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Looking for safe,pretty towns near Medellin

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gringo2u
  11/25/2016 14:14 EST

And the cost of a small 2 bdrm house or apt with a small yard or patio.

cccmedia
  11/25/2016 15:04 EST

Look into La Ceja and Rionegro.

If you post again, please define as best you can the following terms in your request...

1. “near Medellín”

2. “towns” in terms of size of population.

cccmedia

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gringo2u
  11/25/2016 16:55 EST

Thanks so much! Looking for towns of about 100k people with good internet,good views,and preferably a nearby lake or river.

njwalgren
  11/26/2016 09:15 EST

Check out Guatape--huge lake, very safe, pretty resort town, 2 hours outside Medellin, one hour from international Medellin airport in RioNegro. I have been living here for 2 years.

cccmedia
  11/26/2016 11:50 EST

Guatape is much further out from Medellín than La Ceja and Rionegro. Rionegro is the city close to the international airport and, as such, is a place of particular growth.

By the way, these two municipalities are at higher elevation than Medellín, so when the mercury approaches 90-92 F. on hot summer days in the big city, La Ceja and Rionegro have more ’soportable’ weather.

At two hours distance from the Paisa Capital, is Guatape close enough to make your cut, Gringo2U?

What’s the maximum distance from Medellín that you would want to live?

cccmedia

gringo2u
  11/26/2016 14:23 EST

Thanks! How much could I rent a small 2 bdrm for there fairly close to the lake?

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BrandonBP
  11/26/2016 14:45 EST

I spent a month in Guatape and rented a 3 bed, 2 bath apartment for $170. My neighbor told me I got the Gringo tax and that his apartment right above me was much less. But I was happy with it. I had 8 beds, 2 showers, a fridge, and a TV with cable. No kitchen, but I didn't need one. I could throw a rock and hit the lake along the main drag. Horses wander the streets at night which is odd, but they go back to their spot by the lake in the morning to give rides.

I just walked into Guatape one day on a whim, and said, "Man, this is great. I think I'll stay a bit." I ate a a restaurant and my waiter had spent 10 years in Boston. He hooked me up with his landlady. She didn't run a credit history, I didn't show my passport, she didn't even know my last name. I gave her cash and she gave me a key. She even offered to send a cleaning lady twice a week as part of the deal.

I loved Guatape. I didn't even know about "The Rock" until I saw it on the bus on the way into town. I was like Holy Crap! What is this thing!

It's great little town with cobble streets and friendly people. I would walk around town and people invited me to drink beers and hang out. One retiree invited me to his house and his wife cooked us dinner.

I had such a huge time in Guatape. It's truly a great spot in the world. I would walk every day to the Rock and go visit the shops. It's a long but pretty walk. I had lost a lot of weight during that month and was very thin from just walking and enjoying the beautiful scenery.

novato1953
  11/26/2016 15:01 EST

While I'm very fond of Guatape, it doesn't have the vibe of a 100,000 population town to me. It feels like a village of about 15,000, even if it does have four zocalos. But it certainly is worth looking into, not least because you can get back to Medellin pretty quick if it fails to grow on you.

BrandonBP
  11/26/2016 15:03 EST

Here's a story about my great month in Guatape. There's a billboard on the edge of town advertising a waterfall. So I set out walking on the highway one day to look for it. I couldn't find it, but I figured I'd just go ahead and walk on to the next town. How far can it be, right?

After several miles, I saw a family selling bottles of water on the side of the highway and asked them how far the next town was. They said, "An hour." I said, by foot? They said, "No, by bus!" I was like holy crap.

So I kept walking the mountain highway. God it's so beautiful. The mountains and huge green valleys and rivers! I saw a little tent area and an older couple were selling soup, so I had lunch. They thought it odd that a white guy was walking through the middle of nowhere. I told them I had walked from Guatape and they didn't believe me. They said, "But that's so far!"

I walked more and then the bottom dropped out of the sky. It was raining buckets. I found this little lean-to where a guy on his motorcycle had found cover and we had a nice chat.

The rain stopped and I started walking again. Then it started raining like crazy again. I was running down the highway soaking wet. It was starting to get dark and I found a little convenience store. The girl told me one more bus was due through in a few minutes. I caught the bus and he made me sit in the floor all the way back to Guatape since I was soaking wet.

So, via the internet, I found out I had walked 13.5 miles before giving up and getting the bus. So, now I was determined to make it to San Rafael which was the next small town on that highway.

I waited a few days and let my blisters heal and got the soreness out, and then I started the trek again (I'm sort of hardheaded).

From Guatape to San Rafael is 18.6 miles. I saw some little white faced monkeys playing in a tree and stopped for a bit to watch them. It had gotten dark by the time I made it into San Rafael. I know there's no such thing as monsters, but there was some monstery sounding stuff coming from the treeline. I was a bit unnerved and ran a lot.

I finally made it and I was so sore. My feet hurt, my ankles hurt, I was dehydrated, but was satisfied with myself for having done it.

I rented a nice little hotel room with a flatscreen TV with cable, a nice glass enclosed shower, queen bed for $10 a night.

I went out drinking that night on the square and some chiva bike drivers befriended me and we had a huge time. We had a race in their taxi bikes around the mountain highway and I was scared to death and laughing the entire time.

Man, what a great experience.

gringo2u
  11/26/2016 17:02 EST

Thanks sooooo much,glad you had a great time,cant wait to go!!

gringo2u
  11/26/2016 17:06 EST

Rio Negro is fine at least to live and Guatape at least to visit.We're retired,but about 1 hr from Medellin's better.

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gringo2u
  11/26/2016 18:39 EST

Hi,does Guatape' have good wifi?

BrandonBP
  11/26/2016 18:43 EST

I used internet cafes in Guatape, and they were pretty fast for a small Colombian town. You could watch videos, etc. I don't know about wifi. An internet cafe in Colombia costs like $.60 an hour or even less. It's cheap.

gringo2u
  11/26/2016 19:36 EST

Thanks!!

8901
  11/26/2016 20:24 EST

BrandonBP What a great description and story about Guatape.
It is now on my to do list. Thanks for sharing.

How is the weather ??? Is there swimming at the lake ??

dliss62
  11/26/2016 21:55 EST

@BrandonBP ,

Thanks for sharing your experience in Guatape!

I have been researching this very pretty pueblo and it's on my short list to check out for possible retirement venue.

I will definitely rent first and look for the "warts" that not visible at first.

BrandonBP
  11/26/2016 22:09 EST

8901, I didn't go swimming but a lot of kids were messing around in the lake. They have a huge bouncy blow up thingie that they dive onto off a pier near where the horses are for rent.

Pablo had a lake house there on an island nearby. It's closed in by the army with signs not to trespass, but you can still see it by boat. Some gringo buddies from Medellin came to visit me with their girlfriends and we all pitched in 5 bucks for a boat captain to drive us around the lake for a few hours. There's an Escobar museum on the lake, AND there's an underwater town that was evacuated when they dammed up the valleys to create the hydropower plant that is the reason for the lakes that surround Guatape.

God, man, it's such a great town. I mean, look at this place!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTBQzsugumo&t=106s

And the weather is a tad cooler than Medellin. Which I like because walking around Medellin you can get sweaty, whereas, in Guatape it's cool enough to hike your ass off without breaking a sweat. I hiked a lot in Guatape and was much healthier for it. The place is just conducive to hiking. You WANT to go for a hike every day, because it's just so beautiful and the weather is perfect.

BrandonBP
  11/26/2016 22:19 EST

dliss, It's not a super exciting place. It's only 4000 people. But man oh man, I had such a stellar time! When you're a gringo you stick out, and they just wave and say, "Hey Gringo!" while you're walking around.

That little town made me grin from ear to ear every day. I would just walk around and smile because I was so very happy. But perhaps it's not for everyone. They have the little square where there are bars and places to get food, and there are the typical old men hanging out at tables in plastic chairs on the street drinking beers. Little pool halls and grocery stores. And they were so very sweet to me. I felt very welcome. In one month, I saw ZERO gringos there. I had to use Spanish to get by, so if you no speakie speakie, it may be difficult. But for that same reason, it's a great place to practice your language.

8901
  11/27/2016 00:51 EST

If flying into Rio Negro at the airport is their public transportation to Guatape ?

dliss62
  11/27/2016 01:18 EST

@BrandonBP

Sounds like a place I'll like!

I'm very fluent and been speaking Spanish since age of 5yrs, so no issues there.

I lived and worked in Bogota for 7years, but never knew about Guatape until I learned about it on this forum.

Thanks again and can't wait to check it out!

gringo2u
  11/27/2016 06:29 EST

Is Rio Negro polluted? I notice it has chemical factories.

gringo2u
  11/27/2016 06:31 EST

Does La Ceja have a good residential wifi server? It's such a lovely place!!

timllowe
  11/27/2016 08:07 EST

There is pubic transportation to EVERYWHERE in Colombia.

JasonWriter
  12/6/2016 01:56 EST

I'm glad I happened to click on this thread.

There's a Guatape love-fest going down here, and I dig it. I've been to Guatape a couple times. First time I had my expectations for Guatape built up so high by various Colombianos that I was expecting a mix between Machu Pichuu and the Great Pyramids. Also, I was under the impression that Guatape was just The Rock. When I went, it was raining. Sky was pure depression. So I was all in all disappointed to that end. But then I spent a few hours in the town, and I thought "Well I'll be damned if I don't feel the urge to rent an apartment here for some reason." Beautiful littlr pueblo, great vibe, felt like the sort of place where an artist's retreat might be held or something. Second time I visited Guatape, I had the same thought. Then I read this thread, and the obvious hit me: why the he11 not just rent a super cheap little apartment in Guatape for a month or so? I really like Medellin, and I've taken a few trips around Colombia, but I think it would be really cool to temporarily relocate to Guatape for a month or so, as some others here have. Probably in March. Thanks for the idea amigos

BrandonBP
  12/6/2016 14:49 EST

Any of you guys visit Jardin? I hung out with a retired Canuck and Ozzie in Pereira, and they said it was fabulous. I looked it up on the map and it was not the direction I was traveling. So, I never made it.

But I'm intrigued. They said it was a super great town. Maybe I'll make it my next trip.

I think maybe there are two Jardins. If you have a story about the good one, I'd love to hear it.

novato1953
  12/6/2016 19:24 EST

I checked into the old hotel a few days ago here in Medellin and, by coincidence, the night clerk and me were talking yesterday and he gave me a short list of nice towns close enough for day trip: Jardin, Bello, San Antonio de Pereira, La Ceja, San Pedro de los Milagros, Santa Fe and San Jeronimo. I was advised the last two are warmer than Medellin; Milagros, cooler.

Andresen
  12/6/2016 21:20 EST

The last two aren't just warmer than Medellin, they are HOT.

novato1953
  12/6/2016 21:25 EST

I'll let Cesar know.

timllowe
  12/6/2016 21:31 EST

You know, people talk about HOT. I'll grant you, the coasts are HOT. People say Cali is hot but it's really quite pleasant most of the time. Don't walk in the sun. Don't over dress. And time your day to be inside between 3 and 5pm if you can do it.
Caleños greet each other with, "Oh! que CALOR!" They just like to bitch. They complain that it's freezing on mornings where it gets into the 60's.

gringo2u
  12/7/2016 05:14 EST

Thanks so much! Frank

gringo2u
  12/7/2016 05:15 EST

Thanks so much! Frank

njwalgren
  12/7/2016 08:06 EST

Rents here have been increasing lately, but you can still find a small apt. for as little as 300 thousand pesos per month.Average rent is more like 600 thousand pesos per month. I currently pay 700 pesos for the 1st floor of a house with 3 bedrooms, 3 full baths, a private walled yard and a "fonda" in back for partying--just one block from the lake.

jhutch621
  12/23/2016 17:21 EST

What is the name and general area of the hotel where you stay in in Medellin and the rate?
JJ

Caleña
  8/31/2017 13:44 EST

@NJWalgren, where do you find housing for rent in Guatapé? We would be living in Colombia with a dog, so spontaneous is not a great option for us.

freshair
  12/4/2018 13:02 EST

How is the high speed internet in guatape? Thanks.

SkyMan
  12/7/2018 15:59 EST

ccc...I agree with you. Rionegro and La Ceja might fit the bill for this request(been to both & they each have their own attributes). As always...book a flight & visit a number of cities & pueblos(try some at different altitudes=weather) and then you'll have some "boots-on-the-ground" experience, which is worth it's weight in gold. Buena Suerte ! Tranquilo.

LaPiranha
  12/7/2018 23:46 EST

I really don't know why you guys bother answering posts from over 2 years ago.

Since Gringo2U asked his question, he has switched his attention to the Azores, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Then back to Colombia, Popayan and Armenia. But seems to have settled in Veracruz, Mexico, although he's looking at moving again, to Guanajuato.

Makes you wonder how helpful everyone's recommendations really are.

JustSomeGuy
  12/8/2018 00:00 EST

This thread has been very interesting. I'm going to visit some of the towns mentioned. I would like to thank the people who have responded to this thread.

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