Grand Escapades
Travel Photography & Travel Experiences of Africa, South America, the Middle-East & Asia
Humpback Whale, Bahia Solano
El Chocó, the area of Colombia on the Pacific Coast, has been out of reach for visitors until recently, and still receives very few visitors, though tourism, both Colombian & foreign, have shown first signs of take off in the last 2 to 3 years. There are several reasons why El Chocó still is so much Off The Beaten Track: Continue Reading →
Basilica Menor de la Inmaculada Conceptión
For years, la Zona Cafetera has been one of the most popular areas of Colombia, and large numbers of visitors, Colombian & foreigners alike, have flooded this part of the country. Jardín, a comfortable 3 hour ride from Medellin, is a welcome change! So close from the main tourist centers, and so much Off The Beaten Track: even if the city is no longer completely a well-kept secret, only a handful of “Gringos” can be seen there…
Playa Taroa, Punta Gallinas, La Guajira, Colombia
La Guajira – Increasingly Popular
La Guajira’s reputation as a place beyond civilization is easily understood when looking at its past and modern history – A place where centuries ago pirates attacked Spanish ships loaded with precious cargo and strong-willed Wayuu never surrendered. Modern days see different kind of adventurers: large scale smuggling is so widespread, extensive and above all, so obvious that it is almost beyond belief…
The desert-like peninsula on Colombia’s northernmost point is still the home the Wayuu “Indigenos” who have inhabited this extremely hot and barren land for centuries, resisted all intruders and on their part raided towns like Riohacha as late as the 1930s. Things have calmed, but the area still exhibits an aura of lawlessness that – as least for me – seems unparalleled. Continue Reading →
Convento de los Franciscanos, Plaza Principal, Monguí, Boyacá, Colombia
Situated northeast of Bogota, this part of Colombia is more popular than ever, and for good reasons… I had already visited the most famous landmarks of this region back in 2009: Villa de Leyva, San Gil, Barichara & the Chichamocha Canyon. I wanted to go back, amongst others for photography, and actually found in 2016 that areas which were unknown or out of reach a few years back are opening fast and offer many different opportunities, well Off The Beaten Track. Continue Reading →
Camino Real to Guane from Barichara, Santander, Colombia
During our Round The World, we traveled to Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile & Uruguay but bypassed Colombia, since we were not sure about safety traveling overland. We deeply regretted it, when we listened to the first enthusiastic reports from travelers arriving from there. So we used the next possible opportunity to make up for that mistake and traveled Colombia intensively for 45 days in July and August 2009. Our main destinations were: Pereira & Salento – Popayan, Tierradentro & San Agustin – Neiva & the Desierto de Tatacoa – Bogota – Villa de Leyva, San Gil, Barichara & Bucaramanga – Medellin – La Guajira – Santa Marta, Taganga & the Parque Nacional Tayrona – Cartagena. Unfortunately we had no time to go to the Pacific Coast and missed out on scuba diving with baby whales. The Amazon we never intended to go to, since we spent quite some time in Bolivia in the Amazon basin. Continue Reading →
A group of twelve young dancers of the Academy of Ballet performed a medley of different dances (Salsa, Merengue, Tango, Vallenato, Brazilian Samba and even an Arabic dance), Medellin, Colombia
The event during the Feria de la Flores we liked best back in 2009, we literally stumbled upon! Not really surprising considering the complete lack of information for tourists, foreigners and Colombians alike. Trying to get a last good view of Medellin at sunset, we took the cable car up to Santo Domingo and bumped into a great party in the middle of this poor barrio. Continue Reading →
Taroa Beach, near Punta Gallinas, La Guarija Peninsula, Caribbean Coast, Colombia
During our Round The World, we traveled to Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile & Uruguay but bypassed Colombia, since we were not sure about safety traveling overland. We deeply regretted it, when we listened to the first enthusiastic reports from travelers arriving from there. So we used the next possible opportunity to make up for that mistake and traveled Colombia intensively for 45 days in July and August 2009. Continue Reading →
Barichara
Colombia was actually not as cheap as we hoped it would be. Travelling there is more expensive than in many other countries on the continent. We spent on average 37 Euros per person per day, not much less than we had spent in Brazil (41 Euros) & much more than in Peru (33 Euros), Venezuela (30 Euros) and of course Bolivia (29 Euros). Continue Reading →
Omnipresent military …
Our farewell to Colombia did not lack a certain dramatic touch, almost a manifestation of what the country so often is associated with – drugs. All 15 passengers booked on our tiny plane from Cartagena to Panama City were searched before check in. We mean SEARCHED, every single item inside the luggage was taken out and checked meticulously, then the luggage itself examined, the toiletry, medication, everything! Continue Reading →
Women selling fruits, Old Town of Cartagena
Even during peaks of “La Violencia”, Cartagena remained a major tourist destination, domestic tourists as well as international travel groups, especially cruises ship, continued visiting. In the last few years the numbers have risen dramatically. In 2008, one million visitors wandered the historic center making it Colombia’s tourist destination number one, by far. Continue Reading →