We decided to bypass the city and head a bit south…to the town of Pance (NOT pronounced “pants” but “PAN-say”.) Just half an hour out, along a very pretty river coming from the mountains, you wouldn’t know a city was even near.
Off the main highway towards the town, we drove to the very end of the road (about half an hour)…to a campground/hostel/finca called La Castellano. It was time for me to get back to camping. All these $8 per night hotel rooms have me a few sizes too big for my britches.
Danni and Cesar pulled their home up to a relatively flat space and popped the tent.
Bedtime is always early when you are sleeping outside. I think I was asleep by 9pm in my little mushroom tent but it wasn’t early enough. There was some sort of black fly up in these hill…and it was feasting on my ankles and the back of my legs. I didn’t realize until well into the next day. Ugh.
It was a morning to cook outside. These guys have a camp stove and refrigerator set up in the back of the truck.
The finca owner was even nice enough to set us up with a purple table cloth.
But mostly it’s a place for the Cali city folk to get out of the heat and into the cooler air and even cooler water.
Lots of people soaking their feet and swimming…
A nice river to stop along if you are looking to avoid Cali (some people just aren’t city folk.)
Once down the mountain and back on the highway, we continued south to the old colonial city of Popayan, Colombia (a popular stop for travelers driving from Cali to Ecuador). Supposedly it is considered one of best preserved colonial cities in the Americas. I’ll be the judge of that!
Pit of my day: Getting attacked by about 35 blood sucking chigger/flies in the evening while camping. (I am still itching the bites now…3 days later.)
Peak of my day: Finding that buying ten 50mg generic Benadryl pills and a tube of corticosteroid cream in Colombia costs under $3USD. Oh yes…and soaking my feet in the river.
