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I left Jardin by bus at 6:30 AM for a 7 hour ride to Manizales. I liked the hair on the passenger in front of me:
We passed some enormous highway sections under construction (they reminded me of my ride from the Finca to Bogota with Daniel and Naty). And some lovely scenery.
I Met Adam and his fiancé (engaged in December) on the bus, who are having a pre-honeymoon vacation in a Finca outside of Armenia. They recommended I try flying: some flights cost as little as $30! After today’s bus ride, I am tempted.
The hostel in Armenia is great, with a restaurant and bar downstairs open to the street, live music, lots of students, just across from a giant university. Welcome to Armenia, Sam!
The next morning I headed to the magnificent Jardín Botánico del Quindío:
The garden had a maze...
Armenia, maze.MOV...which I was able to solve in record time..
There were really big trees, palms, ferns...
Hairy trees...
Bamboo...
Blue birds
Multi-colored birds
And of course, flowers. Lots and lots of flowers:
There were even some carnivorous pitcher plants:
But best of all was the incredible butterfly enclosure:
This poor fellow was hanging from a hook!
Lunch time!
My favorite
I saw many other botanical gardens in Colombia and other countries in Central and South America: the Jardín Botánico del Quindío was my favorite.
Back in Armenia at the famous La Fogata, for a delicious filet mignon. And better yet, I learned that Luke will meet me for dinner tomorrow evening. Luke is a friend I knew from my family’s annual reunions at Gold Lake, in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. Here is a view of the camp as we approach it by boat (the cabins are mostly hidden behind the trees):
And here is a picture a few years ago of a typical afternoon beach gathering before dinner. Recognize anyone?
OK, back to Luke. Here he is, the only person I knew in Colombia besides Che and her family. Luke is an American, a high school principal in Armenia, fluent in Spanish, and engaged to be married.
Tomorrow: the Valle de Cocora. See you later!
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