A line of buses ran along the southern edge of the Parque de El Poblado, and tour guides speaking English and Spanish collected names and directed groups to different buses to board. Almost all of them were headed to Guatape.

Our bus was waiting a street away, having arrived too late to claim a spot. But the flow of people into buses and the flow of buses away from the square was constant, and we didn’t have to wait long to board.

Once we were under way, Esteban introduced himself. The drive would take some time and he told us to relax. He’d give us more information as we drew close.

Off the highway, we wound our way down narrow roads through the countryside. We could see the rock long before we arrived, a large grey lump rising up from the otherwise lush surroundings. It looked a little like the opening shot of Raiders of the Lost Ark. As we drove closer we could see the lagoons that had formed around the islands that had formed when the area was flooded to create a reservoir. Downstream, a dam generates hydroelectric power that supplies 30% of Colombia’s power.

At the parking lot, Esteban gave us the lay of the land, pointing out the bathrooms and the rendez-vous point. We had a few hours to climb the 700+ stairs to the top and enjoy our surroundings.

The climb took less time than I had expected. The stairs were well-built, if the passageways were sometimes narrow as they accommodated traffic both up and down the rock. From the top, the views over the surrounding countryside were sweeping, the various islands shaped like dark clouds against the water. At the top people sold snacks and drinks, and the tables were full of people taking in the view and their breaths before descending.

Back at the base of the rock, I wandered the around the shops and restaurants. One had a terrace with a cover charge. I wanted to take photos of a sign I could see from the street and handed over a few pesos.

Esteban met us at the meeting point and walked us to our bus. We rode into town and were left at a restaurant by the water. Boats lined the shore, large and small, ready to take people for cruises on the lake or to the islands.

I shared the table with two friends from Curaçao. She worked at a travel agency there and I asked for her card as I did some planning in my head, looking for a gap in my schedule that would allow me to spend a week there. She was from Suriname, but had spent some time in Europe. She said she prefers the islands.

After lunch, Esteban walked us to a nearby dock where we boarded a large boat for a cruise on the lake. He said he’d play DJ and asked us to text him requests. On the way out we listened to recent reggaeton hits. On the way back I requested 2:50 remix (the song that introduced me to TINI) and Marte by Sofia Reyes & Maria Becerra. As the former played I watched my friends from Curaçao get up a dance.

Back on land, Esteban took us on a walking tour through the town, pointing out the colorful frescoes for which the town is famous. Called zócalos, they adorn the facades of most of the buildings, advertising the profession of the inhabitants, or illustrating family jokes (a set of giraffes on the home of a family known for their height). 

After finishing a turn through the town, Esteban left us at the Plazoleta de Los Zócalos and recommended coffee shops and confectioners before letting us wander on our own. I retraced our steps to spend more time with some of my favorite zócalos and take some photos without our crowd of tourists crowding the paths.

After retracing our route, and with more time on my hands, I wandered along the waterfront, looking at the boats and the monument to windsurfers that had been placed along the shore. From there I walked to the Parque Pincipal, where we were to meet up before heading home. I wandered into the church and then sat on a concrete wall facing the church to relax and wait for the others.

My friend from Curaçao appeared and we compared notes. We both felt that the tour of the town wasn’t entirely necessary, and the time could have been better spent by giving us a full two hours or so to wander by ourselves. We both enjoyed the cruise and thought that the tour was well worth the money, especially given the boat ride. 

We talked about future plans, and whether we’d make it back to Colombia in the near future. We both agreed it’d be worth spending a night or two in Guatapé, perhaps one night on an island and one night in town.

On the drive back to Medellín we passed again El Peñón. From my seat I could clearly see the large G that had been painted on the side. It stood as a vestige of a long-disputed ownership of the rock between the towns of Guatapé and El Peñol. The residents of Guatapé took matters into their own hands, decideing to paint the town’s name in large letters. The townspeople of El Peñol took obvious issue and a large mob assembled to stop the work, leaving the single letter and a downstroke that was to become the second letter, destined never to be finished. 🇨🇴