A view from a Jeep

Travelers in Colombia usually have only one reason for stopping in Armenia: to catch a bus to Salento. It's Colombia's pastoral wonderland and the most picturesque rural town I've seen. Luckily, one of the teachers at our school, Erika, decided to move out of Armenia and put up with the commute through mountain roads in favour of living in such a gorgeous setting. She had insider knowledge on the best place to visit and the best way to see it, when we visited last month.

Only a 30 minute bus ride from where we live, Salento seems a world apart. True, it's much, much smaller than Armenia, a real little mountain town, and unlike our city, it has a long history. It's one of the oldest towns in our area of Colombia (Quindio), founded more than 150 years ago and it shows. Set among rolling green hills, the town has small streets lined with houses and storefronts attached to one another, separated only by their intense paint jobs. Each section of house has its own bright background colour with contrasting wooden shutters and doors. It looks the way that I might have imagined a little Colombian town to look before I arrived. It was Sunday on the day we visited, so many of the shops and restaurants were closed. It made the palette even more noticeable as we walked down the wide quiet streets. The paises, country folk, who live in Salento wear woollen ponchos as a matter of course and few men were seen without the characteristic straw Colombian style cowboy hat.

Colourful Salento early Sunday morning

A shoeshine (and our gringa friends in the background)

Church in the plaza in the middle of town

After perusing the main square with its lovely church, Erika suggested we take a trip to Valle de Cocora, the main showpiece of the town and Quindio in general. We left the transportation up to her. She returned with a friendly driver and his Jeep. Just one Jeep. For eleven people. Two piled into the front seat with the driver. Four more sat along the short benches on either side of the back area of the Jeep. There was just enough room for one person to stand in the middle of everyone's legs.

"Who wants to hang off the back of the Jeep?" Erika asked. With three more of us standing on the back grill clutching the Jeep, we were off.

The ride was brilliant. Brilliant in a way that can only be experienced by driving through unbelievable countryside, while maintaining a death-grip on the bars of a hurtling Jeep. It stands out in my mind vividly thanks to both the full sunlight and the adrenaline. There was a little off-roading at one point that necessitated a switch of seats (those hanging from the back were in danger of losing their grip once their muscles fatigued) but for the most part it was a smooth ride.

Once we arrived, the Valle of Cocora was an absolute wonder. Colombia is home to the Wax Palm, tallest palm tree in the world, which grows on the cool mountain slopes near Salento. It's Colombia's national tree and the wax surrounding its trunk was used for candles in the past. The palm fronds apparently featured highly in Palm Sunday decorations as well. It is now a protected tree and the entire valley is a conservation area. The trees themselves grow straight up for 50 metres or so. As a biologist, I'm not entirely sure how or why they are like this, though speculation on the subject filled our stroll through the valley groves. The palms are evenly spaced on the green slopes, completely separated from the other trees. They are much higher than anything else around, but since they're on their own it doesn't seem to be part of a competition for light. At any rate, they look otherworldly in their beauty. I won't ever think of palm trees as only on tropical beaches again.

If any of you come to visit us in Armenia, and we hope you do, come ready to see the sight for yourself from the back of a Jeep.

Dan and Amanda perilously clinging to the back of the speeding jeep

Valle de Cocora

Wax Palms reach for the sky

Lisa surveys the landscape

Walking in the sunshine