Villa de Leyva

Villa de Leyva was highly recommended by other travelers as well as a friend from home. We took a bus from San Gil toTunja where we caught a very crowded collectivo (mini-van filled to the gils) for the 45 minute drive out of town and to Villa de Leyva. We arrive at the bus station and decide to catch a cab to our hostal -Colombian Highlands -as it is on the outskirts of town and we don't really know how far that is. Turns out in the cab it seems much further as they kinda go around the outskirts of town.  We later find out it is an easy 10 or 15 minute walk.We arrive to find a great homey hostal nestled against the hillside with great outdoor courtyards, an outdoor eating area with a pizza oven and a community room, tambien. Our room is cute and cozy. Unfortunately there is a problem with our reservation and we will need to change rooms tomorrow for the bunks - bummer.

The staff here is very helpful and one of the woman's daughter - Carolina - has decided to give us her personal attention - at times we cannot get her to leave our room!

We had read that the hostal offered several tours, included a real full day canyoneering trip for experienced canyoneerers. As it turns out the guide is back home in France getting new equipment! Just our luck. Disappointed we ditch the tour idea altogether and opt for a short hike which starts from the property. After breakfast, someone from the hostal walks us to the path and tells us how to find the trail up to the vista. The trail is well-marked, until we get to the top.  The directions say to cross the grassy field and pick the trail up again on the other side. 

Well we do find another trail but then we can't find the trail heading back up over the backside of  the hill to the final vista.  At the insistence of a local farmer who is clearing brush we just head up the hill - ahh, there is the watertank landmark.  And the Mirador (lookout).  You can see the entire city and the surrounding hills. Spectacular.

The colonial town itself is a picture perfect postcard style town - whitewashed buildings, colorful bougainvillea, cobblestone streets (sometimes more like boulders!) If we had not already experienced the lovely town of Barichara we would be in awe. Villa de Leyva was declared a national monument in 1954 and it has been preserved - in its entirety! 

There is no modern architecture - even the vehicles are restored.

Villa de Leyva is a bigger, more commercialized version of Barichara.  Colombian vacationers flock here every weekend. Upscale hotels and tourist shops line the major streets.

The Plaza Mayor is a one of a kind plaza - there are no trees, or fountains, or park benches - rather it is a huge cobblestone square anchored by the impressive Cathedral.  At night the cobblestones glimmer from the sporadic rain.  During the day, I marvel at the women in high heels navigating the uneven terrain as they cross the plaza. 

It really is picture perfect, all the time.  As you walk up and down the streets its hard to get over how "perfect" the town feels.  A bit Stepford Wife'ish if you ask me.

We spent three days here, relaxing at the Colombian Highlands hostal - which we highly recommend!  On our last day we decided to do a little sightseeing and head out of town to visit the El Fosil museum.  On the way we saw this bike store and thought  - well maybe bikes would be more fun.  Ciclo Shimano - with a name like that they should have some decent bikes.  Well ok, not really.  We stick with the original plan and walk ...6 km one way.

El Fosil is a almost complete kronosaurus - an 120 million year old prehistoric marine reptile which looks like a huge overgrown croc. The walk was predominantly on the road, but that was ok as there was very little traffic.  We found a bit of a short cut back, but figured it was 10 or 11 km overall - which seemed a lot longer than it would have if it had been on a forested trail. 

Final Days In San Gil - Weeping Willows and Hostal Closures

We had become quite comfortable in San Gil - enjoying our coffee and arepas for breakfast with the locals at the corner cafe, hanging out under the huge ceiba trees in the central parque just outside our hotel doors, walking up the neighborhood stairways for a little exercise and a view of the city, and we had even become accustomed to the boisterous sounds of constant traffic outside our windows which had started to fade into normalcy.  But, the time had come to move on - so on our final day we decided we should visit the only real attraction listed in our trusted guide book - the Parque El Gallineral.  Its a riverside park, with various walking trails and a big swimming pool ...which did not really look that inviting...

But the trees are the main draw - they are covered with barbas de viejo - long silvery fronds of tillandsia that create a surreal effect of glimmering shadows of light.  I went a little crazy with the camera action ...knowing that in the days to come the majority of the pictures would start to look alike.

Next stop - a bus to Tunja, and onward to Villa de Leyva.  As we packed up and were headed out of our hotel we noticed a woman walking around, room to room, taping  a notice on every door -- which looked like a closure notice.  Interesting.  We asked at the reception downstairs and he said it was the government demanding more taxes.  He didn't seem to bothered, like maybe it was a normal occurrence.  They shut you down until you pay what they ask for...we wondered if we would have been "evicted" if we had not been leaving or if they would just "close" each room as the guests left.  Well we hope they sort it out as we liked this hotel and would hate to think we were the last travelors who were able to stay there.

Soaring with the Birds Over San Gil - Parapenting

Eenie, meanie, minie, mo. Which adventure sport shall we do?  Seeing how San Gil was the self proclaimed adventure capital of Columbia we felt obligated to sample some of the offerings. I have never been a fan of river rafting, and abseiling didn't seem too unique for us as it was essentially rappelling (something we do often on our own at home) but soaring over the countryside attached by a few strings to big sail - now that would be a new adventure. Parapenting is what they call it here. I think we call it paragliding and we signed up for a short tandem ride over the tobacco and coffee fields near the town of Curiti with views of canon de Chicamocha out across the valley. We were 4 strong, plus our 2 pilots and another assistant. Without much conversation we all jumped into the shuttle van and headed for the hills.

A short walk to the top of the hill and they started pulling out the sails (if that is what you call them.). Amazingly, although the hill wasn't really that high, the wind was blowing. Until now there had been no discussion of what to expect. The pilots just went about setting up and getting ready to fly. John or I had never parapented before so the lack of info was a bit concerning. I was thankful they took the other 2 guys first.

But before I knew it they were calling both John and I over to be strapped in. You stepped into a harness that they connected to the pilot and you sat back, lifted your feet up (I felt like a baby in one of those bouncing chairs that hang from the doorway) and the wind caught the sail and you were off. It happened that fast, no positioning, no running off the cliff, just sit back and the wind did the rest. Instantly you were soaring with the birds, rising, falling, and turning with the updrafts. The area had a lot of wind activity so we didn't need to go far - in fact you land exactly where you take off from. My pilot had 10 years of experience, spoke decent English, and had a new baby at home - something I was pleased to hear as I thought that might mean that he wouldn't take any unnecessary risks.  He wants to see his child grow up - right?

But it was far from a tame ride. In fact we started by turning right, then left, big smooth arcing turns which grew in intensity as they narrowed in diameter. Then we would suddenly drop - and then float back up. We talked a bit about Colombia, his family, my trip but mainly I just sat back admiring the view and enjoying the ride.

Then he started a small corkscrew maneuver.  Since I didn't complain he stepped on the gas and we did a major corkscrew at amazing speed dropping serious altitude. My stomach was in my throat - as I am prone to motion sickness I had to close my eyes for a minute as the trees were quickly approaching and blurring into a green mush. And just as quickly we floated back up. Amazing!

John had seen the whole thing from his vantage point across the sky. As we were both in the air at the same time he tried to video my ride while I tried to get some photos of him.

The ride was about 25 minutes which at first had seemed like it would be too short but it was just right. I landed with ease right where we started. John's pilot was a little less experienced and didn't do as many maneuvers. He also had a little hiccup in the landing - I think he might have "lost" the wind. But it was only a minor issue and they landed a little down the hill from the mark.

Without much further discussion, the pilots packed up and we walked down past the drying tobacco to the van. After a celebratory drink it was back to town.

What a great experience - soaring like a bird! Now when I see hawks catching the updrafts and soaring in the wind it will remind me of San Gil, Colombia and my first parapenting flight!

Barichara via Old Spanish Trail

We want to check out some of the sites but we are also looking for a little exercise so we hop on a local shuttle bus to Guane, a small town about an hour and a half away connected by old trails to the small Spanish colonial town of Barichara which we heard was just amazing. We are dropped off at the town square. Guane is a quaint little town with very few tourists.

After strolling down the dirt and cobblestone roads in this small town and admiring the old stone church we decide to get a quick bite to eat in a local restaurant. Cabrito (goat) is the specialty here, but we are not feeling that adventurous and ask if they have any sopa.  She is perplexed by our request for a small meal of just soup but quickly returned with huge portions of some sort of chicken soup - or was it?  Before we leave we ask for directions to the trail head. As we head up the road we question how wise this was to start the hike from the normal end point. We met someone yesterday who had done the hike and said it was all downhill and suggested we try it backwards from Guane if we wanted more exercise. Gluttons for punishment - here we are but the trail may be harder to locate from this end.

Eventually, after asking a few more locals, and getting the nod from this local goat - we found the old Spanish trail that connects the two towns.

It is essentially an old rocky road originally constructed in 1864.  I am always perplexed by these uneven, boulder based roads - what type of car were they really made for?

What car can survive driving this type of terrain on a regular basis? Maybe that is why it is now referred to as the camino de piedra por caminar or stone road for walking.

After a couple of hours, and a bit of second guessing as to whether we are lost (the trail however was very obvious) we round a bend and boom - we are on a fairly new looking road on the outskirts of Barichara. As we head into the town the Lonely Planet guidebook describes as - a town that Hollywood filmmakers dream about - we are in awe. Every single building is picture perfect. Whitewashed as if a new coat was applied yesterday. Colorful trim and rusty red roofs compliment the stone paved roads. Even the cars look manicured.

John can't get over it - how is this possible? Who pays for this? Is it a cult? The town was renovated over 25 years ago but appears to have been done last year. I hope our house which we renovated a mere 13 years ago can hold up the same.

Barichara has a few hostals and in retrospect I wish we had chosen to stay over night in this ideal town.

But after watching the sun set from a park bench in the Central Parque and taking in the beauty of the Cathedral illuminated with green lights and what little reflection of the sun that remains, we pile into the last shuttle bus back to San Gil along with all the locals.
Luckily we bought a ticket an hcur or so earlier as the bus was standing room only and the road was a curvy mountain road. John practically had some women and children sitting in his lap - they certainly know how to FILL a bus around here. It seems there is no such thing as a  full bus - as there is always room for one more, or two, with or without chickens, bags or boxes.

San Gil - Colombia's Adventure Capital

We spent another day in Taganga before heading back to Santa Marta where we caught a night bus to Bucaramanga - 9 hours. This was our first freezing cold bus ride. We had heard constant stories about the icy buses who cranked the AC without regard for the frost forming on the passengers but until this ride we had had more problems with lack of AC rather than too much. Luckily forewarned I have an extra jacket and my sarong which acts as a blanket but the cold makes it too hard to sleep and it is a restless night. We change buses in Bucaramanga for a bus to San Gil - a small town trying to make its mark as the adventure capital of Colombia.

River rafting, abseiling, parapenting, horseback riding - these are just a few of the options to choose from, but first things first - let's find a place to put these bags down. The main road is fully under construction which makes looking for a hostal a little nerve racking as we try to maneuver amongst the locals scurrying down the wooden planks and narrow dirt path left as a sidewalk with out knocking one of them into the ditch where the road should be with out backpacks. We head up a long steep hill in search of the Hostal Macondo. Arghh - full!

So back down the hill to the main square where we find a room at the Hotel Mansion del Parque, a huge old colonial mansion where we are given an unbelievably large room with shutter windows opening to chaotic street below.

I know I will be hating the noise tonight - buses, taxis, people, cops directing traffic by the blow of a whistle - but I love the vantage point of looking out into the street and the parque and just watching everyone go about their daily lives.

The town is nestled into the hills, a fact that become evident when walking around town. Several of the streets at one end of town dead end into walkways reminiscent of San Francisco. Some are landscaped with flowering plants and trees, others with murals, others are simply steps. But from the top you get an amazing view of the city skyline, red rooftops and the round doomed roof of the Cathedral taking center stage.

Breathtaking Parque Central is lined with cafes but we can't seem to find anywhere to eat. Cafe means one thing is served - cafe! Finally have we actually found a town with an appreciation of a fine cup of a strongly brewed coffee? Problem is that we normally like some breakfast with our coffee.

Cafeteria Donde Betty directly diagonally across the park from our hotel turns out to be our favorite place. Coffee, eggs and arepas (a corn based flat bread/tortilla with a similar texture and taste of masa used for mexican tamales but with a little cheese and butter). CDB is a small place only 4 tables squashed into what really looks like a mini convenience store. Coffee is the big seller - all varieties, expresso, latte, negro, americano. Interestingly what you get depends on who is making it. Later in the day beer becomes the big seller. People gather at every available seat in all the local cafes and drinking beers which collect on the table like trophies until the last person in the group leaves.

Right across the street are two local bars - actually they are stores with metal bars where you order your drinks, predominantly beer, and then you hang out in front of the store or wander to a bench in the park.  

On a weekend night the park is packed with people, couples cuddling on the benches and friends gathering around drinking, laughing, and just hanging out. We mingle - even get in a little cuddling on a park bench ... when Colombia do as the Colombians.

Wild and Spectacular Coastline - Parque Nacional Tayrona

With John feeling better we decide to head to the Parque Nacional Tayrona for a couple of days. The Parque is touted as one of Colombia's most popular - wide stretches of white beach with beautifully vibrant ocean backdropped by the encasing jungle and looming palm trees.  We catch a ride with Jose who comes by our hotel everyday rounding up people to take to the park. Its an hour drive but we also make a pit stop at the grocery store. We have been warned that the prices are high and the guidebook suggests bringing your own water and snacks. Along with Patrick, who we met on the ride in, we hike 45 minutes on a dirt trail to the coastline.

The first beach area you come to Arrecefies. the scenery is absolutely stunning. A windswept coastline with a beautiful beach and occasional huge boulders add to the surreal landscape.

There is an upscale place right as we get to the beach - Finca Yulupa I think it is called. They have some fantastic cabins - we are afraid to ask how much - a few tents and a palapa covered area with numerous hammocks covered with mosquito nets. These look romantically invitiing - until we consider 8 hours lying in a hammock with our aging backs .. hmm maybe not for us.The facilities look new and the bathrooms and showers are definitely a few levels above "camping". But you can't swim at this beach due to rip tides so we decide to see what else there is to offer further west.

We walk along the beach passing a few more secluded coves before reaching La Piscina - or the pool which is a calmer beach just perfect for swimming.

We are bummed we don't have snorkel gear as there is a reef enclosing part of the beach that we would have liked to explore. We end up spending several hours lounging on the beach and at 4 decide we better head on to see where we will spend the night.

Another 20 minutes along a beachfront trail brings you to Cabo San Juan de la Guia which is where most backpackers head - something that becomes evident as you turn the corner to a long row of tents, lots of people and an open field just waiting to be filled with more campers. There are also hammocks for rent in a 2 story palapa building built on an outcropping of rocks and overlooking the ocean. A truly great spot - but fully occupied. The only hammocks left are right next to the restaurant, literally you are swinging in arms reach of the plastic tables and chairs. Although this beach is spectacular we decide to head back to the more serene feeling place we saw first.

Having let our age decide against the hammocks, we opt for a tent facing the ocean. The location is ideal - a grassy lawn shaded by trees with a view to the ocean only hampered by the occassional palm tree. We head over to the neighboring restaurant and share dinner and conversation with Patrick and Heath, another guy met on the way to dinner. One great thing about traveling is how open most people are to striking up a conversation or joining you for a meal. I don't think I have ever asked someone I just met on the street to join me for dinner in LA. Maybe we will have to try that when we get home.Where we decide to eat there are only a few tables full and the owner starts putting the chairs up on the table pretty early. By 10 he actually turns the lights off on us.

So its off to our tent which turns out to be more like a sauna since the wind has died. Our first guest of the evening is this giant cangrejo (crab).  John downed the beer rapido so we could use it as a prop in the photo to show how big the crab was.  We had a second little guest as well - a scorpion had taken up residence inside our tent! or maybe he thought we were the guests! Sorry, we paid, and John "disposed" of him but he still left his mark, fear that is ... Do scorpions travel in packs or are they solitary creatures? No se (I don't know) so by headlamps we search the tent for any other visitors. It was an uneasy night ...

Early to rise before the tent was too unbearable.  The morning view from our tent was spectacular.

We head off to the beach for a relaxing day of lounging and reading. John has been reading this book about a guy who decides to live according to the bible - literally - yes John the self proclaimed atheist is reading bible stuff. Of course he really likes it because the author is essentially poking fun at the "good book" - highlighting how ridiculous it could be if taken literally, i.e. It allows stoneing of people, capital punishment for worshiping other idols, ok to beat your slave as long as it isn't so bad that he dies within a day, and then there is the prohibition of wearing mixed fabrics and it goes on. I did not plan for this beach outing too well and finished my book early in the day leaving nothing else to do but work on my tan.

Here's a few more pics of the Parque.

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Jose will be meeting us at the Parque entrance for the drive back to Tagana so we make our way back to the trail.  This horse, and a few of his friends, caught up with us along the beach.  Then on the trail out of the park we ran into a slew of monkeys playing in the trees above. Actually they were eating, but the technique is to take a bite and throw the rest down at the tourists below, repeat. I'm not sure who is watching who. Our ride home gets more interesting when we are pulled over by the police at one of the random checkpoints. Jose looks a bit uneasy - not a good sign. He returns to the car several times for different paper work. Then a guard comes over and asks to see our documents. The van is full of 6 of us. 2 of the guys pull out their passports while the guy next to me says we don't have them with us. The cop walks away - we don't know what's going on. Finally Jose returns and rambles on in Spanish about the paperwork but we are good to go. Next obstacle to a getting a shower is a  road block. A big truck has flipped over so we take a major detour through a local town, as does everyone else. But eventually, after some crazy driving, we are back on the main road and in Tagana in no time.