Welcome to Our New Website!

October 6th, 2010

After months of hard work and many, many hours put in by our fabulous designer Julie Olson, we are proud to welcome you to our brand new Su Casa Colombia website!

On our website you can find everything from descriptions of the activities we offer at our bed and breakfast and around Colombia to photos of our accommodations, to Spanish words and photos of the day.  Most importantly, our site features a comprehensive Contact Us page that tells us exactly what you’re looking for in your trip to Colombia.

Our Blog will function in the same manner as it did before but now it has a lovely new facelift, a new name, and most importantly an easy to find SUBSCRIBE button! Subscribing will keep you up to date with all of the exciting adventures we’re having in Colombia by sending you our blog automatically every time we make a post.

Take the time to explore our site and don’t forget to check our all of our photos in our Picasa albums, “Like” us on our Facebook page, or follow us on Twitter.  We’d love to hear what you think about our site so please send your comments to contact@sucasacolombia.com page. If you like what you see, spread the word!

Feria de las Flores Day 5: Orchids, Birds, and Flowers

August 25th, 2010

We are in the middle of the Feria de las Flores (Flower Festival) Medellin’s biggest annual festival, and one of the most popular in all of Colombia. Everyday we’ll be bringing you multiple blogs and videos about the events we’re attending, such as concerts, parades and exhibitions. Viva la Feria!

The event everyone recommended we checkout during the feria was Orquideas, Pájaros y Flores (Orchids, Birds and Flowers) at the Botanical Gardens.  We beat the crowds by attending in the early afternoon on a weekday but still had to compete for space to see the thousands upon thousands of gorgeous flowers.  I never realized how many varieties of orchids existed, but I’m sure I saw just about every single one of them after an afternoon at the gardens.  In addition to the orchids there were tropical flowers, roses, lilies, gerbera daisies, chrysanthemums, and I could go on and on.  Take a look at some of our favorite flowers and don’t forget you can see more on our Picasa page.

Check out our Picasa albums to see our Feria de las Flores gallery as well as pictures from our other adventures in Colombia.

Read more about Feria de las Flores here.

Feria de las Flores, Day Two: Pet Parade

August 6th, 2010

We are in the middle of the Feria de las Flores (Flower Festival) Medellin’s biggest annual festival, and one of the most popular in all of Colombia.  Everyday we’ll be bringing you multiple blogs and videos about the events we’re attending, such as concerts, parades and exhibitions.  Viva la Feria!
Get ready for a post that will break your heart with adorableness.  Day two featured the Desfile de Mascotas (Pet Parade) which was a torturous place to go for a girl that wants a dog sooooo bad.  Enjoy the cuteness!

Check out our Picasa albums to see our Feria de las Flores gallery as well as pictures from our other adventures in Colombia.  We’ll write about experiences after the craziness of the fair is over.

Read more about Feria de las Flores here.

Feria de las Flores, Day One: The Horse Parade

August 5th, 2010

We are in the middle of the Feria de las Flores (Flower Festival) Medellin’s biggest annual festival, and one of the most popular in all of Colombia.  Everyday we’ll be bringing you multiple blogs and videos about the events we’re attending, such as concerts, parades and exhibitions.  Viva la Feria!

There’s no better way to kick off a weeklong festival than with 8,000 horses and their possibly inebriated riders gallivanting down the highway—let the festivities begin!

Check out our Picasa albums to see our Feria de las Flores gallery as well as pictures from our other adventures in Colombia.  We’ll write about experiences after the craziness of the fair is over.

The San FranTastic Four: The Finale

August 3rd, 2010

*We hosted our first official guests at Su Casa Colombia this past week: Haileigh, Ashley, Joanna and Colleen.  All four live in or around beautiful San Francisco, making them the San FranTastic Four.  These are their adventures.

After five wonderful days with the ladies of San Fran, the exciting climax was upon us: rappelling down a 200-foot waterfall.  Although I had done it once before, even I didn’t know the magnitude of the adventure that awaited us.  Bring yourself up to speed on what is involved with waterfall rappelling by reading about my first experience and watching the video.

We awoke at 6 am and by 8 am we were suited up and ready to go, along with four other Colombians who would be joining us.  Thanks to the cloud cover, our two-hour trek started out nicely without too much perspiration and before we knew it we were practicing rappelling techniques off the side of the gazebo (that won’t make sense if you didn’t read about my first time.)

After thirty minutes of traversing the cloud forest and scaling the rock wall (the ladies later commented that the hike was almost as demanding as rappelling itself) we finally arrived at the cascade.  Much to my surprise, the waterfall had changed dramatically in the three months since I last saw it, thanks to a very rainy wet season.  The waterfall in April looked like a trickle compared to the gushing water of the present.  I suddenly felt like I hadn’t adequately prepared our guests for the intensity they were about to experience; I didn’t feel prepared myself!

I stayed behind as two by two everyone made their descent and made it safely to the bottom until it was time for Colleen and I to brave the waterfall.  Because there was so much mist coming off of the waterfall we were FREEZING as we got hooked up to the ropes, but the second we lowered ourselves over the edge the adrenaline took over and the shivers were gone.

Ashley and Joanna rappelling like pros

Just as the waterfall had changed drastically since April, so had the experience itself.  Before, I had ventured across the cascade and relished the sensation of the water falling on my legs.  This time I stayed to one side where the water was less abundant and still had trouble seeing my feet under the rushing water.  Before, I had descended at a leisurely pace, savoring every moment. This time I proceeded with a greater sense of urgency, trying not to think about what would happen if I got stuck.  Before, I had whooped, hollered and yelled with excitement.  This time, I was so completely concentrated on every step, every move, I completely forgot to make a peep.  Before, I had reached the bottom thinking it was easy peasy, lemon squeezy.  This time I reached the bottom feeling like I’d really accomplished something, like I’d really earned some bragging rights.

At the bottom, the rest of the crew was relieved when I reassured them that what they had just experienced was far more intense and difficult than what my video had advertised.  Joanna said it was just as scary and adrenaline inducing as skydiving.  I was so proud of the four ladies and Noah, most of whom had never rappelled before but navigated the waterfall with confidence and enthusiasm.  The ear-to-ear grins were enough to tell me they had really enjoyed themselves.

Upon returning to the finca we received the best welcoming we could imagine: a delicious bowl of beans, chicharón, and freshly fried plantains thanks to the wonderful and talented Mari.  While Colleen, Joanna and I relaxed with a book on the lawn, Noah, Haileigh and Ashley went for a horse back ride through the countryside.  When they returned, Ashley had a dirty knee and a story to tell.  Her horse had lost its footing while galloping and quick thinking Ashley opted to jump and roll into the bushes rather than risk being thrown from the horse.   Both Noah and Haileigh attested that Ashley had all the style and grace of a ballerina ninja.  There was still a bit of time before sunset so I hopped on Ashley’s horse and rode out with Noah and Haileigh who had bonded with her horse and wasn’t ready to stop.  The sunset over the valley was gorgeous and truly unique and I think this photo will show you why:

Our last night was a great end to our time together. It was a warm, cloudless night with a full moon and millions of stars.  We grilled my favorite cut of beef on the outdoor grill along with corn on the cob and potatoes and washed it down with wine and aguardiente.  The musical stylings of Carlos Vives accompanied us once again and we danced and talked until we (or maybe it was just me) literally fell asleep under the stars.

We returned to Medellín the next afternoon, fed the ladies some tasty empanadas and then saw them off to the airport, on to their next destination on Colombia’s Carribean coast.  We already miss the time we spent with these four intelligent, adventurous and fun San FranTastic women, but we know that when we visit San Francisco later this year we’ll have four new friends to see!

To see more photos from rappelling, horseback riding, or the rest of the ladies’ visit, check out our Picasa album or our facebook page.  Leave a comment if you want to make me smile!