plaza and - let's be honest - the cheap room rate of our hotel, we decided to linger a little longer than originally planned. The fact that we found tofu, a delicious ice cream shop ànd a bakery with normal bread (not sweet! no cheese!) also helped 🥖. To compensate all those treats, we climbed to a viewpoint and went mountain biking.Read more

  • South America
    El Desierto Rojo - find Miel!
    1Our cabin in the middle of TatacoaEl Desierto Gris - find Laura!Cacti here grow up to 8 m high!

    Tatacoa Desert

    Mar 13–16, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    As usual, we were too stubborn to use the convenient tourist tours and decided to explore Tatacoa (which is actually not a desert but a dry tropical forest) on our own 🌵. The 'desert' consists of two parts, each with a distinctive colour. We hiked off trail in the grey area and survived the scorching temperatures in the red part the next day 🥵. After walking more than 15 kms each day, taking an open-air bath while stargazing at our desolate cabin provided some welcome relaxation 🛁.Read more

  • South America
    Archeological park San Agustin
    Estrecho Río Magdalena'Doble yo' at Parque Arqueologico Alto de Los IdolosSugar cane factoryPanelaSalto de MortiñoSan AgustinCooking at our hostel

    San Augustín

    Mar 16–20, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    The Andes town of San Augustín is surrounded by steep river canyons and archaeological sites that contain prehispanic carved volcanic stone figures 🗿. It's also in this region that the mighty Magdalena river starts its journey through Colombia.Read more

  • South America
    Carantanta, salpicón and champúsEmpanaditas de Pipián 🥟. We ordered one portion, then another one ... and another one

    Popayán

    Mar 20–22, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ 🌧 22 °C

    Maybe it was the rain, or the fact that the Puracé Volcano was closed due to elevated seismic activity, but 'The White City' didn't appeal to us that much. The typical food on the other hand ... 🤤

  • South America
    Las Lajas
    Practicing Spanish by watching dubbed moviesViews from the bus to Ipiales

    Ipiales

    March 22, 2024 in Colombia ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Another long (but very scenic) bus ride brought us to this ugly border town. We had just enough time left to hop in a shared taxi and visit the popular cathedral Las Lajas. Despite having ignored the embassy's guidelines to get our criminal record translated and apostilled, we got through the border easily! Bye bye Colombia 🥲Read more

  • South America
    El Panecillo and its Virgin statue from the old town
    Basílica del Voto Nacional with its atypical gargoyles (animals from the Galapagos)Semana Santa processionPalacio ArzobispalView from PanecilloEcuadorian chocolate tasting and shopping at PacariLaura walking down the 1000 steps leading to Guápulo... and upAnother menu del díaOur hotel's rooftop terrace2Looking after a cute kitten for a daySome shopping for the Galapagos. How is this all gonna fit in our backpacks? 😱

    Quito

    Mar 23–29, 2024 in Ecuador ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    We ended up staying longer than expected because we needed to slow down a bit after all those Colombian buses. Our week in Quito provided the structure we've missed for a while now. Even the weather was predictable; sunny in the morning, stormy in the afternoon 🌩️. It was the perfect opportunity and place (our hostel was beautiful and we got a free room upgrade) to plan our future adventures in the Amazon rainforest and the Galapagos islands. Lots of people just pass through this capital, but we actually enjoyed its different neighborhoods: the beautiful old town, trendy La Floresta and hilly Guápulo (party Mariscal less so).Read more

  • South America
    Hoatzin (stinky turkey)Red howler monkeyMonk saki monkeyCapuchin1New favorite tree!Caiman LodgeTarantulaScorpionThe poisonous Wolf spiderMaking bread from yuccaSiona shamanFor those who watched The Last of Us: cordyceps in real life!The elusive pink river dolphin1

    Cuyabeno

    Mar 29–Apr 2, 2024 in Ecuador ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    The Ecuadorian Amazon is only reachable by organized tours but our 4-day trip to Cuyabeno Reserve was worth every penny! We went looking for animals by boat or on foot, during the day or during the night. The biodiversity we saw here is too immense to describe, but some of the more thrilling sights include the pink river dolphin, anaconda, tarantula, scorpion and 6 different species of monkeys.

    🐊🐦🕷️🐬🦥🐒🦂🦇🐜🦋🐍

    We also got to know some culinary and spiritual traditions of the Sionas, an indigenous group inhabiting these parts.    Read more

  • South America
    The endemic Galapagos Giant Tortoise. They can live for 5 months without food & live up to 170 yo
    The endemic Marine Iguana, the only iguana that swims and eats under waterPelican, it's cool to see their impressive fishing skills up close1Baby hammerhead sharkNot always easy to spot, but we ended up seeing 10 of them during our MTB day tour2Lava tunnels with different levels1One of the island's imploded cratersPlaya GarrapateroGalapagos Land Iguana welcoming us at the airport

    Galapagos - Isla Santa Cruz 🐢

    Apr 3–7, 2024 in Ecuador ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Being so close, knowing the already steep entrance fee is going to double this August and realizing the amount of tourists in Ecuador is lower than usual due to the current crisis, made the Galapagos irresistible. And we're so glad we decided to come here! It's crazy beautiful and wildlife is everywhere. You literally have to be careful you don't step on a iguana or a seal doesn't steal your seat. 🦎 🦭

    Unfortunately, it's also super expensive so we have to be a bit creative. Instead of joining a boat tour to Tortuga Bay, we hiked and spotted baby hammerhead sharks 🦈 upon arrival. Instead of taking $50 taxis, we hitchhiked to see the giant tortoises 🐢 in the Highlands and mountainbiked to Cerro Mesa & Playa Garrapatero (biking while spotting tortoises & enjoying beautiful views, so no complaints!). And instead of eating $50 pizzas, we made delicious dinners in the kitchen of our hostel!    Read more

  • South America
    Endemic Marine Lizards
    51Lava tunnel1The Wall of Tears - built by prisoners during the 50sEndemic Lava Lizard1Huge empanadas & jugo de maracuyáRooftop of our hostel1

    Galapagos - Isla Isabela 🐧

    Apr 6–13, 2024 in Ecuador ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Isabela is the largest and one of the youngest of the Galapagos islands. Being here felt like being in a Planet Earth episode. We were greeted by penguins & sea lions upon our arrival and had a view over a lagoon with pink flamingos from our hostel's terrace 🦩. Every morning, we went snorkelling at the nearby Concha Perla Lagoon, where we saw sea turtles, huge sting rays, sea lions, white tip reef sharks, colourful parrotfish, pufferfish, shrimp and a lot of cute penguins 🤿.

    We also did a tour to Los Tuneles, where we snorkelled through lava tunnels surrounded by huge sea turtles. We spotted a seahorse and entered underwater caves full of white tip reef sharks. We took a little walk in this unique volcano landscape, where some blue footed boobies were doing their weird mating dance.    Read more

  • South America
    Blue-footed Booby
    2The sea lions are literally everywhere on San CristóbalKicker Rock - famous for hammerhead sharks which we didn't see 😞Daily activity: playing with sea lions1Darwin's Galapagos FinchEvery evening, these come out in their thousandsGalapagos Hermit CrabEl Junco1

    Galapagos - Isla San Cristóbal 🦭

    Apr 16–23, 2024 in Ecuador ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    San Cristobal's colony of Galapagos sea lions is the largest in the archipelago and they are our new favourite animals. They are so playful and we often found ourselves surrounded by them while snorkeling (the babies are very, very cute). We also made time to admire the other wildlife (lots of sea turtles, iguanas, tortoises, sharks, rays, blue-footed boobies. the usual 🙈).

    Swimming with the black tip reef sharks during the 360° tour of the island was really special and we were lucky enough to come across a group of dolphins! The mountainbike ride to the other side of the island left us completely dehydrated (the heat! no water! uphill!), but we got some beautiful views of the island and El Junco Lagoon.

    This was our last stop in Galapagos. After three weeks of snorkeling, sun and the coolest animals, we are really going to miss this place! 🏝️    Read more

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