Guatapé and El Peñon

Our day trip to Guatapé and El Peñon will forever stand out in my memories of Colombia. Natural beauty, views, colour, quaintness, adventure- this trip had it all. Our little bus took us directly from Medellin to the foot of El Peñon. There the enormous monolith stood in all its glory, as the zig-zag staircase that would take us to the top clung onto the side of it. We paid our entrance of 15,000 pesos and made our way up, up, up until 740 steps later we were surrounded by unimaginably spectacular views. The beautiful turquoise water, with its trim of orange from the clay edge, weaved around the land. It was like a maze which divided up all of the land and water, yet left it all connected the same time. The contrasting colours only helped to accentuate the beauty. It was truly amazing. We stayed and admired before contemplating the descent.

When we arrived back at the bottom we found a tuk-tuk to take us into Guatapé. This quaint, colourful town did not disappoint. Its houses were all unique, designed and painted in different colours. The cobbled streets, hanging baskets and old street lights made it feel like a different world. We wandered around, coming across hidden plazas and little gift shops, as Ramsey searched for a little hip-flask he had set his heart on.

We stopped at a highly recommended restaurant for a lunch of infamous ‘trucha’. The fish was caught locally and cooked over coals, marinated in garlic and herbs. It was delicious. We wandered some more, coffee-d and listened to live music as we sat in the colourful plaza de zocalos.  

Despite the timeless warp I felt like I was being sucked into whilst I was there, the time did soon come to take the bus back to Medellin. It may have taken a few hours each way to get there and back but it was worth every minute. A little paradise tucked away in a country recovering from a history scarred with war and violence; I couldn’t recommend a visit to this place enough.