I mentioned earlier how much I love taking a ride outside the urban part of the places where I choose to live in. I do love being surrounded by nature, taking the road to who knows where and for who knows how long. That peace and tranquility that I dive into while following the road is part of the essence of my decision to have this on-the-road life.

The very freedom that I feel when I take long, reflecting rides like this is in the very contrast with the feeling of motorcycling the streets of almost any town in Colombia!

Sometimes it doesn’t matter whether it is a rush hour or not, Friday or almost any other day. Streets in Colombia are wild! Everything and I mean everything here happens in the streets!

Wish to buy coffee? Either you or a coffee guy is standing on the traffic street. Wanna go to the marketplace to pick up some fruits and vegetables? Many are there on the streets. Want to buy some cheap clothing? You go for the streets!

And did I mention that traffic in this part of the world feels like no one has a driving license (which is partly the truth)? In the streets of Colombia, you follow signalization when it is there. But in general, you are on your own. Motorcycles are passing cars on both left and right sides, people walk equally the pedestrian area and traffic lane. They even walk in crossroads as they are in the pedestrian site.

That means that you need to be 110% careful about your driving. Around 30% of people in Manizales use public transport, the same amount use cars and the rest are walking to the school, work or just for fun. And that’s the way things are.

Now, side streets are rather narrow and it is rather difficult to overtake someone. That’s the reason why riding in these streets can be slow and therefore annoying. But the streets on the edge of the town have more lines, traffic lights and you can ride your motorcycle freely and faster than in the city center.

Some of the streets that I drive through during the daytime I wouldn’t dare to come and visit during the night. And to tell you the truth, that’s more part of the warnings that I receive from some local people here than a personal feeling. But I’ll leave that door open just out of caution.

What do the city streets of Manizales look like, what do I think about a marketplace being at the border of pedestrian and traffic lines, what is the architecture of the place like – you may find out the first hand if you visit my YouTube channel and join me for the ride! Here:

Medellin, what is it famous for?

If you had googled it just ten years ago, you’d find out that Medellin was one of the most dangerous cities in Colombia AND the world, experiencing violence and street-by-street wars between various gangs and drug cartels. Not only that it was not safe to travel to Medellin, but it was also life-risking for the Medellin population to live their lives in the atmosphere of – if not normal, then at least safe. The only tourist product Colombia had and exported worldwide was Pablo Escobar and his set of “business values”. But after his death in 1993, crime rates in Medellin have declined greatly.

Talking to the people here, I found out that everything began with an introduction of public transportation, mainly the metro, to the city. Connecting various parts of the city otherwise closed closer together, brought change. And it didn’t stop with that.

Officials and people of Medellin invested a great deal of effort to change the perspective of the gang-city to a leisure destination for the rest of the world. And I believe that they succeed to do that. They promote opportunities for travel to here, to stay, and enjoy opportunities for an active vacation. This place is romantically referred to as ‘the city of eternal spring’ because of its temperate climate. Medellin is also famous for its coffee plantations and flower farms, especially for its orchids and butterflies.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoy visiting various smaller and bigger, simple and posh bistros, bars, party-buses, and restaurants. In every one of them, you can have a great local dish and drink for ridiculously low prices!

And if you think of the fact that you find yourself in a country that is settled in the valley in the heart of the great Andes Mountains, surrounded by greenery, with so many opportunities to spend your time in the urban part of the city as well as in nature parks, then you have all reasons to be satisfied with this city of your choice. And let me tell you this – I am more than happy to be here!

Now, traveling to Colombia during a pandemic is a challenging thing to do. The country was hit severely, Bogota and Medellin – being the second-largest city in Colombia – especially. In case that you travel by air, you don’t even need negative tests. You are welcome as you are! The thing with this city is: there are so many open spaces and opportunities to explore Medellin: wide parks, interactive museums, galleries, botanical gardens, and an open-air cinema.

First of all, I would recommend visiting Comuna 13! It used to be the hot spot of crime and drug wars just 20 years ago but now is almost a safe neighborhood. It is an exhibit in open for various street art and the houses are painted in strong, vivid colors. After you get amazed by this, try the view of the city. It’s breathtaking!

Medellin has its rubbing sculpture. You may rub 23 sculptures for luck! This is a large collection of large and voluminous (as said by the artist) sculptures. Some people may see them as fat, but you should always remember that saying about the beauty in the eyes of the one who is looking. Plaza Botero is a wide square dedicated to the most famous country’s sculptor – Fernando Botero. Here you may find 23 of his sculptures.

Wherever you stand in Medellin, you will be able to see one of its most prominent and striking landmarks – Palacio de Cultura Uribe Uribe. It’s free to enter the premises and get lost amongst ornate rooms with art exhibitions.

One of the amazing pieces of art and landmarks is Monumento a la Raza, a 38m sculpture representing the history of Antioquia’s indigenous people.

I would always recommend experiencing a marketplace wherever you go. In Medellin, there is Plaza Minorista market where you may see the diversity of local offers in fruits, vegetables, spices, and meat. I bet you will need to breathe deeply in and out to believe the diversity of tastes and smells that you’ll expose yourself to.

Besides the marketplace, you MUST see El Hueco. It is a long line of city blocks filled with small stores. Stores are ordered in theme areas: electronics, running shoes, jewelry, cosmetics. And every one of these theme-groups of stores feels like a small mall. This place is a sort of labyrinth. It is so widespread that it would be hard to find some spot that you just missed. Once in its thematic areas, one should do the shopping immediately at the place where you saw something of your interest. And please – bargain with people! They expect you to do so!

If you feel like doing something extraordinary, you might try the Metrocable to Parque Arvi. It is a fast (ride lasts for about 30 minutes) and a safe way to see that area. You are traveling in gondola cars and have the full potential for an extraordinary photo-shooting!

There are so many parks, nature parks, cathedrals, and museums that make a stay in Medellin really, really worthwhile.

I wrote in some of my previous posts about how much pleasure do I enjoy riding around the area, especially going out of the city. In love with mountains and soccer for a good cup of coffee, sometimes I feel like being in a paradise itself.

Do visit my YouTube channel for some first-hand experiences in living in and riding all over (and not only) the great city of Medellin. Thank you for being here!