{"id":18442,"date":"2023-06-23T13:51:08","date_gmt":"2023-06-23T11:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/solkes.com\/?p=18442"},"modified":"2023-07-01T00:24:19","modified_gmt":"2023-06-30T22:24:19","slug":"m-for-medellin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/solkes.com\/en\/globe-trotting\/2023\/06\/m-for-medellin\/","title":{"rendered":"M for Medellin"},"content":{"rendered":"

A<\/span>re\u00a0you traveling to Medellin and don’t know where to start? Don’t worry. The first thing to know is that Medell\u00edn is the city of eternal spring. There are many touristic and emblematic places.<\/p>\n

The City of eternal spring<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Medell\u00edn is the second-largest city in Colombia after Bogot\u00e1 and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburr\u00e1 Valley, a central region of the Andes Mountains, in northwestern South America.<\/p>\n

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Pedro Escola @ Solkes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Coffee lovers will love Medell\u00edn. It is the capital of Antioquia province, which is famous for its coffee plantations and flower farms.<\/p>\n

Medell\u00edn is consolidating its position as a modern city rich in tourist, cultural, and commercial activity. It has 22 museums and six library parks, more than 25 shopping malls, six gastronomic areas, and an array of important medical facilities that make the city a center for health tourism.<\/p>\n

The weather is almost perfect, hence its rather lyrical nickname of ‘The city of eternal spring’. With year-round average temperatures of around 22\u00b0C (72\u00b0F) and daily highs of over 30\u00b0C (86\u00b0F).<\/p>\n

Medell\u00edn’s climate is as good as it gets. It rains quite a bit, as in any tropical country, but it is never cold. If warm weather and a pleasant climate are important to you, Medell\u00edn meets all the requirements for good weather!<\/p>\n

You are surrounded by natural beauty and health.<\/p>\n

Medell\u00edn is the capital of Antioquia, Colombia. It is a region crossed by the central and western mountain ranges, which makes it a mountainous region with a high agricultural and livestock vocation, with commerce, industry, and tourism being other of its main economic activities.<\/p>\n

Antioquia has a total of 125 municipalities, 20 of which are considered magical towns (Arboletes, Barbosa, Caldas, Cisneros, Concepci\u00f3n, Dabeiba, Donmat\u00edas, El Carmen de Viboral, Entrerr\u00edos, G\u00f3mez Plata, Guatap\u00e9, Jard\u00edn, Jeric\u00f3, Marinilla, Necocl\u00ed, Puerto Berr\u00edo, San Jos\u00e9 de la Monta\u00f1a, San Vicente Ferrer, Santa Fe de Antioquia, Santo Domingo, Sons\u00f3n, T\u00e1mesis, Turbo, Urrao, and Venecia), of which three are also heritage towns of Colombia: Jard\u00edn, Jeric\u00f3, and Santa Fe de Antioquia.<\/p>\n

Important Information<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

At the beginning of the 20th century, Medellin was the center of industrialization in Colombia with a great variety of factories located in the city.
\nIt is important to recognize that in the 1970s, Medell\u00edn suffered the greatest economic and social crisis in its history.<\/p>\n

Young people lost their jobs, there was no possibility of raising families and crime rates soared. Consequently, it became the perfect breeding ground for the rapid establishment of a drug trafficking network: in 1976 the Medellin Cartel<\/strong><\/span> was created, with its kingpin Pablo Escobar at its head.<\/p>\n

During the 17 years, it was in operation, it turned Medellin into the most dangerous city in the world. The city had a homicide rate of up to 381 per 100,000 inhabitants in 1991. The city lived an open war not only against the police but also between the cartels themselves.<\/p>\n

In 1993, Pablo Escobar was killed, but this was not the end of drug trafficking. People were fed up with so much violence. Little by little and with the help of all the organizations, Medellin has been able to overcome its terrible past, being in this XXI century one of the best cities to live in the world and one of the most innovative.<\/p>\n

But, even if such horrible things took place in the eternal spring city, Antioquia’s capital is much more than that and the list of things to do is varied and could go on and on.<\/p>\n

It is a special city, the atmosphere of its streets, the style of some of its neighborhoods, and the friendliness of the paisa people. The moment you arrived in that city, you immediately feel like you are in a familiar place.<\/p>\n

Moreover, in recent years a great effort is being made to recover the “livability” of the city, with a sustainable development plan that has been applauded and awarded internationally. Today Medellin is a place with lots of cultural spaces, cool neighborhoods, and a good number of attractions.<\/p>\n

Social innovation was one of the city’s efforts to improve the quality of life of its citizens. In 1991, with the drafting of the new anthropocentric constitution, actions were focused on strategic plans that translated into greater investment in education, innovation, and social inclusion.<\/p>\n

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Pedro Escola @ Solkes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Among the city’s mega-projects, the Metro Mass Transit System is perhaps one of the milestones that most marked the city. The pride of the people of Antioquia. Later, it was joined by the metro-cable feeders, the metro-plus, the tramway, the bicycle lanes, and the escalators in Comuna 13, which changed the face of a neighborhood in front of the world.<\/p>\n

Another bet the city made to generate a culture change was the Medellin Public Library System and the Articulated Life Units (UVA) that work with public institutions, and organizations and are today centers of citizen transformation that respond to specific needs.<\/p>\n

So, traveling to Medell\u00edn is safe, its history of violence is behind it and today Medell\u00edn flourishes thanks to its social and urban transformation, which can be witnessed in important tourist sites in the city, such as Comuna 13 or the Casa de la Memoria Museum, among others.<\/p>\n

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Pedro Escola @ Solkes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In fact, according to figures from the Security and Coexistence Secretariat of the Medellin Mayor’s Office, as of October 2022, Medellin had a homicide rate between nine and ten points below the national average, as well as a 50% decrease in the last four decades of violent deaths of young people between the ages of 14 and 28.<\/p>\n

As in any destination, there are some places and times to be more vigilant, as well as in general, take care of high-value personal items such as jewelry, cameras, and cell phones, and avoid carrying large sums of money.<\/p>\n

Medell\u00edn was named ‘Innovative City of the Year<\/span><\/strong>‘ by the Wall Street Journal in 2013, and that amazing innovation is visible throughout the city.<\/p>\n

You can ride the Metrocable<\/strong><\/span> cars to previously isolated neighborhoods, visit the many science parks and libraries scattered throughout the city, or explore the Comuna 13 neighborhood with its series of urban escalators.<\/p>\n

Medell\u00edn’s policy of social urbanism, aimed at incorporating previously alienated citizens into the city and investing heavily in progressive architecture and education, has been heralded around the world, and the opportunity to experience it firsthand is a great reason to visit the city.<\/p>\n

Details make the difference<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Lets us start by asking: what is the best time to visit Medell\u00edn?<\/p>\n

Honestly, it depends! For those who prefer the heat, the best time to visit Medellin is between mid-December and early March, the hottest time of the year. However, the weather is always so pleasant, that visiting Medellin will always be a good idea.<\/p>\n

Likewise, for those who love cooler temperatures, the period between early October and mid-January is ideal.<\/p>\n

Something very particular about Medellin and Colombia, in general, is that, in the same region and a few kilometers away, it is possible to easily change the thermal floor, which makes it an exceptional destination in which its multiple climates are one of the expressions of its extensive diversity.<\/p>\n

Other amazing facts are that as expected food is delicious. Medell\u00edn is full of restaurants with spectacular dishes, and we recommend trying the famous Bandeja Paisa, which will take your senses to another level.<\/p>\n

Since around 2010, Medell\u00edn has benefitted from:<\/p>\n