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Things To Do In Jardin: Exploring Colombia After Quarantine

Traveling After 6 Months Of Quarantine In Medellin, Colombia

After spending almost 6 Months of Quarantine in Medellin, I finally started traveling again in the month of September. Needless to say, I was really excited and bit cautious about traveling. Armed with Mask, Alcohol gel with a focus on keeping social distance, I begin my more than 2 months long travel in Colombia after Quarantine. Those 2 months of travel was quite easily one of the best traveling experiences of my life. My first destination was the beautiful small town called “Jardin” in the Antioquia region. It was approx. 3 hrs bus ride to reach Jardin from Medellin. I stayed for a week in Jardin, getting used to traveling in the post-quarantine and the current pandemic world.

All set to travel after almost 6 Months of Quarantine
On the way to Jardin
My humble abode for next 7 days
Crazy cat of the house
TVS India autos are popular means of transportation here
View from the home’s terrace

Local dish
Ice coffee 

Main Church in the Main Park

Local coffee

We cooked a dinner together
Enjoying dinner with cool people
Local red wine

MEETING LOCALS

Jardin is a gem of a small town and Colombia is full of such small gems which I discovered during my travels in Colombia post quarantine. Jardin is just my kind of place. A beautiful small town with stunning architecture surrounded by breathtaking nature. The first day I went to the Main Park and saw almost everyone is greeting everyone. It is a kind of town where virtually everyone knows everyone. Every small town in Colombia has a Main park with an overlooking church and a Mayor’s Office. The people in the town were pleasantly curious and surprised after meeting me as I was supposedly the only foreigner traveler around and everyone has the same question i.e. How do I reach here haha. I used to tell them about my quarantine time in Medellin and they used to listen with utmost interest. I met a group of friends in Jardin on the day of my birthday. We tried local food (Fish & Banana with cheese) and a local Cold coffee. They invited me for Uno night. We played Uno card game while sipping local red wine which is made with ginger and Jamaica flower. Yep, you read it write. It was nothing I had tried before. As they say in Spanish “Que Rico”! A birthday well spent! On the following days, we met again for dinner and this time I cooked Indian food for them and they loved it!

Buenos dias 🙂
Beginning of long and beautiful walk


Charco corazón river
Bat cave entrance

Garrucha wooden cable car

EXPLORING JARDIN BY WALK

One day, I went for a long walk from Charco Corazon path to Garrucha(a wooden cable car on the nearby mountain). A breathtaking walk. The walk comprises of mountains, waterfalls, cave, river, nature with different species of beautiful birds. A must-do walk when in Jardin. The usually touristic walk was just for me. One of the things which I really loved about my travels after the quarantine was most touristic places was almost entirely just for me but also I had to get used to the fact that several touristic places were still closed like the bat cave I found during this walk which is really unique as it was entirely carved by a local person. The thing I loved about Jardin and many small towns in Colombia is one can go anywhere in the town by walk and for me, that is the best way to explore any place.

 

On the way to Andes by bike
Andes

Chontaduro juice
Reached back to Jardin

Church in Jardin
Young people were protesting against police brutality at Main Park

 

EXPLORING BY BICYCLE

Exploring Jardin by bicycle is a must. I rented a bicycle for a day to explore the beautiful town of Jardin but soon after I decided to go to the nearby town called “Andes” by bicycle. It is 16 kms from Jardin. The way from Jardin to Andes was really breezy and easy. I was loving every minute of it. Going down the mountainous road. Andes had really hot weather and completely opposite to the weather of Jardin. I drank Chontaduro Juice in the town. The local fruit is known for its aphrodisiac qualities and energy booster. It is a non-touristic town with nothing much to do. The idea of riding a bicycle in the mountainous region triggered me to undertake this journey. I reached Andes rather quickly but the journey from Andes to Jardin was an uphill task. After a while, I gave up and started walking with a bicycle and as luck would have it, it starts to rain. After my unsuccessful attempts at hitchhiking, I decided to rest for a while sipping on Orange juice. Finally, it stopped raining and I somehow reached back to the town. Thus ends one of many adventurous days of my travels. As always I loved every minute of it.

 

View from Cafe Jardin

View from Cristo Rey

Found this bridge on the shortcut muddy path
Finally saw the main road!

VIEWPOINTS

There are two viewpoints in the town which should not be missed. The first one is at Cristo Rey where the statue of Christ Rey is at. The whole Jardin can be seen from here. From Cristo Rey, there’s a shortcut to go down to the town. Try to avoid taking this path at night especially as I did this mistake and walked town this muddy path while chased by crazy dogs. Not so far away from Cristo Rey, there’s a Cafe Jardin. Great place to see the sunset while sipping on local coffee at the Cafe.

 

On the way to Salto del angel waterfall

La Escalera Waterfall
Walking through Banana field

My last stop

Cool local transportation

WATERFALLS

There are several waterfalls to see in and around Jardin. The most famous one is the Cueva Del Esplendor which was closed when I visited Jardin. I decided to Salto de Angel waterfall alone. On the way to Salto de Angel waterfall, I saw La Escalera waterfall followed by Charco Corazon river. After passing along the river, I met a Colombian family who used to live in Medellin. We decided to walk to Salto de Angel together but after walking for 40 minutes into the mountains, we encountered a small waterfall and the family decided to not go further and stay at this waterfall. I continued my journey and after walking for more 15 minutes, I found a big waterfall and with that, I too finished my expedition. After taking a dip in the waterfall, I started my descend and met the family again who gave me a ride back to the town. Next day, I left Jardin for my next destination in Colombia. At the bus station, I met the couple from the “Group of Friends” I had dinner with who wished me well for my onward journey and I could feel that it was the beginning of an amazing journey.

My Travel Route In Colombia After Quarantine
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An Indian Traveler

Hello! My name is Saurabh and I am the voice behind the “An Indian Traveler” blog. I'm a cinephile, travel writer, an avid traveler with a song stuck in my head which I keep humming till ad nauseam :)

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25 Comments

  1. Wow…. what an aiming trip and the photos are stunning! I seriously need to get away and will have to add this to my ever growing bucket list of places to visit. Looks like some yummy cuisine too!

  2. Jardin looks like an amazing place! I would love to go there and explore. The natural beauty and the cool town are awesome.

  3. Exploring the town and the surrounding area looks like it would be an amazing adventure for my family. The combination of the wilderness and that cute town is just great.

  4. I am totally loving your photo essay here and has given me more of an idea on what to expect in Jardin. I have heard of the town before but don’t know much about it. But sounds like you were safe and had a wonderful time with the locals. I can see myself doing a lot of walks into the surrounding nature as that is more my scene. Hopefully I will do Colombia one day, its a country I don’t know too much about and needs to be explored.

  5. This looks like an amazing trip you had in Colombia. The country is so beautiful would love to visit one day.

  6. I am glad you got to get and explore after months in quarantine in Medellin. I know we were happy when we could move around even a little. Jardin does look like a lovely small town to visit. Even if I might have been a bit freaked out on a bus! But once you got there I could see the draw of mountains, waterfalls and caves. Even if some of the tourist sites were still closed. What a great trip to end being shut in!

  7. 2020 has been a tough year for all of us and I am glad that you got to explore such a beautiful little gem after a long quarantine period. Jardin looks amazing; I’ve never been to Columbia but would love to visit someday. Jardin is the type of charming, green town that would be on my list to explore.

  8. Beautiful images! They really tell the story of the destination. It is great that you were able to connect with and chat with the locals. I feel that that is truly one of the best ways to experience a destination and immerse yourself in the culture. One of my favorite attractions would be the waterfalls. I love waterfall hunting, so this would be perfect for me.

  9. Jardin looks beautiful, I love all your photos. I loved your part about meeting the locals, I find that one of the best parts of traveling. I hope you get to stay in touch with them in the future! Thanks for sharing!

  10. Jardin looks like a town where you want to run away from the hectic city’s life. Mountain views are gorgeous and people look friendly. The church looks pretty both during the day and in the evening. The interior looks interesting though. It’s good to know about Andes, so it’s better to stick exploring by bicycle in Jardin.

  11. I haven’t explored Colombia yet and Jardin already seems to be very interesting. I like how you mingle with the locals and try local food. I am also impressed by how you visit a place by foot as well as that brings in light a different picture of the place. Keep traveling!

  12. Jardin looks so tranquil and charming. I’m not sure I’d be ready for that level of travel yet but it sounds like you’ve had a lovely time of it. It’s so colorful and lush with greenery and the views from your hike are truly exceptionl.

  13. This is a perfect way to break the hiatus of travel. A quaint town with enough to do and yet not get exhausted. I loved the quaint lanes that you explored by foot and by the bicycle. I can quite understand how some of those places being closed might have disappointed you but then the ones that you had to yourself were delightful. I think that also gave you enough time for that UNO night.

  14. Jardin sounds like a wonderful place to visit sometime and has lots of areas to explore. Would love to visit that someday when things are a bit calm.

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