The Zona Cafeteria

First stop Solento, a 6 hour bus ride south of Medellin. At the start of the bus trip we were handed little black plastic bags which we thought were for rubbish, but soon to find out they were vomit bags, as the road from Medellin wound up through the mountains rather quickly. Quite a few people on our bus were sick.

We made it to Solento, a small and picturesque village surrounded by coffee plantations. We stayed at a place called Plantation House which is a hostel on an actual plantation. The place is run by an English guy Tim who fell in love with Columbia many years ago. He was a source of knowledge on the local area which made our few days in Solento very enjoyable.

Our first evening we went to a local bar called 'Tejos', which was described by Tim as 'beers & gunpowder’. When we arrived we discovered the game of Tejo (a Colombian national sport). The game is a little like boules only you throw a metal disc about 20 metres at a target filled with gun powder set in clay. When you get a direct hit everyone knows about it. Only in Colombia!!

The next day we walked the Valle de Cocora, meaning 'Valley of Clouds', it took us 5 hours, we went with some people that we had met in the hostel. The walk took us through jungle and farmland and there was an amazing amount of Wax Palms which are 60 foot high. One of the stops on the walk was a nature reserve with 6 types of hummingbirds, fascinating and fast little creatures. We climbed to the top of the mountain and the clouds were kind enough to clear so we could see down the valley.

Our stay in Solento also included a visit to a working coffee farm and roasting factory. We drank some great coffee, majority of which is exported, most places in Colombia serve instant coffee..... and we ate some of the local delicacy 'Trucha' (Trout), in most places that is all that is on the menu.

After 3 great days in Solento it was time for a challenge, so we headed to Manizales with the plan to hike Colombia's highest volcano, the Los Nevado del Ruiz, 5300m. Our day started at 5.30am, we made our way to the town square and were picked up by a mini bus, there were 7 of us in total. The drive up was pretty amazing, different landscapes from lush green to volcanic rock. We stopped along the way to drink Cocoa tea (it helps with the altitude). We drove up to 4800m and we walked to the snow line, at 5125m. It was pretty tough going, not only where we at altitude but it was also snowing. We arrived at the top and could only see about 2 metres in front of us. Still a big achievement, our first time above 5000m. After descending the volcano our next stop was the thermal hot springs. The water temperature at the spring was about 60 degrees, the baths were chilled to about 50, so very soothing after our adventure up the volcano. On the return to town everyone fell asleep!

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