Colombia: Christmas in Medellín

Medellín has been on our radar for over 8 years since our friends and coworkers first raved about the city. It’s known as one of the three places in the world (along with Bali, Indonesia and Chiang Mai, Thailand) where digital nomads flock to start businesses and live the good life. Since it came highly recommended, we decided to stay for 8 nights to properly enjoy the city. Perhaps the biggest draw to Medellín is its near-perfect climate. Known as the “city of eternal spring,” it boasts a 70–80 degree temperature year round. We thought this city might be one of the few places in the world that rivaled California climate. So, it came as a surprise to us that the weather was mostly cloudy with some sun and scattered showers during our visit. As one of our Uber drivers attested, the last 3 winters have been colder and more unpredictable than usual in Medellín. Thanks climate change! Like any other city lacking stringent environmental regulations, it also turns out that the city has a consistent haze of smog hovering over it with the surrounding mountains trapping the smog within the valley. As such, I had a few bouts of breathing issues due to the air quality and high altitude that initially hindered activities. But, as we started to get going we noticed that the recommended sights weren’t that far or wide.

Almost all tourists, western expatriates, and digital nomads stay in the wealthier El Poblado District. It’s considered to be the most expensive area in the city. But, it’s still very inexpensive by U.S. standards. The area itself is limited to an 8-by-8 block radius and houses all the city’s best restaurants, cafés, bars, clubs, hotels, etc. It’s a trendy, tourist-friendly area that is very distinct from other parts of the city due to its mixture of foreigners and locals creating a very unique culture and vibe. For those familiar with the Bay Area, this neighborhood is comparable to the size of about two downtown Palo Altos. In other words, it’s a pretty small portion of the city as a whole. But, El Poblado is much livelier than any other city in the Bay (minus San Francisco). Thus, we spent most of our time there taking advantage of what El Poblado had to offer. We were also reminded at every corner not to put ourselves in situations where we could be taken advantage of as the Colombian saying goes: “No dar papaya.”

The best part about spending Christmastime in Medellín is getting to see the city light up. They take their decorations very seriously throughout the city. Most of the areas we visited during the nighttime were adorned for the occasion and lit up with their festive alumbrados. Parque Poblado is a small park with an outdoor market selling handicrafts, just a one minute walk away from our hotel, and was decked out for the occasion.

One of my favorite decorations was in Envigado — a trendy suburb of the city — at the bustling Parque Envigado in front of Iglesia de Santa Gertrudis. I finally got to be an astronaut.

While Parque Lleras was only 5 minutes away it is located in the heart of the square with the most active nightlife. It’s lively due to all the tourists finding dinner, locals hanging out, families street dancing, and prostitutes tempting potential clients after a certain hour. We spent a lot of time people-watching around this area, and found that it was just like any other city: a mixed bag of people with a diversity of looks. I will give it up to las paisas though for dressing well wherever they go — although the skin-tight pants and sky high-heels are not my idea of everyday wear. Note: The people of Medellín, Antioquia — the central, northwest region of Colombia — are called paisas.

We ended up on the main avenue that bisects the district where we found a reputable place called Mondongos to try some local cuisine. Everything was tasty, yet surprisingly lacked spice much to Ash’s dismay. What was especially amazing were the avocados that many street vendors sold. There were ones as big as the size of a head!

Due to the expat influence in El Poblado there were a host of burger bars, actual bars with funny decor, and, of course, the neighborhood Hooters. We ventured off to the mall to see Star Wars and found the Chipotle-style Mexican food at Taco House — much to Ash’s amusement. It was actually pretty good adding some much-needed spice back onto our palettes.

To round out our stay there we dined at a few upscale places including Carmen — the best restaurant in Medellín according to all the guides. The food came out comparable to any other above average Bay Area restaurant.

Or, the real mood-killer could have been that we were next to a bunch of Indian-American “bros” from New York seated next to us. They were as loud and obnoxious as possible throughout our dining experience. Ash wanted so badly to apologize for our fellow countrymen while explaining to the wait staff that this rude behavior is not representative of most U.S. citizens. Since nowadays with the King of the Bros sitting in the Oval Office it’s not surprising that anyone would assume their behavior extends to us all.

Not all the restaurants we tried failed our taste-tests because a few nights prior we went to Restaurante Barcal, another upscale restaurant where this time we ordered from the tasting menu. From the ambiance to the service — a clean set of silverware after every course (10 total) — to the delicious variety of culinary confections, we had a great time with our multi-course meals.

To add a bit more to our street cred, this was one of the very few places we actually tried the street food — albeit at the behest of our tour guide. During our free walking tour we took a scheduled break to try the food in the grab-and-go food stores. We made a b-line for buñuelos and empanadas — which both take on a very different look and flavor in Colombia. I’m used to Mexican buñuelos, which are flat and crispy, whereas the version that most of Latin-America knows best is a round fried ball of dough that’s crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. The smell was mouth-watering enough walking past the shop, but once that piece of doughy, fried goodness hits your lips, you can’t help but crave 10 more buñuelos! Delicious is an understatement to describe this popular snack. On the other hand, the empanadas were just good. They were a far cry from the perfectly baked empanadas eaten many years ago in Argentina that we still dream about. But these savory, fried snacks are still quite satiating, especially when you have 2 more hours left on a 4-hour walking tour.

Real City Tours’ free walking tours are no joke! Our guide, Edgar, was full of energy telling us great stories and giving us his real-world perspective on the real history and present-day progress of his city.

Once the murder capital of the world, Medellín was known as the epicenter of the drug cartels in the 90s led by notorious gangster Pab— you know his name. It’s the city known to our parent’s generation as dangerous and cocaine-laden whereas the younger generations know it best as the backdrop of Netflix’s show Narcos. Today, Medellín is a bustling metropolis with legitimate businesses and many tourists. Over the past 20 years, the government and citizens have totally transformed the city to a much safer place. Through their efforts to regulate, revitalize, and rebrand the city, Medellín is as strong as ever these days.

As we were on our walking tour, we were constantly being met with smiles, positive comments, and people just stopping to stare at our tour group. Given that many of the European men and women were gigantic compared to the average Colombian walking in El Centro, it wasn’t hard to see why we stood out so much. I even had a lovely viejita come up behind me to measure herself to my stature. Our tour guide was very welcoming to the gawking passersby inviting them into the group to say hello. All of them wanted to know what we thought of Medellín and extended their sincerest gratitude to us for visiting. They were so incredibly grateful to have us there and were encouraging us to spread the word to our friends and family about the transformational progress of Medellín. It was heartwarming to say the least.

Moreover, I got to extend praise for the city on a national level. When we were sitting at one stop on our walking tour, there was a cameraman and news reporter not too far away. They asked our tour guide if one of us would like to be interviewed in Spanish about our trip to Medellín. Ash, of course, volunteers me, and I take the bait because one of my goals that day was to put myself out there more. I was supposedly on the 7:00 pm news on the Colombian National News Channel 7 some night that week, but we missed my Spanish TV debut due to activities that kept us out late those nights.

Wandering around the city center, the renewed investment in art and infrastructure became all the more evident. We walked through Parque de las Luces, which used to be a nefarious place for shady characters back in the day. Now it houses scores of towering lanterns located next to a public library creating an homage to hope with this affixed area further emphasizing the paisa affinity for lights.

Another inspiring place is Plaza Botero home to 23 of Fernando Botero’s larger-than-life sculptures in his signature style. Museo de Antioquia faces the plaza where you’ll find paintings by the Medellín-native Botero as well as other Latin artists. Another really interesting building in the square is the Rafael Uribe Uribe Palace of Culture, which boasts beautifully Romanesque architecture — but only half of it was completed in that manner. The Belgian architect quit midway through construction and, although he left the designs, in true paisa fashion they ended up scrapping the frills for a more practical business-oriented add-on.

Walking though Parque Berrio across the street from Plaza Botero, you’ll also find more Botero sculptures in this small park along with juice vendors and local street performers playing traditional Colombian music. Even through it seemed like many Colombians were able to enjoy everyday life, their were still places sprinkled through the city to remind them of their tortured past. One example was a shredded iron statue of a bird that exploded during a terror attack when a bomb detonated in a packed square killing scores of Colombians out enjoying a concert.

Another major linchpin in securing the city even more is touted as the city’s pride and joy: the metro line. You read that correctly. The Medellín transportation system, including the underground subway and the aerial Metrocable was one of the best things to come out of the dark days of Escobar’s rein of terror. The Metrocable will give you a birdseye view of the entire valley and a closer look at the hillside barrios.

Many of these neighborhoods had been cut off from the opportunity and lifestyle in the center of the city. This disparity served as a way for many of the drug cartels to gain traction in these areas and infect the city from the outside in. The K and L Lines of the Metrocable were created in part, so the people in these hillside neighborhoods could finally get access to the city center. Once it was finished, it did wonders to decrease the crime rate, reintegrate hillside residents into the city, and provided much more economic opportunities for them. As we flew over many hillside communities on the lines, we noticed that they harbored a unique culture that seemed more akin to a small town rather than the outskirts of a bustling metropolis. There was one neighborhood that was conducting an outdoor Catholic mass with the priest on a loudspeaker and patrons sitting on movable plastic chairs.

Walking the steps of many hillside residents, we took the lines up experiencing quite a ride flying over the barrios and over the plentiful forest in the Andes to the final stop at Parque Arvi. Parque Arvi is most similar to U.S. national parks with all there is to do there. It contains innumerable hiking trails, guide posts to learn about the park, and unlimited forests. Unfortunately, I was experiencing a bout of lightheadedness due to the quick altitude change after the gondola rides, so we didn’t really get to explore the area or hike as much as we would have liked. However, we saw the main entry point with a local market, learned about the native peoples and plant species of the area, and walked around the terrain some.

One of the best side trips we took was with Tours Guatapé. The tour started with quick visits to the small town of Marinilla and Peñol, which we could have skipped without missing much. The interesting thing about Marinilla is this war memorial that was dedicated to all the who fought for Colombian independence, but especially to one mother and her sons. Legend has it that when the general came to Marinilla to recruit soldiers every, single able-bodied man volunteered, which prompted the town’s nickname as “the Sparta of Colombia.” Another tangential story is that the Gomez family sent all of their 6 sons, and none of them returned alive. Mama Gomez refused money from the government for the loss of her sons, so the town honored her sons and her on the memorial below.

The main attraction however is the trek to El Peñón de Guatapé or La Piedra de Peñol. Since both towns have historically claimed it as theirs, the rock goes by both names. It’s a large rock with 725 steps to get to the top. You’ll reach it out of breath and overwhelmed by the sheer amount of tourists crowded onto the platform at the highest point. Luckily, there’s a rest area with a bar and ample seating about 25 steps down that leaves room for you to catch your breath and enjoy the view with more personal space. You really don’t have to wait to get to the top to see majestic views of the surrounding lakes, islets, and cities, though. Any time you need to stop on the staircase for a break there are views off the side to reward your hard work.

After successfully making it to the top and back down again, we drove to the town of Guatapé. Guatapé is a cute little mountain town with cobblestone streets and brightly painted houses that are lined with adorned zócalos — the foundational base of a building. In favor of exploring the town, we skipped the uneventful boat cruise and walked the central plaza.

The zócalos weren’t the only attraction in the town since we saw Jesus Christ carved into a tree in the central plaza. It was lively as could be with shops buzzing, tourists wandering, and Christmas decorations out in full force. And well also found miniature pony and its mom.

On the way back to the city, we hit a lot of traffic and realized how much we liked visiting quaint little towns over crowded cities.

While Medellín had a lot of interesting and unique experiences, it’s quite a stretch to say it is ”one of the best places to live in the world.” I mean, imagine you plopped a ritzy, downtown neighborhood in the middle of an otherwise busy, traffic-laden city of ~3 million people, then told everyone how great the entire city was. In reality, you’re only referring to ~0.05% of the area of they city and are only experiencing a gentrified version it. El Poblado does not exemplify how the vast majority of paisas live and this difference in the hype versus the reality is why we had completely inflated expectations of Medellín that it failed to live up to. We think the main reason people are drawn in is the cheap cost of living (as compared to U.S. cities), the friendly people, the close proximity to the U.S., and its Eastern Standard Time zone. We’re glad to have experienced Medellín, especially El Poblado and Guatapé.

However, we’d recommend that you could get a feel for the city sights and side trips in 3–4 days. Additionally, we’d recommend traveling with a local or tour guide to give you a better feel for where we should go and what we should see and do.