Whether you're an architecture buff or just enjoy getting lost in a maze of pretty cobbled streets, there are a multitude of colonial cities in Latin America that warrant your time and attention. Some of the best colonial cities are easily reached by public transport, so there's no reason not to include them in your itinerary. They usually also … [Read more...]
Best Dozen Posts of 2012
With 2013 barely off the ground, a new blogger relay has taken the travel world by storm. The idea? To pick your best posts from the past year, depending on twelve predefined categories. When I was nominated by JdombsTravels to take part, it sounded like a great opportunity to reflect on everything I've been up to and to scrutinise my blog posts … [Read more...]
A Salento Coffee Making Tour: Sampling Colombia’s Best
People visit Salento for two main reasons - to hike in the Cocora Valley, where massive palm trees stand like totem poles on the mountainside, and to experience some of the best freshly made coffee on the planet. While it might be easier to use an OXO machine to produce your daily caffeine fix, it's fascinating to gain some first-hand insight into … [Read more...]
Robbed Travelling in Cali, Colombia
For the most part, Colombia has managed to shake the poor reputation it gained through a past of drug trafficking and violence. As a solo female traveller, I was pleasantly surprised by how safe and tourist friendly it is. Sadly, though, petty crime is still a big problem, as I found out when I was robbed travelling in Cali. ROBBED TRAVELLING IN … [Read more...]
Cali to Quito: Is it Safe by Bus?
When researching my South America route, one of the topics that kept cropping up was that of safety. There was one particular journey that I was dreading, and that was the public bus from Cali to Quito. Some travel blogs and personal stories recounted horrific experiences of hijackings and mass robbery at gun point. Even more common was the … [Read more...]
Hiking in the Cocora Valley Near Salento
South America is a continent known for its impressive hikes. You have the W trek in Patagonia, the Santa Cruz trek in Peru and the Cotopaxi Volcano climb in Ecuador. While they're all incredible in their own ways, none impressed me more than the Cocora Valley, near Salento in Colombia. HIKING IN THE COCORA VALLEY The Cocora Valley is a really … [Read more...]
A Day Trip to Guatapé and El Peñón
The town of Guatapé is about a 2-hour bus journey outside of Medellin in Colombia. Many people stop by looking for food or an afternoon of watersports after visiting the region's star attraction - El Peñón. EL PEÑÓN Also known as La Piedra del Peñol, this oddly shaped monolith in the middle of the Colombian countryside is now a national … [Read more...]
Capture the Colour: Colombia Inspired
When I was invited to take part in Travelsupermarket.com's competition Capture the Colour, it was a day before I was due to depart for South America. I began sifting through images from previous travels, all taken with an old compact camera before Beyond Blighty was born. Then I thought 'Hell, why not wait and take new pictures in Colombia, … [Read more...]
Colourful Colonial Cartagena City: A Walk Through the Old Town
Cartagena city is a very pretty place brimming with colonial architecture. In 1984 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A WALK THROUGH CARTAGENA CITY You can walk the circumference of the Cartagena city walls, enjoying the breeze, views of the ocean and an elevated vantage point for photographing the colourful streets. If you … [Read more...]
A Visit to El Totumo Mud Volcano Near Cartagena
El Totumo is a mud volcano near Cartagena City. As the story goes, it's a natural volcano that used to spew fire, until a local priest declared that this was the Devil's work and turned the fire to mud by sprinkling holy water on it. THE MUD VOLCANO I'm sceptical about whether or not the legend is true. In reality, it seems more likely that … [Read more...]
