Colombia is the third largest coffee producer producer in the world and the Eje Cafetero or “Coffee Growing Axis” in the centre of Colombia is right at the heart of this industry.
Here coffee is a way of life. It is normal for children aged six and upwards to drink coffee, and it’s not a latte or anything similar. Straight up black coffee all the way. Just think of that the next time your child is running wild after a late evening sugar hit. Maybe a cup of Juan Valdez would have been a better option…
Our time in this wonderful area began with a trip to the small town of Barcelona, where we would visit a small finca (farm) where cacao growing was the order of the day. Cinco Cacao is run by a father and son combination both named Diego. The younger looking after the business side of the finca and the elder taking care of all things on the land itself. We stayed with them for a couple of days and thoroughly enjoyed a tour of their cacao plantation. I call it a cacao plantation when in reality it is a combination of all and every plantation possible in the area. In addition to the thousands of cacao trees, there were bananas, oranges, guanabana, lulo, maracuya, papaya and even coffee trees growing all mixed together. Diego taught us all about this form of agriculture and how the mixing of different species helps keep the soil healthy. Certainly not a mono-culture environment and you could really see the benefits first-hand.
Before leaving Barcelona we had the added pleasure of attending the local corn festival. Like many parts of Latin America, corn is a crop of huge importance. We loved seeing how inventive the locals are with their corn, and enjoyed tasting corn arepas, corn soup, corn cake, corn fritters and the local twist on good old-fashioned corn on the cob!
A trip to the town of Salento followed. The town is a big tourist attraction as many coffee tours depart from there. We enjoyed the main square and strolling the steep adjoining side streets of this bustling hamlet. In terms of coffee tour, we found a small finca called Don Elias that was perfect for our needs. Given the fact that we are not huge coffee connoisseurs, a relatively short hike around their coffee plantation combined with some really interesting information and some hands-on activities was perfect for what we wanted. We left a lot wiser about the end-to-end process and with huge appreciation for the work the unheralded coffee pickers do.
We left Salento for a destination chosen by the kids – the Parque del Cafe Theme Park. Yes you read that correctly, a coffee based theme park! The park was founded by the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia in 1995. Aside from the coffee theme rides in the park, there are also a museum and exhibitions detailing the history, culture and process of growing and producing coffee in the region. Added to this, there are multiple coffee themed shows, just in case you temporarily forgot where you were!
Our day there was very enjoyable, with the usual dashing around to try and get to each of the desired attractions. The highlight was definitely when the three generations of us (including visiting grandmother that is) got soaked from head-to-toe on the Rapidos aquatic ride! It was so much fun that we all even volunteered for a second soaking soon after!
Next stop in Eje Cafetero was the village of Filandia. Something out of a postcard, the village is said to have been the inspiration behind the hit-movie Encanto. It certainly had huge amounts of charm and was a lovely place to spend an afternoon.
We then travelled to the Parque Panaca, a farming-themed park in Quimbaya. The park is intended to promote contact between humans and nature and create awareness about agriculture, specifically for those who live in the city. While we found that the park mostly achieves what it intended to, a couple of the animal shows left us a little unconvinced as to the overall wellness and happiness of the participants.
Our penultimate destination were the thermal baths at Santa Rosa. Located 9km from the town of Santa Rosa de Cabal, they attract huge numbers of visitors in high season. Luckily for us we were in low season, and the visit was really enjoyable. We spent a few hours moving between very hot pools, cool man-made outdoor fountains, very hot pools and spectacular cold waterfalls. The baths also have a number of reasonably-priced restaurants which options to suit all ages and diets.
We saved the best for last (in my opinion) with our visit to the Valle de Cocora (Cocora Valley). The valley is part of the beautiful Los Nevados National Park and is the main location where the Quindío wax palm (the national tree of Colombia) can be found. Also present are a wide variety of other flora and fauna and stunning forest covered hills, making this a must-see if in the area. With our visiting grandmother present, myself and Laura even had the absolute pleasure of sneaking out at 7am to complete the 12km hike around the valley. The route is spectacular as you first ascend from the valley, then descend through the thick rainforest, before finishing back in the wax palm valley.
That marked the end of our Eje Cafetero adventure. We had the great fortune to spend two full weeks visiting all the wonders that this part of Colombia had to offer. With so many attractions in such a small part of the country, a trip here will definitely never be dull.
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