somosadictosaviajar, Author at Somos Adictos a Viajar

In the morning, Marcela and I went to visit the inside of Hassan II Mosque. This is quite a marvellous architectural gem. Every detail was perfectly thought of, every carving either marble, stone, wood or plaster was carefully designed and the place is lit with beautiful chandeliers. This place was build in 6 years buy more than 10,000 workers and 3000 artisans.

We then headed to pick up the rental car we will be using for the next few weeks.

In the afternoon we drove to Rabat and visited the Chellah and the Hassan Tower. Both beautiful places with Arab design. In the Chellah we saw the Roman ruins which are not well preserved but gives the visitors an idea of a Roman complex.

With Marcela’s aunt, uncle and cousin in Hassan Tower, Rabbat, Morocco

We then drove to the place we were staying, however we couldn’t find it so we asked for directions. The guys helping us didn’t know the location but asked if we had a phone number so we gave it to them. After several attempts the guy answered the phone just to say that there was no reservation and he will call later. After about 20 minutes he called and said there was a reservation but the apartment was only for 4 people and we couldn’t not stay there and he was cancelling the reservation. At this time, Halid, the guy helping us, got really fired up and called the police. This is where things got heated and messy. The police showed up and wanted us to denounce the owner of the place but we refused. After more phone call attempts and chatting through the website we booked the place with, the guy accepted to give us the apartment. It was already 11:30pm, we were tired, frustrated and morally devastated.

I have to say that we arrived at an apartment with a propane water heater with exhaust inside the house… how dangerous is that? The place did have a couple of bedrooms and we could sleep comfortably.

Well done Morocco, three out of three… one can only hopes things get better or worse!

We left early in the morning of April 26 to visit Oudayas, a cemetery in Rabat. We then visited the Medina where we walked along the narrow roads and got lost exploring every corner of it. We had lunch in a local restaurant inside the Medina.

In the afternoon we drove to Chefchouen, the blue town in Morocco. We drove through beautiful landscapes, most of them used for agriculture. We arrived late in the evening. Marcela and her cousin went to look for the place where we are staying which was located inside the Medina, a beautiful guesthouse up in the hill. The owner was a funny guy and kept saying “No pasa nada” (Nothing happens).

Aqueduct on the way from Rabbat to Chefchaouen, Morocco

On the way from Rabbat to Chefchaouen, Morocco

Africa, Travel Journal, 🇲🇦 Morocco

24/04/201828/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Lisbon and Casablanca (April 24)

We left Medellin on April 23 towards Panama. After a short stopover we flew to Lisbon, Portugal. We arrived in Lisbon at 11:00pm, took the train and headed to a hostel we found on Booking.com, however it was very hard to find and did not get to bed until 1:30am.

We spent the morning on a free walking tour around Lisbon’s city centre. What a beautiful city, we will have to come back… of course we will come back!

Some of those curiosities you find along the way – The sandwich were delicious, Portugal

We departed Lisbon at 4:00pm and after an hour we arrived in Casablanca, Morocco; got a free SIM card right at the airport and then took the train to Casa Voyageux train station. At the train station we got onto a taxi and all of a sudden the driver got an additional passenger. We argued with the driver about it because you never know who is getting into a cab with us and what the intentions are, however there was no point because of the language barrier. We decided to stay in the taxi and hope for the best! It was all okay, apparently the driver wanted to make some extra money with an additional passenger, as we paid full price and the other passenger also paid a bit.

We arrived at the hotel and met with Marcela’s aunt, uncle and cousin that were waiting for us. Late that night we went for dinner and then walked around town, the last stop was to see the outside of Hassan II Mosque at night.

We then decided to get a taxi to go back to the hotel and this experience was not short of excitement. We talked to a taxi driver and he agreed to take all five of us, which is apparently illegal (we did not know that), however the other taxi drivers had a different opinion. They started confronting our driver and the altercation almost ended up on a fist fight… we were just pure spectators inside the taxi, well not that much because I came out of it to take pictures. Finally, they agreed to split the fare and take us in two separate cabs.

Not a bad few hours in Morocco, let’s see what tomorrow brings!

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

23/04/201828/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Sonsón (April 7 – 23)

These will be our last few days in Colombia. We had one more special place to visit and then a few more family gatherings.

Marcela’s brother has started a new business in a beautiful farm in Sonson, a small town about 4 hrs from Medellin. We went on a trip for a couple of days to “La Perla”, Marcela brother’s farm.

Sonsón is a beautiful town with colonial houses and a beautiful central plaza. It is surrounded by beautiful mountains. The place is amazingly green, between milk farms, avocado plantations or pure forest. During our time in the region we had the opportunity to visit a sugar cane processing plant. They specialise in producing panela, basically solidified sugar cane juice, which is used in almost every house in the region. There are several uses for panela, but the main is to dilute it in water and drink it… delicious!

With Agustín, Marcela’s Brother in his Farm La Perla, Sonsón, Colombia

Sugar Cane Processing Plant – Making Panela, Colombia

April is also the month for both our father’s birthdays and this year is a special one for Carlos’ dad as he is turning 70. We had a celebration for both dads’ birthdays before heading on our next adventure… Morocco here we come!

Celebrating Carlos’ Dad Birthday, Rionegro, Colombia

Thanks to our family and friends for an amazing time! This was a records, this is the first time we spend so long in Colombia since we left in 1999. And also thank you to Colombia for waiting for us to come and see you.. there is a lot more to explore and we will sure come back again to spend time visiting every corner of this beautiful country.

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

06/04/201827/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Coveñas (April 2 – 6)

Almost 19 year ago on a Christmas vacation we meet in Coveñas, a small town in the Colombian Caribbean’s coast. Life has taken us to many other beautiful places and we had not returned to visit this beautiful part of the country. This longer visit to Colombia allowed us to do more traveling around, so we headed for a couple of days to the place we met.

On the way from Medellín to Coveñas, Colombia

It used to be a small town, and even though it has grown at lot in the last 19 years, all the charm that we remember is still there, and the building where we met is still there too.

The Place where Marcela and I met in Coveñas, Colombia

We spent some relaxing time by the beach and spent some quality time with Carlos’ mom, dad and sister. We also did a tour to the Caimanera Mangove. This is a mangrove area where you can just relax in a canoe and enjoy nature, there are beautiful birds and crabs along the way.

On the way from Coveñas to Medellín, Colombia

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

01/04/201827/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Family and Friends (March 22 – April 1)

This visit to Colombia is about family and friends, and a bit of traveling in between. So after a few days exploring a bit of Colombia we are back spending time with family and friends.

Dinner with Marcela’s Cousins and Grandmother, Medellín, Colombia

Sancocho (Traditional Food from our Region) with Friends from Canadá, Guarne, Colombia

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

21/03/201826/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Popayán, Buga and Manizales (March 19 – 21)

We started our drive back to Medellin on March 19, but we did a few more stops along the way. We visited Popayán, the white city, Buga and then a short stop in Manizales.

On our drive to Popayan we passed the Purace alpine tundra, a very important ecosystem due to its natural water sources. On this drive we were looking for the Purace Volcano, unfortunately it was very cloudy and we could not see it.

Páramo de Puracé – Alpine tundra, Huila, Colombia

We spent the night in Popayan where we walk around town. The town is getting a fresh coat of paint, this is a very important place for Easter, as hundreds of Colombian come to Popayan during these Catholic holidays.

Harvesting Sugar Cane, Valle del Cauca, Colombia

On our way to Manizales we stopped in Buga, this place is another important pilgrimage site in the country. People make it to “El Señor de los Milagros” to pray for their personal or family needs.

El Señor de los Milagros in Buga, Valle del Cauca, Colombia

In Manizales we visited the cathedral and had a very interesting tour that took us to the roof top. The church really know how to exploit tourism and after many people illegally climbed to the roof top they decided to build a proper staircase to take people on a unique tour. The latest addition to such experience is the glass floor that was installed just a month ago where we stood just on top of the altar. The cathedral is a unique worship place in the country, and it has some very unique features:

It has a coffee shop inside the church on one of the terraces
It has a rooftop staircase
It is the highest cathedral in Colombia with 106 meters high
It has a satellite dish
It has a glass floor where people can see the service from above

Cathedral Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Manizales, Colombia

View of Manizales from the Cathedral Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Manizales, Colombia

Glass Floor – Cathedral Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Manizales, Colombia

On the way from Manizales to Medellín, Colombia

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

18/03/201826/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Tatacoa Desert, San Agustin and surrounding areas (March 15 – 18)

Heading south, our first stop was the Tatacoa Desert . This place is vaguely called “desert”, but in reality it is a dry tropical forest. During our visit to the Tatacoa Desert we went for a hike with a local guide that showed us some of the hidden gems of this place. It is beautiful place and we really recommend it. If you go, you must try “cabrito con pipitoria”, a traditional dish of goat and rice with blood and offal.

Typical Food from the Province of Tolima – Lechona Tolimense, Tolima, Colombia

One of the nights we went to an open air observatory. The guy running the place gave us an interesting talk about the stars and we enjoyed a couple of hours of star gazing through the telescopes, unfortunately there were a bit of clouds, so we could not take nice photos.

After a couple of nights at the desert we drove to San Agustin, a small town in Huila, it is close to San Agustin Archeological Park which is recognized by the UNESCO as World Heritage site. This park is composed of many sited with pre-Colombian ruins.

On the way to San Agustin – Horseshoe Viewpoint, Betania Reservoir, Huila, Colombia

On the way to San Agustin – Gigante, Huila, Colombia

The first morning we did a guided tour through the main site of the park and visited the museum. In the afternoon we did a horse riding tour that took us to some of the the other archeological sites. This was an amazing experience, we had not been on a horse since we were young and had not good memories of the experience, so we were a bit scare to do it at first; however after a few minutes in the horse, we relax and really enjoyed the afternoon. Woke up a bit sore next morning but it was all worth it.

San Agustín Archeological Park, Huila, Colombia

Archeological Site El Purutal, Huila, Colombia

Riding Pinina – La Chaquira, Huila, Colombia

Riding Estrella – La Chaquira, Huila, Colombia

Hostal Alto de los Andaquíes, San Agustín, Huila, Colombia

On march 18 we did a day tour that took us to the narrowest part of the Magdalena river. The Magdalena river is the most important river in Colombia and in the northern part of the country, after covering around 1528km, the Magdalena River becomes quite wide… so it was impressive to see how little it is at the start.

We then went to Obando, a small town with a small museum and more ruins from the pre-Colombian era. We also went to the Alto de los ídolos another archeological site and the Bordones Falls, these beautiful falls are 400 meters high and believe to be the highest in the country.

Narrowest Point of the Magdalena River, Huila, Colombia

Arepas with Hot Chocolate, Huila, Colombia

Archeological Site Alto de los Idolos, Huila, Colombia

Then, we visited the last of the archeological sites, Alto de las Piedras. Our final stop for the day was the Mortiños Falls, another amazing natural beauty.

Archeological Site Alto de las Piedras, Huila, Colombia

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

14/03/201826/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Bogotá, Villa de Leyva and surrounding towns (March 8 – 14)

We have travel to many countries and have spent a lot of time discovering every corner of those countries that we visited, but we have seen very little on the country were we grew up. So this time we decided to start exploring a bit more of our own country. We borrowed Marcela’s dad car and we headed east and south of Medellin.

Potato Harvest on the way to Bogotá, Colombia

Our first stop was Colombia’s capital Bogotá, we had not been here in years. It was a great opportunity to catch up with Carlos aunt and to visit some of the touristy places in the capital and some of the towns around the area.

We went to visit some towns in Cundinamarca and Boyaca. We stopped at Chiquinquira and Raquira on the way to Villa de Leyva were we spent most of the afternoon, walking around town and visiting the Santo Ecce-Homo monastery.

Monastery of Saint Ecce-Homo, Villa de Leyva, Colombia

In Bogotá we went to the Gold Museum, the Bolivar square, and the presidential residence. We also visited the famous salt cathedral in Zipaquira. And we could not leave the capital without a visit to Monserrate, one of the most visited pilgrimage sites in Colombia.

The Offering Raft, Gold Museum, Bogotá, Colombia

Chandelier in the Salt Cathedral, Zipaquirá, Colombia

Miners Route, Salt Cathedral, Zipaquirá, Colombia

View of Bogotá from Monserrate, Colombia

On our way south we stopped at Tequendama Falls. This place has an amazing water fall and a hunted hotel. According to many TV shows it is one of the most hunted places in the world, as all the spirts of those that have committed suicide in the falls are lingering around.

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

07/03/201825/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Medellin, La Siria and Guatape (February 22 – March 7)

The family gatherings continue, we had Marcela cousin’s graduation party and more lunches and dinners.

Celebrating Melisa’s Graduation, Rionegro, Colombia

There are so many things to do around Medellín and with such a big family there is always a farm, cottage or place to go. We visited La Siria, a beautiful country side residential area, where we spent the weekend. We enjoyed a bit of sunshine and a refreshing pool.

We also visited Guatape for a weekend. We spent time wake boarding and going around the reservoir on the boat. Wake boarding is challenging, Carlos manage to get out of the water a couple of times, but he could hardly move the day after, every muscle was sore.

Old Town El Peñol (now under water because of the reservoir), Guatapé, Colombia

Celebrating Carlos Mom’s Birthday, Guatapé, Colombia

South America, Travel Journal, 🇨🇴 Colombia

21/02/201826/07/2018somosadictosaviajar

Barranquilla’s Carnaval, Mompox and Cartagena (February 9 – 21)

Barranquilla’s Carnaval is the second largest in the world after Rio de Janeiro. Since it was happening while we were in Colombia we could not afford not to go. We packed our bags, my in-laws and off we went.

We drove from Medellín to Montería and spent the night there with some relatives. The next day we arrived in Barranquilla, we are staying at Marcela cousin’s house. We spent the next three days enjoying Barranquilla’s Carnaval, it was great to be part of it; although the heat was hitting us hard!

We attended all the parades and have to admit that most of the participants are very well prepared and the show is impressive! However if you ever get a chance to go to the carnaval, we will recommend you only go to the parade on day one and then try to get tickets for the big concert that is organized every year.

Barranquilla’s Carnaval, Barranquilla, Colombia

CBarranquilla’s Carnaval, Barranquilla, Colombia

We then drove to Mompox, a town recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage. We stayed at a small hotel where we were accepted almost as family.

On the way from Barranquilla to Mompox, Colombia

We spent the next couple of days walking around the town, going to see the sunset on the river and visiting the local cheese factory.

Sunset in the Magdalena River, Mompox, Colombia

On our way to Cartagena we decided to take the old access way to Mompox… via ferry. Up until a few months ago Mompox did not have road access, one had to take a ferry to cross the Magdalena River in order to get to Mompox. Currently there is one bridge in operation and the second one under construction and it is expected to open in just over a year.

We drove the car on the ferry together with more than 20 other vehicles including transport trucks and off we went cruising along the river. It took just over an hour to reach Magangue; from there it took us a few hours to reach Cartagena.

On the Ferry from Mompox to Magangue, Colombia

From Cartagena we visited Barú, an island nearby. The beach is beautiful, comparable to the beaches in Maldives or Bora Bora. We have never been here but were impressed with how touristic this place is and the amount of ilegal hostels they have built on the beach and the amount of restaurants. We also witnessed how pushy locals can be with the tourists, it was not nice!

In Cartagena we are staying at Marcela aunt’s house. We spent time visiting the Old City and the San Felipe Castle. We had not been to Cartagena in years and we loved it. The old city is very organized and the architecture of the city is just magnificent. While there we also attended the baptism of Marcela cousin’s son.

Marcela and her Father, San Felipe Castle, Cartagena, Colombia

It was an excellent trip to the north of Colombia, where we knew some places but had not been there for many years.