September 7, 2017 – September 11, 2017
Other than coffee, Medellin excels at developing engaging museums. Not only does the city have an interactive science museum at Parque Explora (which I was unable to visit), but they also have Parque Arvi–an amusement park/museum/natural park. When my brother-in-law’s sister took my dad and me to Parque Arvi, it was not what I would have expected. Since it is located up in the surrounding mountains, I thought it would be more like a regular park with some light hiking. However, it seems to be a place that many schools visit on field trips since they have museum exhibits, amusement rides, and even a children’s story section. We went during the week with less crowds, so some exhibits were closed. However, I had heard that during the week the park is packed with visitors. It is definitely an engaging park, especially for kids, who can learn about nature and have fun at the same time. Since I often find museums slow and un-engaging, I find that interactive parks have a significant value in the world today, as like Parque Arvi.
After our day trip to Guatape, my dad and I took the next few days slowly. We went to another coffee shop in El Poblado, called Café Velvet. While Café Pergamino and even Cafe Juan Valdez tend to be loud, Café Velvet had a calming ambience with delicious Colombian hot chocolate. On Sunday, September 10, my dad and I walked to the Mercados Campesinos or Farmer’s Market at Parque La Presidente in El Poblado for some deliciously fresh juice and a small snack. We then took the train back to Jardin Botanico for the Fiesta del Libro y La Cultura, or the Book Festival. Since my dad used to work as a librarian before he retired, I thought it would be enjoyable to go to this limited-time festival. While there, we bought some Belgian waffles from a food stand that had a model of the Manneken Pis in Brussels. Ironically, E was in Brussels on that same day for his vacation and sent me a photo of the Mannekin Pis in a Cardinal costume.
That evening, we met with my brother-in-law’s family for dinner at their apartment and dessert at his aunt and uncle’s apartment. We enjoyed dinner with a his mother and sister and with a gorgeous view of the city in the background. Apparently, his sister really wanted to learn how to make mochi and of course, I got excited to have the opportunity to show her how to make it. We made coconut baked mochi with his cousin and all enjoyed it over a cup of coffee.
Monday, September 11 was our final full day in Medellin. We used this day to go out with a bang by going on a coffee farm tour through Expedition Colombia to Café Cereza. We learned quite a lot about coffee and the process in producing coffee. The owners of the coffee farm were welcoming and friendly to us as they took us on the tour. What better way to spend our last day in Medellin than to go on a coffee plantation tour with such a wonderful company. We concluded our last evening by going to dinner with my brother-in-law’s mother and sister and I finally ordered a glass of sangria.
Until next time!
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