Medellin is a modern town - there is no colonial quarter as such, but
the city is nonetheless one of the prettiest in Latin America. Visitors
to Medellin are invariably warmly surprised by the city, which has an
unwarranted, lingering bad reputation. Surrounded by mountains on all
sides, the city has a fantasic spring like climate, tree clad streets
and great nightlife. The city seems well organised - it's a far cry
from similar sized (2 million inhabitants) chaotic cities in Latin
America. Medellin is very clean, very green, very prosperous and is now
also very safe.
Medellin has various churches
and cathedrals to explore, in addition to the Museo de Antioquia, one
of Colombia's finest museums. The Museo de Antioquia exhibits various
pre-Columbian, colonial and modern artworks in addition to various
artworks by local boy Fernando Botero.
Also of
interest on tours of Medellin city is the "Pueblito Paisa", a small
replica "Paisa Town" atop a small hill in the centre of Medellin. There
are small exhibits as to how Paisa life was 100-200 years ago, and
fantastic views over all the city. It's all rather tacky though.
Another
interesting trip in Medellin is to take the cable car (Metrocable) up
to Santo Domingo, from where their are great views over the city. If
you get out at the top, don't stray too far - this is one of Medellin's
poorest areas (and not particularly safe) - but nonetheless interesting
to see the local way of life. All of the above can easily be visited in
a full day tour of Medellin.
Medellin makes a great base for exploring nearby Paisa towns and natural attractions.
