Today is the last day and time to head back.
We said goodbye to the dogs and started our journey to the airport. We took a different route through the town of Calarcá.
On our way to the airport we had lunch at the restaurant Rancho Edén. One last typical lunch before our plane ride.
Said goodbye at the airport and boarded our plane. Goodbye Colombia!
Woke up to very dense fog all around.
Today the plan was to visit my relative’s farm (Finca ) near the town of Quimbaya. The town is located about 28 km (50 mins) from Circacia. On the way there we passed the town of Montenegro, which is another large town in the area.
We arrived at the Finca and were greeted with a great view of the region. The Finca was cultivated mostly in coffee, but it has been transitioning to a local type of avocado and plantains. Some coffee will be kept, but only for local consumption.
We went out for a walk along the edge of the land. Along the way, we found plenty of ants that you don’t want to mess with.
The avocado trees are about two years old and continue to grow quickly. They have begun producing avocados.
We learned that they also grow another type of coffee type called Castilla, when the beans become ripe they turn yellow and not the traditional red color as the Arabica type.
The land has a few mango trees and thousands of plantain trees. These trees are huge between 12 and 15 feet tall. To protect the plantains a specialist comes and bags each plantain bunch as the plantains are growing.
After our hike, we were greeted with a cup of the coffee grown here. I normally don’t drink coffee but when it is this close to the source how can I refuse.
I was shown the process and the equipment used to process the beans.
The beans are inserted through a funnel into the machine to remove the skin from the bean.
From there it is dumped into a pool of water and cleaned further. Some of the beans are not fully skinned and requires further processing.
Once clean the beans are placed on a flat silo to dry. The silo has a movable roof for sunny days and for those cloudy or more humid days they have a type of heater to help the drying process.
After our coffee tour, we went to Quimbaya for lunch. We stopped at a restaurant in the town square for some chuletas, which are thinly breaded pork chops. This also included soup, fries, salad, and rice. We also enjoyed the fresh fruit juices (lulo and mango).
We drove back to Circacia and were greeted by a beautiful and colorful sunset.
For our last dinner, we went back to Container City in Armenia and ate at El Cacharrito. We ordered the Callejera burger (Street burger) and the Super Callejera with double everything. To drink we had the delicious limonada de coco (coconut limeade).
We were stuffed and ready for the bed.
Started the day with a delicious breakfast made by my father in law. Arepa and eggs with onion and tomatoes.
Spent time coloring with the kids at the house then we visited my wife’s grandmother before heading to the airport.
Just before the airport, we went to Rancho Edén for typical Colombian food. We started with crispy chicharrón for an appetizer, this was followed by Baby Beef and Punta de Anca. Both were delicious. To drink we natural juices in water/milk and coconut limeade. Main beef dishes are about $29,000 pesos ($8.95 USD).
Beef doneness runs on the rare side. A typical medium will be a little bloody.
Made it to the airport on time, but learned a few things:
Be aware that you can’t have glass or ceramic coffee cups on your carry on. So check in your shot glasses or anything in a glass container on your checked bag.
After the wife successfully went through security we left to visit the town of Filandia. The town is located northwest about 19 km (24 min) from Circacia.
Once there we parked in the town square and went out for a walk. The town square buildings are well preserved and very colorful. There are plenty of good restaurants around as well as small vendors.
We extended our walking a few blocks past the square and were greeted by fantastic views of the region. It was raining on and off and we decided to start heading back to the square. On the square, we found a vendor with mini buñuelos (10 x 1000 pesos). There are little cheese dough balls.
I was craving obleas, which is a wafer sandwich that’s filled with arequipe (like a caramel sauce). Other fillings include condensed milk, whipped cream, and jams. We tried multiple things at the place selling obleas. First, we ordered two obleas with arequipe, cream and strawberry sauce.
My son ordered a guanabanon (soursop fruit). It consisted of a wafer cup filled with the fruit topped with arequipe, cream, and jam.
We finished the day by buying fresh chorizo and driving around the central plaza of Circacia. Later we went out for dinner at Rancho Arepas and had stuffed arepas.
Same as yesterday, relax by the pool and eat too much food.
We left the house around 3:30 pm, The trip was much faster without the night traffic in Pereira.
There are three tolls from the Chinchiná area to Circasia. They have a cost of
$13,800 ($4.25 USD), $11,500 ($3.55 USD), and $10,400 ($3.21 USD)
Later at night, we went out for dinner to a spot called Container City. This location is built using shipping containers and hosts many different restaurants. We had sushi from Kei Zaki. We ordered a large boat which included three levels 3 rolls and four levels 1 or 2.
We had natural limeade and mango juice in milk from arepas, the next door restaurant.
We ordered to go a burger from El Cacharrito.
The place is a very nice spot to hang out and eat. Highly recommended.
Today we woke up to a fresh fruit plate before breakfast.
For breakfast, we had arepa and scrambled eggs. Hot chocolate and toast with tamarind jam.
Today is a slow day to rest and hang out by the pool and eat.
Later in the day, more of the family arrived.
We played in the pool and enjoyed the hot and sunny day.
Was woken up by the hard rain,which made me stay in bed longer.
Finally got out of bed and prepared a breakfast of rice and eggs with tomatoes and onions.
Later in the day, I visited a cousin living near where I was and made plans to visit his farm in three days. Got to take home some coffee beans grown on my cousin’s land.
We left the house to go pick up my wife at the airport. The airport is about 28 km (41 minutes) from Circasia. It is going through an expansion to better serve international flights.
After waiting what seemed like an eternity, the wife was out. We headed to a steakhouse restaurant on the outskirts of Armenia called Boludo Parrilla. We enjoyed different cuts of beef from churrasco, baby beef, and others.
The restaurant has a great view of the mountains on the back of the building.
Just outside the restaurant, we indulged in some delicious Ice Cream at Stracciatella. Everything from chocolate and hazelnut, cheesecake, pistachio, stracciatella, and berries.
With our bellies full we went back to the house to pack our bags and head to my wife aunt house near Chinchiná for the weekend. It is about 70 km (over 1.5 hours with traffic on Pereira).
After the long journey, we were received to a family dinner with a homemade dessert.
