medellín by foot, bus, & metrocable

Happy Monday, doves. If you can believe it, I'm looking forward to a regular ol' workday. But as I'm busy getting re-situated to normal life in New York, let's reflect on those exciting last two weeks in Colombia... deal?

Come back to Medellín with me, where my grandmother and I were staying at a business hotel with a killer breakfast buffet. On that Monday, I had a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice with scrambled eggs, fried yuca, and sliced watermelon. Then we walked to meet the Turibus for a spin around the city.

We picked up empanadas to go since our tour was taking us right through lunch.

 

And when it ended, I had my first Colombian tamal made with masa (cornmeal), potatoes, peas, carrots, pork and chicken, and baked in a banana leaf. It was delicious, but I prefer Mexican tamales. Not that I told my grandmother so...

Afterwards, we took the metro for the first time and all the way to Line K, so we could ride up to Biblioteca Espana and admire the city from above.

Incredible, isn't it? I thought so, though none of the many photos I took did it justice. I borrowed this one.

Tuesday morning was our last in the department (or state) of Antioquia. I suppose I could have enjoyed more modern art, but I was still excited to continue. Up next? The sultry city of Cartagena.

at home in bogotá

¡Hola, hola hola! I have been practicing my Spanish for all of three days now... and I'm already feeling super confident ;). But, let's start at the beginning. Following a delicious, early-ish Mother's Day brunch (I'll share the meal itself soon!) my family dropped my grandmother and I at the airport.

I hardly ever fly mid-day, and was amazed at the beautiful views from the plane once we took off. Can you believe the photo above is of Queens? Yep, believe it. Then, fast-forward a 2-hour flight to Orlando, a quick layover (where we picked up salads for dinner), and a 3-hour flight to Bogotá, and we'd finally arrived. 

My grandmother's aunt (whom she considers her cousin because they grew up together) picked us up from the airport and took us back to her apartment. The drive was dark but the city already reminded me of San José and Quito.

I slept ridiculously well that night and woke up early to fresh-squeezed orange juice. (Imagine it, I drank it too fast to photograph). Soon after, we sat down for el desayuno. We began with a plate of sliced fruit.

Next, we each helped ourselves to a piece of bread that had been purchased that morning from the panaderia a few blocks away. I really love how this is the custom in so many foreign countries. And finally, chocolate and cheese.

Please bear with me as I explain :) This chocolate caliente, or hot chocolate drink, was prepared from the bars you see below and hot milk. When it was served to me, I was advised to tear up a slice of cheese into it and then enjoy it in between bites of bread. It was absolutely delicious. I'm not a big fan of sweet things in the morning, but I love chocolate at any time of day.

After breakfast, we showered and went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was a gorgeous day for it.

Along the way, we stopped into a mercado for an empanada. I've never had a Colombian one before.  The filling seemed to be made up of spiced beef and rice and the exterior was probably slightly fried; it was quite the tasty morning snack.

Following our stop, my grandmother, her aunt, and I went into la officina del turismo to plan more of our trip. Here's a peek: Armenia, Medellin, Cartagena, Latecia a.k.a. coffee plantation, colonial city, lively beach, and the Amazon.

An hour or so later, we came back to the apartment just in time for lunch. We had veal, white rice, potatoes, salad with avocado and fresh squeezed juice from tomates del arbol (a wonderful fruit we don't have in the United States). The meal reminded me of those we often ate in Cuenca in the best of ways.

Most of the remaining afternoon was spent relaxing. Bogotá has a very high altitude so our bodies needed time to adjust. As nice as walking had been earlier, I'd come back slight dizzy, somewhat out of breath, and with a headache. Woo! Reading the book I'd brought was a good antidote.

That evening, we went for a driving tour of another neighborhood. The photo you see above was of the forever long line for public transportation. Crazy, huh?

Eventually, we made our way to La Fabbrica. Upon seating, we decided to share a Malbec from Argentina the waiter recommended to us. Perfection.

As for dinner, I chose una sopa de lentejas to start and the Pescado Rugula to split with my grandma afterwards. I was very pleased with both. I must also note that the plates were presented beautifully, even though I failed to photograph them as such. It was late, I was hungry, I apologize :).

We wrapped up our meal with a lovely stroll around Parque 63. This square--surrounded by beautiful restaurants (save for McDonald's, obviously), bars, and shopping--is apparently "hopping" Thursday through Saturday. With that said, though bright, it was thoroughly mild and quiet on that Monday night.

And that brings us to this morning. Again, I had a plate of fruit, but in place of the bread, chocolate, and cheese, I had oatmeal with cinnamon and a camera-shy, soft-boiled egg. It was much more filling of a breakfast than yesterday's, and almost as delicious. I'd update you on the rest of the day, but I've run out of time. See you in Armenia!

beyond wild on

Does anyone remember "Wild On," a travel show that was on E! from the late 90's (gosh, I feel old) into the early 2000's? Brooke Burke was one of a few hosts, and she traveled around the world to find "good times" a.k.a. "sizzling spring break spots" and "sexy dance clubs." Well, although I watched it, seeking out that kind of travel has never been an aspiration of mine. So when I found out we were headed to Cancún for New Year's, I was interested to see how it would unravel. 

In the end, vacationing in Mexico was everything I'd hoped it'd be and more.

Our all-inclusive resort was beautiful and thankfully served great food. Upon arriving on Thursday afternoon, we helped ourselves to one of many buffets.

Unfortunately, because of the hotels positioning, our beach saw little sun after 3pm. The first day was uneventful albeit thoroughly relaxing as a result. 

The next morning, I served myself a breakfast plate that would become consistent throughout our stay there: poached eggs in verde salsa, beans, fried plantains, fresh fruit, and a slice of whole grain bread... all enjoyed alongside a very strong cup of coffee. Delicious.

Then, like every other day, we hit to the beach. I spent at least six hours/day here.

And here.

And here. Sometimes I simply lounged, eating up my light beach read of choice, or swam, riding the calm waves of the warm Caribbean waters.

Other times I watched my siblings and their friends play beach volleyball. (Not my sport, but I'm a good cheerer).

On Friday night, we dressed up to embark on a family booze cruise. 

The night ended at Señor Frogs with huge margaritas for all... because we're, um, classy like that.

The following morning, on New Year's Eve, we ventured to Isla Mujeres.

We swam with each other first, and then with a sea lion named Michelle, a manatee named Caesar, and two dolphins named ? and ?, It was a good time.

 

We also had an amazing lunch, mostly made up of spinach & custard empanadas.

Later on, we headed back to Cancún to ring in the New Year.

After spending most of the day in the water, we looked rough. But that didn't stop us from gleefully accepting flutes of champagne upon arrival to our resort.

It was a Happy New Year.

We obviously had a slower start on Monday, our last full day there. In addition to my perfectly balanced and incredibly flavorful breakfast plate, I also had two pancakes and an extra cup of coffee.

New Year's Day passed by seamlessly enough. Highlights include: a long, long nap on the beach, a long shower, and a delightful, nightcap bottle of wine shared with my mom and her friend at an Argentinian restaurant down the street.

 And on Tuesday morning, January 2nd, my mom's 50th birthday, we left.

 

But not before getting my fill on Mayan ruins. Yes, it was the most perfect family vacation. Not to mention that it was (oh!) complete with a New Year's kiss too...