Since many people recommended us this place, it must be a "not to miss out on" activity.
Getting there was no issue. The bus stops first at "la piedra", which is the stop for the main attraction. If you get out here, you only have to climb up the hill and you will get to La Piedra.
We didn't really know what we were doing, so we remained seated in the bus until the final stop, the main center of Guatapé. It's a small town, but nevertheless very touristic. Along the water there are lots of souvenir and snack sellers. You could even do "canopy" over the water if you'd like to.
Before heading up the rock, we had a local lunch: sancocho - a rich soup with chicken, corn, potato and a side dish containing of patacon (fried platano), rice and vegetables.
To get back to 'la piedra' it's best to take a busetta that comes along or take a motortaxi (but they are pretty expensive).
The bus leaves you at the gas station. From there on you should start climbing up the hill. It takes you about 15 to 20 minutes to get to the entrance. The entrance fee is 12.000 COP. At first I found it pretty expensive (I know...it's only 4€, but when you are used to pay a lot less for an attraction or to not pay at all, this seems expensive), but it's worth the view! It's also worth the 700 stairs you first have to climb to get there.
Behold & enjoy:
We stayed up there for quite a bit, before we realized that we should get down to catch the bus back to Medellin. The last one would leave at around 5pm and it was about time!
We descended to the gas station - where the busses pass & where you can catch one. You could also go back to Guatapé town and take a bus from the bus terminal, to be sure you have a seat. We didn't. We bought a busticket from a guy that was shouting "Medellin" and we waited. And we waited. It got cold and darker and we were still waiting.
Suddenly people started to make a big deal out of something. I went asking what was wrong, 'cause they were all shouting a word that was written on our busticket, but I didn't know what it meant. "Chiva"
If you type it in google, this is what you get, and it was exactly what we got as a means of transportation from Guatapé to Medellin, which is a 2h ride through the mountains - at night, in the cold.
The bus ride was better than expected, but still very entertaining. We were so packed, like sardines, that we could warm ourselves with neighbouring bodyheat.
These kind of buses don't have windows, but they have open doors and rails, so the air circulates freely through the bus. They luckily lowered a black leather sail on both sides of the bus to keep us warm. Luckily I say...we couldn't see anything. It felt kind of scary, not being able to see anything outside.
The busride was very interesting. I sat alongside a voluptuous snoring woman, Liesje sat next to a sweet little girl that was always falling asleep. Finally Liesje took her in her arms. It was a heartwarming scene.
Another kid, sitting next to the sleepy girl, got carsick and started throwing up. Iiieuw! It happend 3 times during the entire ride that people were asking the driver for plastic bags (you know what for...)
An exhausting bumpy 3h later, we finally arrived in Medellin. We had quite a story to tell our host!
Next: Antigua y hermosa Cartagena!
Labels: Colombia, Travel
