Salento

Colombia’s primary coffee-growing region, Eje Cafetero, is comprised of three departments (states): Caldas, Quindío, and Risaralda. In the smallest of the three, Quindío, is one of the oldest and smallest towns called Salento. Since arriving here yesterday morning I have felt very relaxed. The surrounding Andean mountains (Cordillera Central) and slow-pace life make this a much-welcomed tourist destination for those from Colombia’s three largest cities – Bogotá, Cali, and Medellín – which are all relatively close-by. Besides people like myself, the tourists that visit Salento usually come from Armenia or the Valle de Cauca, yet it still seems concealed from outsiders. A sign on a hill in town reads: ¡SALENTO ES UN PUEBLO SUSPENDIDO EN EL TIEMPO VÍVELO!


About 4,000 people live in Salento, but it feels like less. As I strolled around town children were playing in the street, and horses were carrying big sacks filled with coffee, fruit, and other goods. I walked in the middle of the roads because there was no traffic. There is also no crime so carrying around my expensive camera was no big deal, even at night. The old colonial paisa buildings can be seen on every street corner but were especially remarkable in the main plaza and on both sides of Calle Real, a long street filled with handicraft shops. Calle Real, or Carrera 6, is the most beautiful street I’ve seen in Colombia, and perhaps anywhere. Its buildings have bright, vibrant colors, and at one end is the main plaza. At the other is a 250-step climb up a steep hill to a spectacular view overlooking Salento and the Valle de Cocora with its seemingly endless supply of trout. Trout is served in virtually every restaurant and is usually baked or fried. Complimenting the beautiful scenery, the people are as about as laid-back as I’ve seen in Colombia. A short walk from town, at a lower altitude, coffee farmers live on the various haciendas.


It is no wonder that former British businessman, Tim Harbour, moved here four years ago in his desire to “escape the rat race.” At the time he bought a house that was more than a hundred years old and had been used as a coffee farmhouse. He converted this house and another building across the road into a hostel and named it The Plantation House. This is where I am staying in Salento, and sleeping on a bunk-bed in a dormitory for 15,000 pesos per night is a great deal. The old plantation building has various fruit trees surrounding it and is as charming as the city itself. Tim is very helpful and loves drawing maps for directions and telling visitors about the area’s attractions, such as horseback riding in Valle de Cocora or visiting some coffee farms. Soon after he bought the house he married a Colombian woman and seems very content in his surroundings. When speaking Spanish his British accent is quite comical, yet I have to give him credit for learning the language. He owns a couple of cats and three friendly collies that remind me of Lassie. At this hostel I have met people from all over the Americas and Europe. They are your typical backpacker type, easy-going and well-traveled. I feel fortunate having found this hostel as well as the Mountain House in Manizales.



Although I enjoyed walking around town, I had to go to Armenia today to exchange some of my American Express travelers checks. There is only one bank in Salento and it doesn’t exchange foreign currency or travelers checks. There is one road entering and leaving Salento (wait for a bus at the corner in front of the fire station), and the half-hour bus ride I took to Armenia provided me with lots of great views of the valley its towering green mountains. While in Armenia, I made reservations to go paragliding tomorrow!