Guatapé

This weekend in Colombia was a long weekend due to a Festivo day on Monday. A festivo day, is a day that celebrates a different religious figure... normally saints. Since there are a LOT of saints celebrated in Colombia... we end up having a lot of days off ! Which makes for frequent long weekends, and therefore perfect opportunities to travel around the country.

So this long weekend I travelled to Guatapé/El Peñol with my friend Sara, which is about 2 hours outside of Medellín by bus. Why Guatapé/El Peñol? Well between the two towns there is this HUGE ASS rock called La Piedra (the rock in Spanish) made of granite, where you can climb 649 stairs to the top, and see some incredible views which consists of these lakes and islands that were created by the Colombian government. A while ago the Colombian government flooded the area (for reasons unknown to my friend and I), but that's how the lakes and islands were created, which are stunning. So although artificially made, they still wow everyone who visits.

Interesting fact: on the side of the rock it appears to have 2 letters painted on it "G" and "I" ... it was suppose to be the start of the word: "Guatapé" but the two towns got into a huge fight about it and disputed whether or not La Piedra fell on the borders of El Peñol or Guatapé. So they had to stop painting Guatapé on the side of the rock, and now GI remains...

Now, upon arriving to the entrance of La Piedra, you have to travel a bit up a road to get to the rock, so you have 3 choices.
1) Take a cab... $7.000 pesos
2) Ride a horse... $5.000 pesos
3) Walk.... free.

Obviously Sara and I chose #2, and each rode a horse up the road to the base of La Piedra, because A) it was cost effective, and B) super fun. There I was, beautiful day in a quant little town about to see some of the most beautiful scenery in all of Colombia and I get to ride a horse! Way too much fun.



After riding our horses we reached the base of La Pierda, where our necks hurt as we gazed up at the height of this beast, and realized how many stairs we'd have to climb to get at the top.... the phrase "fml" came to mind. haha.

And so it began the epic climb to the top... and after 649 stairs we were out of breath, our thighs throbbing but so happy we made it to the top, because the views were worth it. We decided to treat ourselves and cool off a bit with some icecream, and then we walked around the top of La Piedra to check out the amazing views and enjoy the beautiful day. Here are some examples:




After enjoying the views we took a Chiva (old fashioned bus in Colombia... which are used as party buses in large cities, but still act as regular transportation in smaller towns) to Guatapé, which had to be the most entertaining bus ride of my life. We were with about 8 other people all jammed in the Chiva, and we were singing, laughing, just loving life, it was hilarious. Not to mention one of the guys had Guaro (Aguardiente... famous Colombian liquor) in a waterbottle, which he was passing around the Chiva. There was also people ON TOP of the Chiva, since everyone couldn't fit inside it.... ahh only in South America. love it.


Once we survived our crazy bus ride to Guatapé Sara and I got lunch. I was finally able to try Bandeja Paisa, which is a famous dish in Antioquia (the area of Colombia I live in) which consists of a lot of different types of meat such as chorizo (sausage), chicharron (sort of like a giant piece of bacon), ground beef, with rice, patacon (fried sweet plantain), an egg, salad, and an arepa. Needless to say it's quite filling, and there are some people who swear by it as a hangover cure.


After lunch Sara and I walked around the town of Guatapé which is beautiful because virtually every house has different patterns carved and painted onto its side. So each house has a unique design and colour. It makes for a very colourful and welcoming town.




After walking around for a bit, we met up with some of the people we shared the Chiva with and decided to go on a boat tour together on the lake. It cost $10.000 pesos for the tour which lasted about 90 minutes, and offered music, beers and great views of the town and the surrounding lake areas. Definitely worth the money.



All in all, Sara and I had a really great day. Guatapé is a beautiful town, which I highly recommend anyone to go, especially to see and climb La Piedra because the views are stunning. This trip has definitely been my favourite thus far in Colombia!